Crypto Expo Milan Highlights: Digital Fashion, Passion For Technologies, And Networking Italian Style

The beginning of a bullish cycle in the crypto market always sparks active engagement among investors, enthusiasts, and institutions. That's why the fall of 2023 was packed with events, conferences, and collaborations. In September, famous Token2049 conference took place in Singapore, followed by The Future Of Digital Assets in New York in November. Thousands of participants gathered to discuss money printing, regulation, and institutionalization of digital assets. Undoubtedly, the main topic of interest for attendees was how to profit from cryptocurrency.

In Italy, any crypto conference revolves around people and communities. I attended the largest one — Crypto Expo Milan 2023, held in the country's financial capital, to understand the discussions in the local crypto sphere and the emerging trends gaining momentum.

New generations are shaping the future of the local market

In Italy, cryptocurrencies are just starting to gain ground. Leading crypto companies are opening offices, and Bitcoin ATMs are appearing in cities. However, the level of ownership and mainstream knowledge about cryptocurrencies remains relatively low. For instance, the ownership level of digital assets in the country, according to Triple A data, is only 2% to compare with 14% in Singapore and 27% in the UAE. Partly, this can be explained by the conservatism of Italians. According to Benedetto Biondi, CEO of DeFi platform Folks Finance, "Italians are very conservative regarding their finances, so crypto will probably be more appealing for the new generation, who are more risk-averse."

The new generation of builders is very passionate about working in blockchain technology. Many have already tied their careers to this technology or are studying it at university. Today almost every Italian university has blockchain technology faculty or courses, and banks have their own departments dedicated to its study. Last year, the Italian government announced plans to provide $46 million in subsidies for blockchain projects to invest in technology, research, and innovation. This explains the particular enthusiasm of Italians to focus not on trading and monetization, but on creating innovations with practical applications.

For Marius Bodea, the co-founder of Crypto Expo Milan, this conference marks the second edition, where he and a group of enthusiasts aim to construct a passionate blockchain community. They prioritize quality, innovation, and supporting talent over the sheer quantity of projects. "Our driving purpose is to establish a future-oriented community around this emerging technology and educate those intrigued by blockchain and crypto.” Marius’ team places special emphasis on the projects and speakers participating in the event, rejecting scams and those who aim to sell coins that were just created yesterday.

Networking Italian style

Italians have an unparalleled knack for making connections. Hence, their passion for technology goes hand in hand with food. At the pre-party of the conference — or rather, the pre-aperitivo — a popular networking format in Italy, attendees could get acquainted with other conference participants in advance. The talented Milanese chef Giorgio Gramegna was in charge of organizing it, being the first to combine la cucina e la tecnologia (cooking and technology). Giorgio has his own culinary show, Crypto Confidential, where he invites interesting personalities from the crypto world to discuss digital matters while cooking.

His establishment, where the side networking event for Crypto Expo Milan took place, is highly favored among crypto enthusiasts. The community gatherings are always crowded, so the crowds often spill onto the streets, where conversations and project pitches continue.

“Where do you track your crypto portfolio prices?” asked Andrea who works for Vodafone and, in his spare time, builds the crypto management portfolio Jethos. CoinMarketCap came to my mind as the most frequent app I use. “Then you don’t own your data”, he said. Andrea and his friend Emanuele are developing a genuinely decentralized alternative to address the issue of private data exposure and market accuracy in existing platforms. They aim to conduct testing rounds before launching any marketing efforts. "Let's schedule a Skype call this weekend; I'd like to see your product features," within five minutes, we found someone who was already prepared to promote the project after recognizing its potential.

Binance sees demand among local users

There are those who start building their community, and those who already have one. Polkadot and Binance could be considered regular attendees at Italian crypto conferences. Binance registered its operations in the country and opened an office in Milan in 2022, subsequently building a big community in the country. The company’s spokesperson in Italy informed me that Binance has observed a strong interest from both retail and institutional investors in the country, “indicating a positive shift in the perception and adoption of digital assets.” She added:

“Binance is committed to fostering the growth of the crypto ecosystem in Italy. This is why we are actively working in several educational initiatives and programs, to enhance blockchain literacy and promote responsible trading practices in the Italian market.”

