Methodology and Evaluation System

Introductory Framework

Crypto Briefing uses a standardized approach to evaluating the value of blockchain-based projects and their associated tokens. The report is the result of exhaustive research and analysis based on five factors. 

Based on a weighted average of these five factors, we rank new projects we find each month against each other. The one with the strongest scores in each of these metrics becomes that month’s pick-of-the-month.

The five factors we evaluate, ordered by importance, are the market opportunity, tokenomics, core team, underlying technology, and narrative. We use both qualitative and quantitative measures in an attempt to produce the most accurate picture possible at the time we conduct our evaluation.

As a reminder, our research is focused on assessing long-term value and risks of token projects. Our recommendations are not a short-term buy or sell indicator. The analysis and conclusions provided in our reports merely represent our expert opinions, and we rely on information provided by the team, data that is publicly available, as well as our own qualitative analysis.

Methodology

In the following section we break down each of the five factors we use to evaluate investment opportunities. These factors are all codependent, so they are analyzed both individually and in the context of the overall scope and progress of the project.

Market Opportunity

The market opportunity of a project assesses its prospects for future growth. Our team attempts to evaluate the addressable target market size and the competitive advantages, if any, of the project.

The addressable market size is an estimate of the potential number of users and a valuation of the target industry of the project. We also compare the target project to other competing projects within that same industry to evaluate its chances of success.

Tokenomics

One of the most important factors in evaluating the prospects of a crypto investment are its tokenomics. Adoption, users, and revenue do not matter if investors in a project’s token cannot capture any of that value.

Examination of a token’s economics begins with a comparative analysis of the project’s market capitalization relative to other comparable projects and the overall market opportunity. Then our team looks at the role of the token and how it captures value within the scope of that market. We look at drivers of demand, revenue-sharing mechanics, how token supply is expected to change over time, and other factors that may lead to appreciation.

Another important element for tokenomics is the level of decentralization. High ownership concentration among venture capital firms, the core team, or even known influencers could result in steady selling pressure that a project is unable to overcome.

An ideal project will have proven partnerships, active development that is either open-source or distributed across several different companies, and have a strong community of holders and supporters who can foster adoption.

Core Team

The core team behind a blockchain project is crucial to evaluating its prospects for success. Those with a proven track record add tremendous narrative value to a project, while those with a record of unscrupulous behavior can ruin a project before it even gets off the ground. 

Our research team assesses core teams based on their credentials, GitHub activity, past projects, and espoused ambitions for their current project.

In addition to credentials that are backed by evidence from a demonstrable track record of prior successes in previous businesses and engineering pursuits, the size and balance of the team are also assessed in relation to the goals and scope of the project. Moreover, the overall stability and sustained growth of the team are used as indicators of project viability.

Underlying Technology

Technological and product development is crucial for any blockchain-based project. We assess the functionality of that technology and where it stands today, its quality in comparison to competing projects, and the expected trajectory of the development of that technology.

The ideal project will have a solution that is relevant to users, keep track of its progress with a milestone schedule, and consistently produce quality code and product iterations.

Narrative

The success of most blockchain-based projects hinges on network effects. Innovation does not matter if acceptance in the industry and market is low. Network effects are especially important for base-layer projects that are being built for future dApp development and rely on exponential ecosystem growth for success. These network effects and industry acceptance rolled into a single score of “narrative” to capture the qualitative aspects of adoption. 

We take a comparative look at several variables to evaluate the narrative of a project, including active addresses, on-chain transactions, total value locked, and number of key community supporters to determine the health of a given ecosystem. We also look at existing integrations and partnerships as part of this evaluation.

Our Pick-of-the-Month Methodology

Each month we examine dozens of projects we believe have the potential for long-term success to select as our Pick-of-the-Month. These are projects that, in our opinion, are poised to capitalize on short to medium-term trends in the crypto space.

We narrow down this list to three projects with the strong factors mentioned above for deeper due-diligence and analysis. Finally, the best of these three projects are selected as the Pick-of-the-Month.