Like most other cryptocurrencies, Polygon (MATIC) had a lacklustre year in 2022. The token plummeted nearly 70 percent between January 1 and December 31, 2022. However, the New Year has seen a change in narrative for the layer-2 blockchain network.
MATIC has rebounded nearly 13 percent since the start of the year. At the time of writing, the token was changing hands at $0.85, up 6.45 percent over the last 24 hours.
What’s more, is that Polygon could be headed for further gains in 2023, with several positive developments emerging over the last month or so. Tag along as we decode some of these developments and explain what they could mean for the future of the Polygon network.
Projects migrating to Polygon
The end of December 2022 saw 3 popular protocols migrate to the Polygon network. For instance, two major Solana NFT platforms, DeGods and Y00ts, announced their move to Polygon. In addition, Korea’s popular metaverse platform, OrbCity, also announced its shift to the Polygon network on December 27. The platform plans to finalise the move in Q1 of 2023.
These additions should lead to a large rise in on-chain activities on the Polygon network. It should also bring new users to the network and drive the overall growth of the ecosystem. However, this progress has come at a cost, with reports stating that Polygon paid Y00ts and DeGods $3 million to migrate chains.
Mastercard incubator project
On January 7, traditional finance giant, Mastercard, announced an incubator program that will teach emerging artists how to use web3 and blockchain technology. The program is called the Artist Accelerator program and it is being developed in collaboration with Polygon.
It will teach a handful of select artists how to use blockchain, mint NFTs, conduct metaverse-based concerts, etc. on the Polygon network. To this effect, Mastercard and Polygon have created a curriculum that these artists will cover during the Accelerator Program. Of course, once these artists begin using Polygon to release their music, interact with fans, drop NFT collections or host virtual concerts, it will bring several new users to Polygon and should result in the network’s growth.
Polygon defies crypto winter with a spike in NFT sales volume
While most other NFT platforms saw declining volumes, Polygon achieved a new record, reaching $324 million in sales in 2022. This figure surpasses the previous record set in 2021. Further, as per Santiment data, Polygon’s NFT sales volumes have already crossed the $300,000 mark in the first week of 2023.
Uptick in users
Polygon also recorded more NFT users than most other networks. For instance, on December 13, Polygon had ten NFT collections with more than 180,000 holders and four collections with above 500,000. Just for comparison, Ethereum had only four collections with more than 100,000 holders and only one collection above 500,000, while Solana’s NFT market didn't even have a single collection above 30,000 holders.
Moreover, the number of active Polygon addresses has significantly increased this month. On December 31, 2022, Polygon had 429,998 active addresses; this figure jumped to 609,847 on January 8, according to data from Polygonscan. Again, such an expansion amidst the crypto winter is commendable and a good sign for the network’s future.
Conclusion
Polygon has a lot of momentum behind it at the moment. However, cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and prices can fluctuate wildly even after posting the strongest indicators. Therefore, always remember to do your own research and invest only as much as you can afford to lose entirely.
(Edited by : Anushka Sharma)
