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<ul><li>SolRazr, a crypto startup based out of India, plans to build the first-ever developer ecosystem around the <keyword id="1905050" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="solana" source="Orion">Solana</keyword> blockchain.</li><li>In its seed funding round, the venture platform raised $1.5 million from investors like Moonrock Capital, Ascensive Assets, and Morningstar Ventures. </li><li>In an exclusive interview with Business Insider India, the co-founders explain how they plan to take Solana-based decentralised applications (DApps) to the next level by launching a university, hiring new talents and pushing on sales.</li></ul> Solana may be the next big ‘smart contract’ blockchain with its tokens having nearly quadrupled in value during August. Investors can pump in money, but developers to drive innovation and develop use cases are few and far in between — venture platform SolRazr, based out of India’s Silicon Valley, plans to change the status quo. The startup just raised $1.5 million in seed funding for the promise of setting up the world’s first developer ecosystem for Solana. The company will take in projects being built on the Solana blockchain and help them find capital, provide them with developer tools as well as get them off the ground. “It’s kind of like Alchemy for Ethereum,” one of the co-founders, Sreekant Kalapur, told Business Insider India in an exclusive interview. Alchemy, <a href="https://twitter.com/AlchemyPlatform">based out of the US, </a>helps burgeoning enterprises build reliable DApps by providing the ‘fundamental building blocks’ to harness the potential of Solana's biggest competitor, the Ethereum blockchain. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“Not only is Solana cheaper than Ethereum to use, but it’s also faster… We’re definitely bullish on Solana.”" auname="Sreekant Kalapur, SolRazr co-founder, told Business Insider"></div> Funding was led by blockchain advisory firm Moonrock Capital, Ascensive Assets, and Morningstar Ventures. Angel investors including Frax Finance’s Sam Kazemian, a decentralised stablecoin cryptocurrency protocol, and the inventor of flash loans, Leo Cheng were also in the mix. The startup managed to attract 14 backers overall. On the road to building an ecosystem around Solana, the company’s first move is going to be to launch a university within the next couple of weeks. “We plan to bring in developers and experts to teach coders about the Solana blockchain. This will help developers quickly learn Rust and help them deploy Solana programs faster,” disclosed Vijay Kalangi, SolRazr’s other co-founder. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="SolRazr’s Solana University" comment="subhead" text="SolRazr’s Solana University">SolRazr’s Solana University</cmsannotation> The company plans to launch a university — dubbed the Solana University — to educate and train developers about the Solana blockchain. “There isn’t any shortage of talent in India. We have some very good engineers,” explained Kalangi. The company plans to bring in experts on Solana to teach, increase awareness, and provide inputs to those starting out or just looking to up their game. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“Developers who have worked on Solana are a rare find. Not a lot of people know how to code in RUST, the programming language used to build DApps on the Solana blockchain.”" auname="Sreekant Kalapur, SolRazr co-founder, told Business Insider"></div> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Putting the ‘soul’ into Solana DApps to drive crypto adoption and sales" comment="subhead" text="Putting the ‘soul’ into Solana DApps to drive crypto adoption and sales">Putting the ‘soul’ into <keyword id="12057113" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="solana-dapps" source="Orion">Solana DApps</keyword> to drive crypto adoption and sales</cmsannotation> A part of the $1.5 million seed fund will go towards SolRazr hiring more developers, bringing in community managers, and onboarding business development experts. “We want to focus on design-first applications. And, we want to provide developer tools, which allow the code to be written in plain English and is easy to interact with,” Kalangi. His primary complaint right now is that a lot of DApps out there are clunky and far from being user friendly. Going design-first ensures that the Solana-based DApps are user-first in order, which, in turn, will drive adoption. That is why another key role that they’re looking at is public sales. While the larger goal goes beyond money, there’s no denying its importance especially since, as a launchpad, acquiring capital is a part of SolRazr’s diktat. