As a reminder, Web 3 represents the next generation of the Internet, with blockchain at its centre and decentralisation as its main focus. Consequently, content creators and other ordinary people, rather than the companies that own the services and infrastructure, are at the forefront.

Despite the novelty of the concept, many large companies have already recognised it and are making efforts to popularise the innovation. In particular, earlier this year, a corresponding browser version was released by the developers of Opera. It allows to interact with decentralized applications and other components of Web 3.0 world. Read more about this in a separate article.

Which companies are engaging with cryptocurrencies

Here’s a quote from Zaveri, published by the news outlet Decrypt.

While the world is still just beginning to embrace Web3, this market is already showing tremendous potential, with many customers asking us to increase support for Web 3 and cryptocurrencies.


In other words, the driving force behind the adoption of digital assets is the users themselves. This means that big companies depend on the interests of their own customers in any case, and in addition listen to them.

Here too, we can assume that the emergence of coin and blockchain technology support by large companies will lead to similar support among organisations of a smaller scale. At the very least, it would be logical on the part of the latter to attract a new audience.


Google Cloud VP Amit Zaveri

Web 3 refers to the definition of the term for the next generation of Internet applications focused on decentralisation. In theory, this “new format” of the Internet will allow users to retain control over most of their data, because in the case of the same NFT, it is the creator of the tokens, not the owner of the trading platform, who receives the revenue. Therefore, the Google team will work on backend services for developers creating Web 3 applications.

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said during its Q4 2021 earnings report in February that building the Google Cloud team would be just one of the ways in which the company would compete in the blockchain space. Here’s his rejoinder, in which he mentioned the next generation of the internet.

In terms of Web 3, we are definitely looking at blockchain and such an interesting and powerful technology with broad application – much broader than in any other field. So we as a company are looking at how we can contribute to the ecosystem and bring our own value. One example is that our Google Cloud team is exploring ways to support our customers’ needs in creating, transacting, storing and deploying new products on blockchain-based platforms.

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai

That said, innovations in decentralisation by large companies cannot yet fully safeguard the crypto industry from interference by financial regulators. The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) last week imposed sanctions for the first time on a cryptocurrency mixer called Bender.io, which has links to North Korea.

In a press release issued on Friday, Ministry officials said that the service was allegedly being used by hackers in North Korea to “support their malicious activities and launder money through stolen virtual currencies”.

As a reminder, cryptomixers are platforms that help make it much harder to track transactions in public blockchains like Bitcoin and Etherium. They mix coins from different users and send them out to new addresses, thus sort of covering their tracks.

Cryptomixer

OFAC also found a “Russian trail”: Bender.io was allegedly actively used by hacker groups Trickbot, Conti, Ryuk, Sodinokibi and Gandcrab, which are based in Russia. In addition, $20.5 million was passed through the platform in the DeFi hack of Ronin in March this year. At that time, anonymous hackers managed to steal more than $620 million.

Here’s a statement on the matter from US Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson

Virtual currency mixers that help conduct illegal transactions pose a threat to U.S. national security interests. We are taking action against the DPRK’s illegal financial activities and will not allow state-sponsored theft and its money-laundering facilitators to go unchecked.

The Department will also update its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List) to include crypto-addresses associated with Lazarus Group. This is an anonymous cybercrime group with links to North Korea.


We think that the inclusion of giants like Google in the blockchain and decentralisation niche will have a great impact on the outlook for cryptocurrencies themselves. Still, in essence, such recognition would have a positive impact on the reputation of digital assets. Accordingly, people outside of the crypto world will have fewer and fewer reasons not to engage with it.