Polygon’s migration from the MATIC token to the POL token is coming soon. Are you ready?
After a year of flat performance and a bottoming out of 38.5 cents about 2 weeks ago, Polygon has rebounded to 52c. That’s a 40% move off the bottom. Is Polygon making a comeback? Let’s find out.
Token Migration
The plan right now is for the token migration to start on September 4th. In the migration, the $MATIC token will convert 1 for 1 to $POL. $POL will be a multi-utility token and have more utility and value than $MATIC currently has. One difference is that MATIC staking happens on ETH. That will change.
$POL will become the gas token and the staking token for Polygon going forward. This will make staking easier and cheaper for holders since they will not have to bridge or pay ETH gas. Staking will take place on Polygon PoS. All of this started with PIP-17. And here it is. Even if you don’t read it yourself, the motivation listed here tells us a lot. It says:
Source: X
Polygon 2.0 will add zk proofs so it can increase available ETH blockspace across many Layer 2 chains while still inheriting ETH security. Any new chain deciding it wants to be part of EVM or build out its Layer 2 can do so with Polygon’s CDK or Chain Development Kit. They can do it faster, easier, and cheaper than ever before.
It’s also a great foundation to use to build out your modular chain if that’s what you want. You are using ETH security combined with Polygon’s own security and ZK encryption. So Polygon is now a realistic infrastructure play if you are bullish on modular blockchains. Celestia was one of the first and most successful. But it won’t be the only modular chain we have. And Polygon is providing the tools developer teams will need to build out these new chains.
Agg Layer
The new $POL token and its new uses are in line with Polygon’s new focus area. The aggregation layer. Polygon’s goal is to aggregate other blockchains and their liquidity together. This solves the problem of fragmentation. With fragmented liquidity, the issue is the isolated islands of Layer 2’s like Base or Arbitrum where money goes to the L2 and stays there.
Polygon’s aggregated layer will help to bring all these things together to bring borrowing and holding costs down. The Agg Layer brings uniform security and developers can connect any L1 or L2 directly to it. It uses ZK technology to maintain the independence of the current chains while bringing the composability and liquidity all together as one.
Source: X
That means your Base transaction will stay on Base but have access to Polygon liquidity. That’s a win/win. The Polygon Team is calling the Agg Layer the TCP/IP of Web3. Just like how TCP/IP brought a unified internet with connections from all over. Now, you will be connecting to the Agg Layer from Base or ETH or BNB Chain to access the apps and protocols you need.
Bridging will be easier and safer than ever plus an Agg Layer chain will be able to connect automatically to Polygon zkEVM or Polygon PoS. That’s without having to bridge first. Having a unified UX (user experience) means it’s more like logging into the internet and having all websites accessible to you. But the crypto/Web3 version of that.
It’s an idea that will increase adoption and make Web3 better for all users.
Polygon Network Usage
Polygon’s main chain, the PoS, has 1.5 million active wallets that have done over 318 million transactions. The big deal protocol on PoS now is Polymarket.
Source: X
People have been talking about the potential for crypto with prediction markets for years. Some of you may remember Augur, which started on ETH and moved to Polygon PoS. But it looks like they were a little too early. Polymarket has found its market fit with wagers about the US Presidential Election. And not just who will win. Other prop bets like:
- Will RFK Jr drop out of the race before November?
- Who will win the popular vote? (which can be different than the election)
- Who will speak during this week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago?
Political prop bets are making Polymarket. And Polygon’s speed, ease of use, and low fees are the engine making Polymarket go.
Other big, influential companies are using Polygon PoS too. Reddit is another. Reddit has been using PoS since 2022 for NFT collections and collectible user avatars for its hundreds of millions of users. There are currently 34 million active, all on Polygon.
Source: X
Conclusion
So given the new token migration coming up, as well as the:
- Better modular chain-building tools.
- Building out the Aggregation Layer.
- Growing network usage and big, profitable partnerships.
The question we started with today was “Is Polygon making a comeback?” And the answer here is clearly No. It’s not making a comeback. Polygon does not need to make a comeback because it never went away in the first place. It’s been building and growing all along. We just haven’t noticed all the new things they are building.
Disclaimer
The information discussed by Altcoin Buzz is not financial advice. This is for educational, entertainment, and informational purposes only. Any information or strategies are thoughts and opinions relevant to the accepted levels of risk tolerance of the writer/reviewers and their risk tolerance may be different than yours. We are not responsible for any losses that you may incur as a result of any investments directly or indirectly related to the information provided. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are high-risk investments so please do your due diligence. Copyright Altcoin Buzz Pte Ltd.