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="SolRazr is jumping on NFTs and cautious of DeFis" comment="subhead" text="SolRazr is jumping on NFTs and cautious of DeFis">SolRazr is jumping on NFTs and cautious of DeFis</cmsannotation> The startup is still in the process of finalising which projects that will be nurtured under its umbrella but three big categories it’s focusing on are decentralised finance (DeFi), NFTs and Web 3.0. An NFT-focused solution is most likely first on its list, according to the founders. However, negotiations are still ongoing. And, while the DeFi space is an attractive opportunity, SolRazr is taking things one step at a time given that India is still in the regulatory grey zone when it comes to crypto. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Solana quadrupled in value during August" comment="subhead" text="Solana quadrupled in value during August">Solana quadrupled in value during August</cmsannotation> There are currently over 400 projects within the Solana ecosystem globally — from decentralised exchanges (DEXs) like LunaDEX to digital games like Stardust. The cryptocurrency has been grabbing headlines with its massive jump in value during the last month. It <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/ethereum-killer-solana-surges-hits-all-time-high-net-worth-surges-to-30-billion/articleshow/85802473.cms">quadrupled</a> in value during August to hit a market capitalisation of $30 billion alongside the hype around <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/what-is-non-fungible-token-nft-everything-you-need-to-know/articleshow/84754933.cms">NFTs</a>. Platforms like OpenSea as well as projects like CryptoPunks, Mutant Apes, and others were seen hitting <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/daily-sales-of-cryptopunk-nfts-are-hitting-record-levels-with-one-rare-zombie-token-selling-for-5-3-million/articleshow/85603863.cms">record levels</a>. Even as the crypto market <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/cryptocurrencies-bomb-as-el-salvador-opens-its-doors-to-bitcoin/slidelist/86029365.cms">crashed</a> on September 7 — deemed ‘Bitcoin Day’ in celebration of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/bitcoin-ethereum-and-other-cryptocurrencies-crash-after-el-salvadors-bitcoin-law-launch/articleshow/86040661.cms">El Salvador</a> becoming the first country in the world to declare Bitcoin as legal tender — Solana was among the few to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/bitcoin-crash-saw-solana-quant-litecoin-and-algorand-price-remain-stable/slidelist/86038623.cms">preserve</a>. As of 10:30am Indian Standard Time (IST), Solana’s price is at $207.33, having recuperated from the minor hit in the took of around 2% during the dip to being 20% in the green. And, its market capitalisation is at a whopping $61.33 billion — ranked as the sixth biggest player in the crypto market, according to <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/">CoinMarketCap.</a> SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/bitcoin-crash-saw-solana-quant-litecoin-and-algorand-price-remain-stable/slidelist/86038623.cms">While Bitcoin bombed, here’s what remained in the green</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/bitcoin-ethereum-and-other-cryptocurrencies-crash-after-el-salvadors-bitcoin-law-launch/articleshow/86040661.cms">Remember, remember the 7th of September — Bitcoin, El Salvador, and the crypto drop</a>

INTERVIEW: Here's how SolRazr plans to do for Solana what Alchemy did for Ethereum with $1.5 million in its pocket

When it comes to the future of cryptocurrencies, the consensus usually is that the future lies in decentralised apps (<a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">DApps</a>). While the rage usually is about these cryptocurrencies’ market capitalisations and volatile prices, they are at the end of the day, a piece of software. And, like any piece of software, their worth is determined by how useful they are. After all, would Google have mattered if Search wasn’t what it is today? Thinking from that point of view, a person can see how one cryptocurrency is a competitor to another, just as Yahoo Search or AOL once were to Google. And, that isn’t more true than for the three cryptocurrencies battling it out to win in the ‘smart contract’ space — <keyword id="2810876" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ethereum" source="Orion">Ethereum</keyword>, <keyword id="1905050" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="solana" source="Orion">Solana</keyword> and <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">Cardano</a>. At the heart of all cryptocurrencies including these three, is the algorithm that runs them. In fact, Ethereum, Solana and <keyword id="5294933" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cardano" source="Orion">Cardano</keyword> are actually names for these blockchain platforms and not the actual cryptocurrencies. The Ethereum chain uses a token called ETH for trading, while <a href="https://wazirx.com/blog/sol-inr-trading/">Solana</a> and Cardano use the SOL and ADA tokens, respectively. So, when you talk about the differences between the three, you have to talk about how their algorithms differ. