The world of cryptocurrencies and digital tokens is constantly shifting and changing, leading investors to have to do a lot of research in order to keep up with the latest developments. Over the years, many altcoins have appeared on the market, and although crypto was initially regarded mainly as a category that will only ever appeal to a very particular demographic (namely, people who are interested in the latest tech developments), it has since expanded its scope quite significantly. While the assets are nowhere near as mainstream as their standard, centralized counterparts, an increasing number of traders are looking to integrate them into their list of holdings anyway.
If you’ve been thinking of doing the same, you should know that you are definitely not alone. However, that doesn’t mean you don’t have to pay attention and come up with a comprehensive strategy that is tailored to your particular financial goals. The altcoins are even more volatile than Bitcoin, and approaching them without a game plan is a surefire way to lose money. More and more traders have begun researching the Worldcoin price recently in order to add this relatively new token. But what is it, and is it the right choice for your portfolio?
What is Worldcoin?
Launched in 2019, Worldcoin is a whole decade younger than Bitcoin, the blueprint of all cryptocurrencies. Nevertheless, it has succeeded in accumulating roughly $250 million in funding due to the actions of venture capital firms such as Khosla Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz. Worldcoin is a for-profit cryptocurrency that employs iris biometrics and aims to provide a reliable form of authentication for all human beings online. The platform seeks to recruit users to join the network by offering iris scanning via the platform’s orb-shaped iris scanner in return for tokens. Some countries have regarded this as a possible privacy concern, leading them to prohibit the use of Worldcoin.
A recent case is that of Brazil, where it was decided in January that the World Network can no longer offer crypto incentives to its citizens. As such, the company is no longer able to provide any kind of financial compensation in exchange for biometric data in Brazil. The National Data Protection Authority ordered Tools for Humanity (the company behind the World Network project) to stop providing services to Brazilians from January 25th. The administration was concerned about the use of financial incentives and how they could influence people’s decision-making processes, particularly those dealing with a vulnerable situation.
The investigation also led them to outline concerns regarding the sensitive nature of biometric data and the irreversible nature of data collection. The complete inability to delete any of this information once it has been collected was a vital aspect as well. Only a month earlier, Germany had also issued corrective measures for the project, telling the World to become compliant with the General Data Protection Regulations of the European Union. Spain and Portugal have also suspended World’s activities as a result of the data collection practices.
These choices caused the token’s value to drop, but traders believe that the price will recover over time. This is how things usually are for cryptocurrencies, as the values shift and change all the time and are never stagnant for long.
US launch
Starting in May 2025, World has also been launched in the United States. The ecosystem joined forces with credit card giant Visa in order to provide users with a card as well. The project hasn’t reached the entire country yet, but it debuted in six cities so far, namely San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, Atlanta, and Austin. These locations were chosen due to their reputation as “key innovation hubs” for the crypto ecosystem. After the Orb scans the faces and eyes of the users, they receive WLD coins.
It may sound quite surprising that no crypto project has been released in the US yet, since the country is known as one of the most crypto-friendly in the world. However, the launch was delayed as a result of the regulatory concerns associated with the US. Since the current administration is well-known for its overwhelming acceptance of crypto, and even its desire to integrate it into the mainstream economy, things are very different, and the developers saw it as an auspicious time to make the shift.
All the data gathered by World’s Orb can be used to create a World ID directly on the company’s platform in order to verify that a user is human. This functionality can also be included on other platforms such as Reddit, Shopify, Minecraft, and Discord. Many jurisdictions have probed World in the past, citing data privacy worries.
The future
The American technology company Match Group (which owns and operates several online dating services such as Tinder, OkCupid, Meetic, Plenty of Fish, and Hinge) has announced that it will begin a pilot program in order to test out World ID for its products. The purpose of this project is to provide the app users with the means of verifying whether the profiles they interact with are associated with real people. This way, the incidence of fraud and scams will be reduced, and people can be more confident that the individuals they were matched with are appropriate for real connections.
World has also discussed its partnership with Kalshi, a prediction market startup, as well as Morpho, a lending platform that is fully decentralized. At the moment, Worldcoin has almost 30 million users all over the world, of whom approximately 12 million have been verified via Orb scans. After the announcement that WLD is coming to the United States, the price jumped by approximately 15%. Corrections occurred in the aftermath, but they didn’t negate the entirety of the gains. However, the coin remains much lower compared to its all-time high of $11.82 recorded in March 2024.
To sum up, if you’ve been thinking about integrating this coin into your list of holdings, you should make sure to do your research and become familiar with the price shifts. Knowing how they evolve over time can help you come up with a more comprehensive strategy so that the losses don’t end up surpassing your gains.
