DeFI within the Gig Economy
The Covid 19 Pandemic has brought a lot of change in our world from the idea of social distancing to take care of our health into the idea of Working From Home becoming a common phenomenon in our daily lives. It’s now been 3 years ahead from the peak of Pandemic but the Idea of Work From Home has still been a mainstay in many people’s careers and the “Gig Economy” was brought into reality. So let’s take a closer look at What the Gig Economy really is and the role of DeFI in its advancement?
The Rise of Gig Economy
2024 marks a new beginning for the world as many countries experience major recovery in its GDP and Economy. We see emerging countries such as India and Indonesia holding out elections as New Leaders are elected with a vision of steering the economy back to its pre — pandemic levels. Major headlines obviously point to the U.S Presidential Election as the world reserve country which could determine the direction of the world.
Beyond these uncertainty, the pandemic has left an indomitable mark in all our lives as Social Distancing becomes a norm for over 2 years. Companies and various organizations had to reassess how they are able to operate within the Pandemic restrictions and the idea of Working from Home was born as a temporary measure. This sparked a huge culture shift as employees are now allowed to perform their work from the comfort of their own home.
Unfortunately the time comes around when they have to leave these perks and return back to working from office but not all are ready for shift. The Working from Home culture has driven many employees into their comfort zone while allowing them to explore other side hustle that they are passionate about. This is where the term Freelance and Gig came into popularity as many jobs were in demand.
Social Distancing then became the catalyst for the Gig Economy where many jobs that beforehand were done by contract employees are now done remotely by Freelance or Part Time Workers. Many Jobs are now outsourced to freelance employees such as Bookkeeping and Copywriting as it provides benefits for both the employee and the employer who are not binded by contractual obligations.
These freelancers are then able to contribute for different projects around the industry while Companies can get their operational running remotely creating a synergy. Although most would point out the history of Gig Economy to the introduction of the Internet, its concept has been applied way beyond to 1910 where jazz session musicians were hired on a per job basis from which the term “Gig” also originates.
Now Freelancers occupy many creative industries such as Writers, Influencers,. Actors and Musicians who are paid on a Gig basis, giving them freedom to pick and choose the project they resonate with. This concept then became applied into many different industries such as Transportation with the introduction of Uber and ride — sharing app or AirBnb refining how Housing is shared on a Gig Basis.
This continued to grow with Data from the World Bank showing that the global gig economy accounts for up to 12% of the labor market, which is much higher than previous estimates for the total number of gig workers. Research from Staffing Industry Analysts estimates that the gig economy generated $5.4 trillion in revenue in 2021 with the majority of the freelance workers belonging to Gen Z and Millenials.
The Gig Economy draws its popularity due to the vast amount of opportunities available and the adaptation that is needed to get the job. Globally it is predicted over 1.57 Billion people are a part of the Gig Economy either adopting it as their main job or as a side hustle to add additional income. The Gig Economy continues to increase by more than 5% year on year as Websites such as Upwork and Freelance.com continue to pop up.
With the growing amount of Unemployment within the World and the tougher selection process that are installed on a Traditional Job, this freelancing opportunity offers a much needed alternative for creators to carve their own unique paths. The obvious upside is that in the digital age of information, you can basically pick up any skill that you like, master it with the aid of youtube or online courses and get a paying job in a couple of months.
The Gig Economy then became an integral part of the economy as the world still recovered from the aftershock of the Pandemic. It offers great upside not only for the employee but also for the employer who receives high quality work in return for no commitment. The growth has certainly also aided with the emergence of DeFI over the last decade as people receive new opportunities within an emerging industry.
Enter the Decentralization of Gig Economy
Bitcoin and other Digital Assets have not only brought a new concept of Blockchain to the World but also various new opportunities. The DeFI Space through its rise within the 2010s has prompted many innovators to come up with fresh ideas to expand the space with Metaverse, NFT and Web3 amongst the latest trends. These Projects provide many new opportunities for Freelancers to obtain New Gig such as Community Manager for the Token or even Account Manager for an Exchange, most of which are done remotely.
It is estimated that more than a 100 new projects are introduced to the DeFI Space everyday and this provides a vast amount of Gigs that anyone can instantly join and be a part of. The Digital Asset in itself also has been a major aid in boosting the Gig Economy as Stablecoin such as USDT and USDC offers a solution to the challenges posed by traditional payment systems. With its decentralized nature, digital assets enable seamless cross-border transactions, eliminating the delays and excessive fees associated with traditional methods.
Several platforms have also embraced this idea as they provide freelancers with the option to receive payments in crypto, giving them greater flexibility and financial control. NFTs have also been a major avenue for freelancers specializing in art as it provides a new option to sell their creatives to the outside world. It also brought them a great deal for new exposure to adopt their music or paintings into NFT which was worth a fortune in its peak 2021.
Despite the recent slump of NFTs, there are still vast new trends such as Web3 and Real World Assets that would offer plenty of Gigs for Freelancers in the years ahead. Although DeFI might not be the one to originate the Gig Economy, its role can certainly increase over the years as the world expands and becomes more digitized. The Rise of DeFI and the Gig Economy might go hand in hand as both the industry synergy to create a more innovative and sustainable future.
With the continuous evolution of the world around us, the Gig Economy is redefining the culture that is driven for digitization. We jn Nagaya Technologies Pte. Ltd believes that this new industry should be nurtured to innovate and provide opportunities for everyone in the digital era. This resonates with the creation of the World’s First Hybrid Digital Asset — Nagaya that is revolutionizing the DeFI Space. Intrigued to know more about Nagaya, you can visit us at www.nagaya.co
Or you can obtain your Nagaya now through the Latoken Platform at https://latoken.com/exchange/NGY_USDT
