Speed isn’t just a challenge for blockchain – it’s the deciding factor between adoption and obsolescence. If Web3 can’t match the seamless experience users expect, it won’t matter how decentralized or innovative it is.

The current state of development speaks volumes: according to a16z’s Builder Energy Dashboard, which tracks where crypto’s builders are focusing their efforts, infrastructure development accounts for around one-fifth of activity, with Layer 1 and Layer 2 projects making up over a third of that segment. Given that most of these projects are focused on delivering high transaction speeds without corresponding high fees, it’s clear that scalability and processing times remain a major constraint on the industry.

However, blockchain scalability must not become the only lens through which we evaluate transaction speeds. Achieving the highest transactions per second isn’t an end in itself – it’s a means to a better user experience. In the areas where Web3 is gaining the most traction – namely trading and gaming – fast settlement isn’t a luxury; it’s a requirement for competing with Web2 incumbents.

Trading Up to DeFi

Demand for on-chain trading is surging. According to a16z’s annual State of Crypto report, decentralized exchanges (DEXs) now handle 10% of total spot crypto trading – a dramatic shift from just four years ago when centralized exchanges (CEXs) dominated 100% of the market.

Meanwhile, total value locked (TVL) in DeFi has climbed back above $100 billion for the first time since 2021, and analysts project continued expansion, with DeFi expected to grow at a 45% CAGR through 2032. The market is increasingly recognizing the advantages of on-chain, transparent, peer-to-peer trading over the black-box opacity of centralized systems.

But Web3 isn’t competing in a vacuum – legacy finance isn’t standing still. If on-chain trading platforms want to pull users away from TradFi, they need to offer speed, seamless UX, and reliability on par with platforms like Robinhood or Fidelity. The reality is that blockchain will never match TradFi’s centralized servers in raw speed – physics, latency, and decentralization make that impossible. But that’s not where Web3 wins. Its edge isn’t measured in milliseconds; it’s measured in trustlessness, finality, and programmable finance—things legacy systems simply can’t offer.

The real battle isn’t just about execution speed; it’s about how much trust, efficiency, and flexibility Web3 can inject into the financial stack. On-chain trading isn’t about making TradFi obsolete—it’s about building a financial system where finality is instant, markets are open, and speed serves trust, not intermediaries.

Game Studios Building It for Themselves

While gaming has seen flashes of mainstream interest, from Axie Infinity’s early surge to NBA Top Shot’s collectibles boom, long-term adoption remains elusive. This year, Ton has emerged as a hub for blockchain-based gaming, with viral hits like Hamster Kombat, Notion, and Catizen. These trends suggest that blockchain can add new layers of ownership and economic incentives to gaming – but viral success doesn’t equal sustainability.

The real opportunity lies in instant asset settlement, true player ownership, and permissionless economies, but only if blockchain tech can operate at speeds indistinguishable from traditional game servers. If transaction delays or high fees create friction, Web3 gaming risks being a novelty rather than a revolution – a niche experiment instead of a fundamental shift in the industry.

Unlike DeFi and on-chain trading, which have seen institutional backing, blockchain gaming is still in its experimental phase. Developers face a different set of challenges: while traders may tolerate some transaction costs, gamers won’t. If fees and latency interrupt gameplay, blockchain titles simply can’t compete with the seamless experience of traditional games. That’s why some studios, frustrated with existing infrastructure, have built their own chains – like Sky Mavis with Ronin or Dapper Labs with Flow.

This signals an unmet need: Web3 gaming requires infrastructure tailored for high-speed, low-cost transactions at scale. Instead of forcing developers to solve these problems themselves, the industry must deliver blockchains that are as invisible as they are powerful. After all, game creators should be focused on building immersive experiences, not architecting new networks from scratch.

The Need for High-Speed Blockchains

If blockchain is ever to deliver on high-demand use cases such as on-chain trading and gaming, the industry needs truly scalable, high-speed networks capable of matching Web2’s seamless experience. Solana’s rapid rise illustrates the demand for fast, cheap block space, but its struggles with uptime highlight the challenge of delivering scalable speed without compromise. Even Ethereum’s Layer 2 solutions, while improving speed and cost efficiency, introduce their own set of challenges – chief among them interoperability and fragmentation.

The direction of travel is right, but the clock is ticking. Blockchain infrastructure must evolve fast enough to deliver on Web3’s promises before Web2 incumbents absorb its best ideas. Speed is critical, but speed alone isn’t enough. The real goal isn’t just to match Web2’s performance – it’s to build a trustless, open, and composable foundation that Web2 can’t replicate.

Author bio

Tristan Dickinson is the Chief Marketing Officer at exSat Network, a docking layer for Bitcoin. A dynamic and visionary marketing executive, Tristan brings a wealth of experience from the banking, financial services, Web3, and technology sectors.

[PRESS RELEASE – London, United Kingdom, March 13th, 2025]

The Avalanche London Summit, which will take place between May 20-22, 2025 at Hatfield House in Hatfield, England, has announced its first lineup of expert speakers from across the world of blockchain and crypto. Hosted by Ava Labs, the event will bring together over 1500 developers, founders, investors, and former policymakers to explore the latest innovations in blockchain, AI, Layer 1 (L1) development, and the Avalanche ecosystem.