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="wazirx" comment="wazirx" text="wazirx"><keyword id="6672551" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="wazirx" source="Orion">wazirx</keyword></cmsannotation> All three of these cryptocurrencies can be traded on <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">WazirX, India’s leading crypto exchange</a>. One can buy Ethereum, Cardano, Solana directly with rupees. Before we get into the differences, let’s talk about the big similarities. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What are smart contracts?" comment="subhead" text="What are smart contracts?">What are smart contracts?</cmsannotation> Smart contracts are what makes <a href="https://wazirx.com/blog/how-does-an-ethereum-transaction-work-in-india/">Ethereum</a>, Solana, Cardano and even the Binance Smart Chain, different from Bitcoin. Defined in their algorithms are tiny pieces of code that execute when certain conditions are fulfilled. In essence, they are ‘if, when, then’ statements that execute automatically. Imagine a rental agreement, which says your rent is supposed to go up by 10% every 11 months. In the traditional banking system, you could set up a standing payment instruction where the rent amount is paid to your landlord every month, but you will have to keep changing it every 11 months, right? On a smart contract, the system will know the rent has increased and could theoretically increase the amount whenever requapplicationsse smart contracts can be defined on a blockchain platform once, and they cannot be changed by anyone. The involved parties can set up as many ‘if, when, then’ conditions as they want within a smart contract. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="How do Ethereum, Solana and Cardano fit into the picture?" comment="subhead" text="How do Ethereum, Solana and Cardano fit into the picture?">How do Ethereum, Solana and Cardano fit into the picture?</cmsannotation> As mentioned before, smart contracts is one of the reasons why the Ethereum, Solana and <a href="https://wazirx.com/blog/what-does-cardano-mean-for-defi/">Cardano</a> platforms are similar. The other is the fact that they used — or in Ethereum’s case will us ise — a “proof of stake” system. More on this later. Unlike Bitcoin, which is best suited to applications that involve the exchange of things, like paying for apps and services, smart contracts open up a world of possibilities. As a result, the three platforms mentioned above can be used to build <keyword id="7054800" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="dapps" source="Orion">DApps</keyword>, be it a decentralised finance (<keyword id="4164994" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="defi" source="Orion">DeFi</keyword>) app or social media platform. Think of it this way: the Bitcoin platform lets you define situations via algorithms where you could take a Bitcoin and exchange it for something. On smart contracts, you can literally have a contract being executed for and for the computers processing them, they’re just another transacti fewon on the network. Remember the Google example? This basically means that platforms with smart contracts have much more functionality than those that do not. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Ethereum — the origin story" comment="subhead" text="Ethereum — the origin story">Ethereum — the origin story</cmsannotation> Bitcoin is, and always will be credited for introducing <keyword id="2721952" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="crypto" source="Orion">crypto</keyword> to the world, but Ethereum may transcend it for revolutionising finance. When 27-year-old Russian programmer Vitalik Buterin created the platform, he derived the name Ethereum from the 19th century scientific term Ether. If you’re a fan of Marvel’s Avengers movies and are thinking of Thor’s Ether, that works too. In 19th century science, Ether was thought to be a weightless and frictionless material that filled all space and carried light waves. While this theory has been disproved, Buterin’s idea for his platform was to be the same — the invisible medium that powers possibly every book in the world, according to former Bloomberg journalist Camilla Russo’s 2020 book, The Infinite Machine. The introduction of smart contracts made Ethereum different from Bitcoin and answered one of the questions critics had at the time — why cryptocurrency? Bitcoin was an alternate to the world’s currencies, Ethereum was an alternative to that and everything else. It gave developers a way to take advantage of blockchains, and build things that didn’t have to make governments and central banks uneasy. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="How does Cardano threaten Ethereum’s dominance in the market?" comment="subhead" text="How does Cardano threaten Ethereum’s dominance in the market?">How does Cardano threaten Ethereum’s dominance in the market?