Classifying Digital Assets With a New Framework: Datonomy
In 2009, there was one cryptocurrency: bitcoin. Now there are more than 9,000 cryptocurrencies and many digital assets with other uses.
As the ecosystem becomes more complex, investors need more structure and clarity to make sense of how assets relate. In this graphic from MSCI, we introduce a new classification framework known as Datonomy. It is the first in a two-part series on decoding digital assets.
The Main Uses of Digital Assets
MSCI collaborated with Coin Metrics and Goldman Sachs to develop the framework, which classifies digital assets according to what they are primarily used for. It is hierarchical with three levels of classifications: classes, sectors, and subsectors.
We show the first two levels in the table below, along with examples of each sector.
| Class | Sector | Example |
|---|---|---|
 Digital Currencies | Value Transfer Coins | Bitcoin |
| Specialized Coins | Dogecoin | |
 Blockchain Infrastructure | Smart Contract Platforms | Ethereum |
| Blockchain Utilities | Polkadot | |
| Application Utilities | Chainlink | |
 Digital Asset Applications | Decentralized Finance | Uniswap |
| Intermediated Finance | Cronos | |
| Business Services | VeChain | |
| Information Technology | Filecoin | |
| Metaverse | Axie Infinity | |
| Media Services | Audius | |
 On-Chain Derivatives | Stablecoins | Tether |
| Tokenized Assets | PAX Gold | |
| Claim Tokens | Lido Staked Ether |
Let’s take a closer look at one sector within each class.
Specialized Coins facilitate value transfer on the blockchain for users with a specific interest, such as privacy, (Read more...)