What potential protocols in the Cosmos ecosystem have not yet issued tokens?
Learn about 4 potential protocols in the Cosmos ecosystem that have not yet issued tokens.Author: Crazy Sleep in the Rain
Let's dive in together ⬇️
1. ZetaChain
ZetaChain is a Layer 1 blockchain built with cross-chain interoperability, compatible with EVM, allowing users and developers to implement universal smart contracts and messaging across any chain (including non-smart contract chains like BTC and Doge).
Developers can build full-chain DApps based on ZetaChain's single point through a toolkit.
Currently, over 150 DApps have joined the ZetaChain ecosystem, and the number of testnet users has exceeded 3 million.
Reasons to pay attention to ZetaChain:
LayerZero is about to release its token, and a full-chain narrative is about to rise (with Wormhole also set to issue tokens soon);
ZetaChain supports the BTC chain, aligning with the native BTC narrative. In the future, DApps on ZetaChain may have the capability to support native BTC assets (Sushi announced a partnership with ZetaChain in November 2023 to provide native BTC support, allowing Sushi users to swap native BTC across 30 networks).
ZetaChain has announced many collaborations recently, including the aforementioned SushiSwap, as well as Curve, Bounce, and others.
ZetaChain's important partner, WaaS (Wallet as a Service) provider Magic, completed a $52 million financing round last year, led by Paypal.
ZetaChain has now released its vision for the launch of Mainnet 1.0 and a roadmap outlook.
Additionally, Ultiverse's sub-game Meta Merge, led by Binance Labs, has joined the ZetaChain testnet for development. In the future, Ultiverse will also expand its multi-chain interoperability as a metaverse platform through ZetaChain. The progress of collaboration between these two projects is also worth noting.
2. Dymension
Dymension is also a part of the modular blockchain ecosystem, serving as a modular settlement layer.
Celestia has separated the DA layer, building it as a standalone modular component to provide DA services for Layer 2s. Layer 2s only need to focus on execution and settle data on Layer 1. The reason Layer 2s choose Celestia as their DA layer essentially boils down to "higher cost-effectiveness" (which means higher profits).
The launch of Dymension aims to address the sense of fragmentation among Layer 2s. Previously, Layer 2s were custom-deployed, using different multi-signature bridging methods and varying security assumptions. Dymension will unify Layer 2s through IBC, establish standardized processes, and ultimately realize the vision of building a Web3 internet with RollApps.
In simple terms, Dymension's goal is to unify Layer 2 standards and integrate liquidity using the IBC protocol, utilizing the Dymension Hub to protect liquidity in the network and publish its transaction data with DA layers (such as Celestia, Near, where DA layers can be chosen by RollApps).
An interesting aspect of Dymension is that it builds around RollApps (a new cryptographic primitive), allowing developers building on it to focus on product refinement and providing better user services.
Additionally, here are two other projects in the same space:
Eclipse is a competitor to Dymension;
Fuel is a modular execution layer.
3. Saga
To simply understand Saga, it can also be seen as part of the modular ecosystem. The main service form of Saga is to help other developers build dedicated chains. These developers can make trade-offs in product design according to their needs.
The Saga team believes that the current competition among Web3 applications is essentially a battle for blockchain space. Therefore, Saga's vision is to enable developers to build their dedicated Web3 application chains in the simplest way possible.
In other words, one-click chain deployment.
Saga further lowers the barrier on the Cosmos foundation. Through Saga, developers can launch their own EVM chain in 10 minutes. Saga calls this The Unblock Movement.
Saga's inclination is to create an interoperable gaming (metaverse) ecosystem.
From my personal perspective, this inclination aligns well with the services provided by Saga. Based on Saga, game developers can focus on game design while having greater flexibility and interoperability.
4. Berachain
BeraChain is a Cosmos Layer 1 built on an EVM architecture, using a PoL (Proof of Liquidity) consensus mechanism. BeraChain has now launched its public testnet "Artio," where developers and users can participate in Galxe's interactive tasks by claiming tokens from a faucet.
In its design, it adopts a three-token model:
$BERA: Gas Token, with 10% inflation;
$BGT: Governance Token, non-transferable, obtainable only through staking assets;
$HONEY: Over-collateralized stablecoin, a medium for protocol revenue distribution.
After the mainnet launch, BeraChain will allow users to stake assets like wBTC, wETH, wstETH, USDC, USDT, DAI, etc., and receive distributions from DeFi activities and BERA. The staking yield distribution weights for various assets will be governed by BGT in the future. It is likely that the BeraChain ecosystem will also see products similar to Stride and Convex for liquid staking and aggregated governance.
As for the airdrop details, the official announcement has not yet been made. Personally, I speculate that besides NFT holders, BeraChain may also airdrop to TIA stakers.
From my perspective, Berachain has built a flywheel as shown in the diagram below.
At the initial launch, Berachain's model was quite similar to Canto's, using inflationary tokens to drive up TVL. However, as the user base grows and transaction fee revenue increases, Berachain will carve out a path distinct from Canto. Moreover, the built-in governance game and stablecoin in Berachain will further drive demand for its Gas Token BERA in the market.
Finally, let's summarize what each chain in the Cosmos ecosystem has been working on recently:
Neutron is recruiting some remnants from the Luna era, focusing on building the AEZ (ATOM Economic Zone) ecosystem. Its launchpad Eclipse Fi is also worth attention.
Osmosis²'s main focus is on LSD, controlling inflation, and merging with Umee (now UX).
Injective, although its ecosystem is weak, has strong main forces, and its token price performance has been very good.
Kujira also performs excellently, with Kujira's staking income being real income rather than inflation.
THORChain follows the native BTC cross-chain narrative, with two similar concept projects being Maya Protocol and CHAINFLIP.
Stride is the LSD on Cosmos, holding over 90% market share. New competitors have also emerged in the market, competing with Stride.
Sei has recently adopted a parallel EVM narrative and has received significant market attention.
Kava has stopped inflation in the new era of its token.
Axelar Network initially surged due to being listed on Upbit. It is now working to reduce token inflation through governance proposals and is expected to be influenced by the upcoming token releases from Wormhole and LayerZero.
Canto Public has chosen to leave Cosmos and embrace the Polygon ecosystem. Its main narrative focuses on RWA and full-chain stablecoins, so it will also be affected by the LayerZero token release.
Additionally, the market has recently been speculating on some LRT concepts, leading to widespread attention and good price performance for the LRT $PICA on Cosmos (which is currently expanding to Solana).