</cmsannotation> Ethereum grew fast between its launch in 2013 and today, but despite everything that was good about it, it had one big flaw — it ran on the proof of work system. You see, crypto transactions are authenticated by computers, which are owned by large organisations called miners. These miners can only provide the computing power required to authenticate transactions and have no way to actually change the blockchain or the transactions that happen in it. And for doing this ‘work’, they get rewarded with new cryptocurrencies by the platform. Essentially, the platform is like a bank, the miners are like Visa and Mastercard, and the bank pays Visa and Mastercard for authenticating the transactions their customers undertake all over the world. The problem with this is that both Ethereum and Bitcoin reward every miner involved in a transaction, which means that there’s an overwhelming amount of computing power going into each transaction. Instead, Cardano has what is called the “proof of stake” system, which is more efficient. In this system, miners have to first stake their own crypto to be eligible for rewards. The platform then chooses the top few miners — a predefined number — for authenticating transactions. As a result, the overall amount of computing power is reduced considerably, and in turn the amount of electricity required to power the computers is reduced too. All this makes Cardano much more environmentally sound than Bitcoin or Ethereum right now, and that’s true for Solana too. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="wazirx" comment="wazirx" text="wazirx">wazirx</cmsannotation> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Why are Solana and Cardano called Ethereum killers?" comment="subhead" text="Why are Solana and Cardano called Ethereum killers?">Why are Solana and Cardano called Ethereum killers?</cmsannotation> The proof of stake system is the main reason why these two crypto platforms are called Ethereum killers. At the moment, they’re more efficient and answer the one big concern that many world governments, experts and billionaires have about cryptos — their environmental footprint. However, Ethereum is going to introduce version 2.0 of the platform next year, which brings the same system to the platform as well. It’s supposed to reduce Ethereum’s energy requirements by as much as 99%. Last month, the Ethereum London Hard Fork set the stage for version 2.0, by introducing the proof of stake system to the platform. Platforms with smart contracts, like Ethereum, are expected to gain wider adoption which makes being environmentally sound absolutely essential. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Who is likely to come out ahead?" comment="subhead" text="Who is likely to come out ahead?">Who is likely to come out ahead?</cmsannotation> Needless to say, the two points in favour of Ethereum, Cardano and Solana are the fact that they will or already employ the proof of stake system, and that they offer smart contracts. The big problem with the Ethereum platform right now is scalability. Each Ethereum transaction requires a transaction fee — also called gas fee — and it doesn’t matter what kind of transaction it is. At the moment, these gas fees can go up to as much as $150 or more and are very volatile, because of the volume of transactions happening on the network every second. Imagine building a chat platform, where each new message is a transaction. Would a company be able to pay $150 for each message we, the users, send? Would the users want to pay a part of that cost? In comparison, transaction fees on the Cardano and Solana platforms cost a dollar or less right now. “Solana has solved this (the problem of scalability) with a system of cryptographic time-stamping that currently can accommodate 65 000 transactions a second, which is astonishing. Nobody has come close to this, including Visa,” crypto investment analyst Brett Hope Robertson <a href="https://www.moneyweb.co.za/in-depth/revix/is-solana-the-real-ethereum-killer/">told</a> MoneyWeb. On the other hand, as <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2021/09/01/bitcoin-vs-ethereum-vs-cardano-which-cryptocurrenc/#:~:text=Pros%3A%20Cardano%20was%20created%20by,similarities%20to%20its%20crypto%20competitor.&amp;text=Also%2C%20while%20Ethereum%20is%20currently,and%20faster%20than%20its%20competitors.">explained</a> by The Motley Fool, the problem with Cardano and Solana is adoption. Both these currencies have market capitalisations that are less than half of what Ethereum’s is right now, which means that they remain speculative right now. Whether you’re buying the ADA and SOL tokens or building an app on them, you will be taking a risk on a platform that works only in theory right now. “Risk can be measured in a variety of different ways,” Meltem Demirors, chief strategy officer at Coinshares, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/26/why-the-dogecoin-millionaire-plans-to-buy-cardano-next.html">told</a> CNBC last month. “But many of these assets are much more risky than bitcoin and ethereum,” he added. Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post in partnership with WazirX.