Image source: Crypto Expo Milan

Binance Italy serves local users, in compliance with OAM (Italian authority) registration. They can take advantage of a wide range of services, such as Binance Launchpad and Launchpool — which allow users to participate in the development of new projects by allowing them to allocate their capital on a token before it is listed on the market or immediately after its launch.

Speaking about the future potential of the local crypto market, a representative of Binance highlighted that “fostering collaboration between institutions and the crypto space is crucial for the continued maturation of the industry.”

Digital fashion and art are booming

And while crypto adoption in Italy has yet to reach the levels of other global capitals, one sector is truly flourishing. Milan — the capital of fashion and art — is now becoming a hub for talented Web3 artists, designers, and content creators.

Italian brands like Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, and Prada have long been interested in metaverses and NFTs, and Milan Fashion Week has been hosting virtual fashion shows for the past two years. In 2022, Gucci streamed its Milan Fashion Week event through its “Super QQ Show” in the metaverse. One of the most spectacular events was the augmented reality fashion show, a hybrid display organized jointly in Milan by metaverses such as Decentraland, Spatial, and Over. Milan even has its digital counterpart to fashion week — appropriately named Metaverse Fashion Week — where talented designers showcase clothing designed for wear in the metaverse. Last year, it attracted over 100,000 participants.

This year, one of the most prominent players in the market is the largest network of digital fashion creators — HGVIS. Its founder, Isola Zhu, is passionate about assisting talented digital designers in building their own successful and sustainable fashion brands. The brand is a participant in Milan Fashion Week, showcasing its collections of digital clothing with a blend of futurism and reality. Isola revealed that in the future, customers will be able to use NFT items as digital skins in virtual environments and customize these items with multiple materials in the Creative Lab.

Image source: HGVIS

Digital fashion in Milan has expanded beyond laptop screens, reaching the streets through AR applications like Over the Reality and Metagate. “Imagine being able to interact with fashion models in the heart of Milan, viewing their outfits in full AR glory, and engaging with your favorite brands in new exciting ways”. Models designed by Isola Zhu and brought to life by Metagate developers can be observed on the streets of Milan.

Image source: Crypto Expo Milan

The Metagate team present at Crypto Expo Milan experimented with augmented reality right in the conference hall. They brought digital hosts onto the stage and streamed panel discussions in a virtual environment. Their digital creations also manifest in reality as gondolas floating along the canals of Milan and sculptures coming to life in historic locations. "The more realistic, the better," I thought. "Virtual objects shouldn't look realistic," said Paolo, a Metagate developer. When I asked why, he explained that people should clearly understand that it's augmented reality and that these constructions serve a marketing role. Otherwise, they wouldn't fulfill their purpose.

Image source: Metagate

TradFi institutions and new generations will drive blockchain adoption

Answering my question about the future potential of the local crypto market, Benedetto Biondi, CEO of Folks Finance stated that adoption will be largely defined by a new generation that is more open to new technologies. He also believes that "most of the Layer 2 solutions will disappear, and only a few will survive over time." Additionally, he expressed curiosity about the evolution of Messaging Layer and the emerging narrative around Cross-chain dApps.

Image source: Crypto Expo Milan

Folk Finance is the largest DeFi application within the Algorand ecosystem in terms of funds locked in smart contracts. Recently, it achieved a milestone by becoming the first platform on Algorand to introduce digital gold and silver to a wide audience by listing GOLD and SILVER tokens, pegged to the real price of these precious metals. Each token is backed by a gram of physically secured gold or silver. This significant development marks a crucial step in connecting traditional finance with decentralized finance, enabling the use of real gold and silver in DeFi loans and trades. According to Biondi, real-world assets that become liquid, such as tokenized metals, have the potential to significantly impact blockchain.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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