The first confirmed speakers bringing their expertise and insights to the event include:

• Emin Gün Sirer, Founder and CEO, Ava Labs
• John Wu, President, Ava Labs
• Lavinia D. Osbourne – Founder, Women in Blockchain Talks
• Anthony Scaramucci – Founder & Managing Partner, SkyBridge Capital
• Baylor Myers – Vice President, Corporate Development, BitGo
• Christopher Perkins – President, CoinFund
• Haseeb Qureshi – Managing Partner/Founder, Dragonfly
• Meltem Demirors – General Partner, Crucible Capital
• Paul Kremsky – Global Head of Business Development, Cumberland
• Rob Hadick – General Partner, Dragonfly
• Stani Kulechov – Founder, Aave Labs

The event follows a successful Summit in Buenos Aires, in October 2024. Featuring 92 sessions and 164 speakers, the first-ever trilingual Summit with real-time translations set a new benchmark for global blockchain engagement. Building on this momentum the Avalanche London Summit will deliver thought-provoking keynotes, interactive panel sessions, hands-on workshops, and opportunities for networking with industry leaders and visionaries. Covering topics from AI, DeFi, Institutional Adoption, Gaming, Developer Tools, SocialFi, and more, the Summit will deliver unmissable insights and inspire bold visions for the future of Web3.

Emin Gün Sirer, Founder and CEO, Ava Labs, comments: “We are honored to be bringing together industry leaders, innovators, and pioneers shaping the future of blockchain and Web3. London’s vibrant and pro-crypto ecosystem acts as a key tech hub, allowing us to connect with over 50 of our key EMEA partners across DeFi, Institutional, and Gaming, deepening our regional ties. From ground-breaking developments in cryptocurrency to real-world L1 applications, our speakers will share invaluable insights to inspire collaboration and drive the next era of blockchain adoption forward.”

Lavinia D. Osbourne, Founder, Women in Blockchain, Talks and emcee of the Summit comments: “There’s a vibrant female blockchain community in the UK driving real innovation and change, and I’m excited to be part of an event that brings together diverse voices within the space. I look forward to the Summit providing a platform to re-connect for meaningful dialogue, collaboration, and growth, while also fostering valuable networking opportunities for those new to the space.”

Alongside the Summit’s main agenda, a series of supporting events will further engage the community and drive innovation:

• Codebase: The official Avalanche incubator where Web3 founders participate in an in-person Welcome Week, culminating in a Demo Day on May 29.
• Avalanche Innovation House: A multi-month residency in Bath for 20 visionary builders, featuring daily collaboration, expert mentorship, and workshops until May 18 before heading to the Summit.
• Owl Explains Crypto Summit presented by Sidley: A one-day conference for policymakers, academics, and industry experts focused on blockchain and DeFi regulations through curated, in-depth sessions on May 22.
• Avalanche Hackathon: A three-day event for developers, designers, and blockchain enthusiasts to innovate and build transformative projects with dedicated mentorship and workshops, May 23-25

Additional speakers and the full agenda will be announced soon. For more information on the Avalanche London Summit and to secure tickets, users can visit https://www.avalanchesummitlondon.com/

About Avalanche 

Avalanche is an ultra-fast, low-latency blockchain platform designed for builders who need high performance at scale. The network’s architecture allows for the creation of sovereign, efficient, and fully interoperable public and private layer 1 (L1) blockchains which leverage the Avalanche Consensus Mechanism to achieve high throughput and near-instant transaction finality. The ease and speed of launching an L1, and the breadth of architectural customization choices, make Avalanche the perfect environment for a composable multi-chain future.

Supported by a global community of developers and validators, Avalanche offers a fast, low-cost environment for building decentralized applications (dApps). With its combination of speed, flexibility, and scalability, Avalanche is the platform of choice for innovators pushing the boundaries of blockchain technology.

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed H.J. Res 25, effectively rejecting the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) controversial broker rule.

The resolution, which gained overwhelming bipartisan support, aims to protect decentralized finance (DeFi) innovation and prevent regulatory overreach.

Taxing Requirement

According to the DeFi Education Fund, 292 lawmakers voted in favor of the resolution while 132 went against it, nullifying a rule that would have imposed strict reporting requirements on DeFi platforms. The 292 included all House Republicans, apart from a few that didn’t show up, as well as 76 Democrats.

The advocacy group praised the move, saying in a statement posted on X:

“The DeFi Education Fund applauds all members who voted in favor of the resolution, reaffirming that Americans should have the freedom to decide how they transact.”

Pushed by the U.S. Treasury and the IRS, the contentious rule sought to improve tax compliance by treating DeFi platforms and software providers like traditional brokers, subjecting them to stringent reporting obligations. However, critics argued that it ignored the unique nature of decentralized technology and would have placed undue compliance burdens on developers who never take custody of users’ assets.

In December last year, Andreessen Horowitz joined a legal challenge against the regulation, claiming that it exceeded the IRS’s statutory authority and threatened the growth of the crypto industry in the U.S.

Following the passing of the joint resolution, French Hill, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, stated that the broker rule is “a clear example of government overreach” that could push American digital asset development offshore. He also reaffirmed his commitment to working across party lines to create clearer, more appropriate regulatory frameworks for crypto.

According to Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett, H.J. Res 25 will now move back to the Senate due to a technicality requiring “bills that affect the budget to originate in the House.” Senators, who voted in favor of a similar resolution 70 to 27 earlier in the month, must pass it before it heads to the president for final approval. If signed into law, it will officially overturn the IRS rule and prevent it from coming back in a similar form.

Market Reaction

Despite the development, at the time of writing, the broader crypto market was down 0.7% in the last 24 hours. However, some high-cap assets including Bitcoin (BTC), XRP, and Dogecoin (DOGE), were showing signs of recovery. BTC was up 1.1% on its price from yesterday, while XRP and DOGE recorded even better improvements at 3.1% and 3.4%, respectively.

In the past week, data from CoinGecko shows that the digital asset sector lost nearly 10% of its value as it battled a period of enhanced volatility. In that time, Bitcoin dropped to a four-month low, dipping under the $77,000 level, while its closest rival, Ethereum (ETH), slipped below $1,800 for the first time in nearly 16 months.