Forget the noise you're hearing on CNBC. Forget all those hyperventilating analyst reports filling up your inbox. About the authors Hi, I’m Rajiv. So, I know you’re all just dying to hear what Wall Street is missing in metaverse investments. Instead, they get caught up in the weeds on old-school volume measures. At the same time, the future is tipping its hand from the digital subterranean.

Volume Isn't the Whole Story

MarketBeat can recommend stocks like NVIDIA (NVDA), Accenture (ACN), and Globant (GLOB) that are performing well. They determine this by looking at their dollar trading volume. Okay, boomer. That would be the equivalent of assessing a hawker stall in Singapore based on S$5 notes in their cash register. You wouldn't do that, would you? You’d want to see something about the quality of the food. Take note of the commotion surrounding the stall as well as the line’s wait time. It’s these intangibles that propel unparalleled success!

Wall Street is obsessed with lagging indicators. They look in the rearview mirror. We need to look forward. Dollar volume is a symptom, not the disease. It’s the impact of something much more profound occurring beneath the metaverse ecosystem.

DeFi, NFTs, and the Real Metaverse

That "something deeper" is on-chain activity. Think about it. The metaverse is much more than VR headsets and dancing, digital avatars. It’s about digital ownership, it’s about decentralized finance, it’s about communities coming together around NFTs. That's where the genuine growth is happening, and that's where you'll find the signals that Wall Street analysts are completely ignoring.

  • NFT Marketplaces (OpenSea, etc.): Are companies like NVIDIA partnering with prominent NFT projects? Is Accenture consulting on NFT-based metaverse experiences? Track those partnerships. Look at the trading volumes of NFTs related to these companies, not just the stock volume itself. A surge in a company-branded NFT could be a leading indicator of increased investor interest.
  • Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs): Many metaverse assets are traded on DEXs. Are any of these "promising" companies providing liquidity or building infrastructure for these exchanges? If so, the growth of those DEXs directly benefits them. Follow the money on the blockchain.
  • Social Media Sentiment: Forget generic Twitter sentiment analysis. I'm talking about diving into specific metaverse communities on Discord and Reddit. What are they saying about these companies? Are they excited about their metaverse initiatives? Are they building on top of their platforms? That grassroots enthusiasm is worth more than any analyst rating.

Underground Data for Retail Investors

Here's the beauty of it: this "underground" data is accessible to everyone. You don't need a Bloomberg Terminal. You don't need a PhD in finance. It’s not difficult, you just have to be willing to look beneath the surface.

Let's bring this back to Singapore. Pretend you’re an investor looking to find the next successful hawker stall. Do you randomly pick the one with the longest line or fewest number of people standing around in confusion, not knowing where to go. No! You look for the stall with:

  1. NFT Tracking: Platforms like CryptoSlam and NFT Price Floor let you track NFT trading volumes and floor prices.
  2. DEX Analytics: Tools like DeFi Pulse and DappRadar provide insights into the activity on decentralized exchanges.
  3. Community Listening: Join relevant Discord servers and Reddit communities. Listen to what people are saying. Engage in the conversation.

It's the same with metaverse stocks. Forget the superficial volume numbers. Look for the companies with the authentic community building, the pioneering DeFi adoption, the revolutionary NFT campaigns.

Street Food and Metaverse Stocks

Wall Street will catch on eventually. By then, you’ll be well ahead of the curve.

  • The longest line of repeat customers.
  • The most glowing reviews on local food blogs.
  • The secret ingredient that everyone is talking about.

So let’s get real—if investing in the metaverse is the new investing in the internet in the 90s, investing in the metaverse is a terrible idea. Enormous opportunity, but dangerous peril. As we have mentioned before, most of these companies are tremendously overvalued. Some will fail as a matter of course. Avoid having all your strategies and measures on related primary outcomes. Rebalance, educate yourself, and never invest more than you’re prepared to lose.

There’s no reason to allow fear to dissuade you from taking your first steps into this new and exhilarating frontier. The metaverse is indeed the future – but as everything, the future will be owned by those who dare to see further than just the obvious.

The Risk is Real Though!

So, move on from the dinosaur metrics, welcome the subterranean data, and begin forging your metaverse investment while there’s still time to do so. You may be amazed at what you find – and so will Wall Street.

But don't let fear stop you from exploring this exciting new frontier. The metaverse is the future, and the future belongs to those who are willing to look beyond the surface.

So, ditch the outdated metrics, embrace the underground data, and start building your metaverse portfolio today. You might just surprise yourself – and Wall Street.