The crypto world has been riveted by the rapid collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin. But its implosion may bring about something just as noteworthy: the death of a major blockchain.
The Terra blockchain -- the platform supporting scores of decentralized applications that let users swap crypto coins and earn yields -- was halted and then restarted twice in recent days, as the value of its main cryptocurrency, Luna, and the related TerraUSD (UST) stablecoin collapsed following a wave of selling pressure.
Along the way, incentives for various parties to support the chain evaporated, sending the ecosystem that nurtured more than 110 applications connected with more than 4 million digital wallets into disarray.
While the chain is running again and there are efforts in the works to keep it working -- including a new plan proposed Monday by co-founder Do Kwon to start up a new version of the blockchain without UST -- the attempt may prove futile with Luna near zero.
Meanwhile, many of its functions have been disabled.
“Terra in its current form is dead for all practical purposes,” said Kyle Samani, co-founder of Multicoin Capital.
The demise of a crypto ecosystem of the size and depth of Terra -- once valued at more than $40 billion -- would mark a milestone in the history of blockchain, the digital-ledger technology that was initially created to support Bitcoin more than a decade ago and is now the bedrock of the myriad cryptocurrencies that have cropped up since.
Scores of smaller blockchains have turned into the walking dead before, with their coins trading for less than $1 and only a sprinkling of users -- victims of poor design, conflicts among developers or hacks.
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