Cryptoverse: 'Layer two' tokens enjoy new life as bitcoin soars
cryptocurrencies native to projects built on top of «layer 1» blockchains such as Bitcoin and Ethereum — have found a new lease of life after a year in the doldrums, buoyed by a rising crypto tide.
Anticipation of easing U.S. borrowing costs and a possible U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund have lifted crypto prices since the summer, with market bitcoin gaining by about half since the end of August.
Tokens associated with layer 2 projects — which typically aim to speed up transactions and cut costs — have a combined market cap of about $14.3 billion, about a tenth of the total crypto market, according to data from CoinMaketCap.com.
Matic, the largest layer 2 token with a market cap of $6.90 billion, has jumped 20% to $0.74 over the past 30 days, according to CoinGecko. It's used on Polygon, a platform that reduces congestion on the Ethereum network.
Did you Know?
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View Details» The next four largest coins — immutable, mantle, arbitrum and optimism — have leapt between 9% and 105% over the past month and trade between $0.5 to under $2 apiece.
All five tokens are down between 16% and 86% from their all-time highs hit over the past two years, though.
Ether, the layer 1 token linked to the Ethereum blockchain on which most layer 2 tokens are based, has leapt 13.8% to $2,028.80 in the past month.
Layer 2 tokens, which have proliferated in
