What are Internet Capital Markets (ICM)? How Traditional Capital Markets Work The most common capital markets are the stock market and the bond market. These are places where banks or investors help businesses who need money to grow or build something. Capital markets help move money from savers to users. - One side has the money they want to invest - The other side needs the money to build. - Capital markets connect them There are two types of capital markets 1. Primary : Where things are sold for the first time (think of an IPO) 2. Secondary : Where people trade with each other (think of the regular stock market) Internet Capital Market : A New Approach Internet Capital Markets is a modern way of investing and trading money online. Think of a marketplace where anyone, anywhere can easily buy, sell or invest without needing banks or brokers. It doesn’t require you to be rich or connected to start investing. Anyone with an internet connection is able to participate. Further, ICMs never close, they operate 24/7, all while transactions happen instantly online and you pay less fees. Because it’s online, new ideas and financial products appear faster, giving everyone new ways to invest or raise money. The key differences between CM and ICM Internet Capital Markets improve on traditional Capital Markets in a few ways. - Access : CM are mostly limited to big institutions and wealthy investors. ICM is open to anyone with an internet connection. - Intermediaries (middlemen) : CM uses banks and brokers to handle deals. ICM lets people trade directly using tech (think of blockchain technology). - Availability : CM operates only on business hours and weekdays. ICM is available globally, 24/7, in real-time (all day, every day, worldwide) - Speed & Cost : CM has slower transactions. ICM has quicker (almost instant), cheaper and more efficient transactions. - Transparency : Within CM there is limited information available. Often, the information is private and controlled by big companies. ICM is public and verifiable information is accessible to anyone (blockchain transparency) - Innovation : Within CM things are more regulated and are slower to evolve. ICM gives the freedom for rapid experimentation and innovation in financial products and services. Solana’s Role in Internet Capital Markets Solana is important for ICM because it provides super-fast, low-cost transactions online. It allows people around the globe to trade, invest, and borrow money directly without expensive middlemen. Solana helps make investing fair and open to everyone, not just wealthy people or big banks. Its technology lets people experiment with new financial ideas, creating a quicker, cheaper, and more accessible way for everyone to use and grow their money. Lately, startups have acknowledged this shift in capital markets and are using solana as their go-to platform. @launchcoin / @believeapp is a leading force in the current meta that is emerging on Solana. They have a system where you can submit an idea and immediately launch a coin. Whenever people believe in your idea, they buy your token. Then, with the earnings of the fees in this market, the creator can start building and expanding their idea. Some notable launches that have emerged from these sort of markets are $DUPE, #jellyjelly, $BUDDY, $NOODLE, #GIGGLES, #FITCOIN, $PNP, $KAYYO, #CREATOR and $NINJA. Opportunities and Risks in Solana-Based Markets By now we know that Solana-based markets can create big opportunities because transactions are fast, low-cost and globally accessible. This results in more people, new financial ideas and quick take offs. However, there are risks too. Because it is still new and the market hasn’t matured yet, there can be bad actors. Solely launching tokens to extract money from fees or rugging the project. Or pretending to be startups but there is no confirmation whatsoever. This can lead to huge losses from investors as these markets are highly volatile. All in all, these are the very beginnings of ICMs and there can be a bright future if rules and regulations let this happen. No more hidden information and fast, direct investment in startups doesn’t sound too bad. Anyone, anywhere, anytime.