Ethereum vs Solana vs Cardano — who is DeFi’s darling?

<ul><li><keyword id="1905050" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="solana" source="Orion">Solana</keyword>’s blockchain platform is often touted as a possible alternative to Ethereum.</li><li>Scaling issues are common for many blockchain platforms, but Solana has suffered multiple breakdowns in less than six months.</li><li>Solana suffered an inadvertent <keyword id="1058878" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ddos-attack" source="Orion">DDoS attack</keyword> less than a month ago.</li></ul>The Solana blockchain, which is often touted as a competitor to Ethereum, has suffered an outage for the third time in a matter of months. It’s unclear whether the issue was a simple network failure because of high traffic or whether the network collapsed because of a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack by hackers. “Solana went down again at two o'clock in the morning (UTC+8) on January 4th. According to users of the official Telegram community, the attacker is suspected of using spam to conduct a DDoS attack,” <a href="https://twitter.com/WuBlockchain/status/1478164890682462211?s=20">tweeted</a> crypto journalist Colin Wu. He added that the network returned to normal after five hours, at 7 o’clock on the same day. <div type="twitter" handle="WuBlockchain" handlename="Wu Blockchain" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1343054286935093249/6FYHByvl_normal.jpg" favoritecount="758" retweetcount="200" status="Solana went down again at two o'clock in the morning (UTC+8) on January 4th. According to users of the official Tel… https://t.co/MsRPYFSPNc" createdat="1641256947000" id="1478164890682462211"></div> Other reports indicate that it took about four hours for the network to come back up. “Another year.. and another episode of Solana going down. Today it went down for a few hours in the early morning Asia time, and it took almost 4 hours to bring it back up. The Solana community blames it on a DDOS attack. Lol,” a post on the <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/CryptoCurrency/comments/rvnzp3/solana_went_down_again_on_4th_jan_morning_utc_8/">subreddit</a> for Solana said less than a day ago. There have also been many reports on Twitter, which include everything from just a very slow network to a large DDoS attack that took the whole network down. The Solana Foundation has confirmed none of these yet, though it can’t really deny the fact that the network witnessed slowdown, since the same can be tracked in real time. Solana Labs co-founder Yakovenko, though, has <a href="https://twitter.com/aeyakovenko/status/1478431040620220416?s=20">tweeted</a> that the issue wasn’t a DDoS attack. “It’s not a DDoS, just pain (sic) of getting a new runtime commercialized,” he wrote. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="wazirx" comment="wazirx" text="wazirx">wazirx</cmsannotation> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Why does it matter?" comment="subhead" text="Why does it matter?">Why does it matter?</cmsannotation> As the Reddit post cited above said, “A network that goes down this often will never be able to attract serious traders.” Solana is often touted as the fastest blockchain network on the planet, though many argue that Algorand is a viable alternative too. Nevertheless, Solana’s adoption has seen a manifold increase in the last year. This is the third time Solana’s network suffered an attack Yesterday’s incident came less than a month after a similar slowdown. At the time, the Solana Foundation <a href="https://solana.com/news/9-14-network-outage-initial-overview">attributed</a> the slowdown to an Initial DEX offering (IDO) from Radium, a Solana-based decentralized exchange. The platform had also suffered a 17-hour outage in September this year, leading the price of its cryptocurrency to fall from $220 to $140 in less than 24 hours. “Solana Mainnet Beta encountered a large increase in transaction load which peaked at 400,000 TPS. These transactions flooded the transaction processing queue, and lack of prioritization of network-critical messaging caused the network to start forking,” the Solana Status Twitter account <a href="https://twitter.com/SolanaStatus/status/1437856638279487493?s=20">tweeted</a> at the time. Slowdowns in blockchain platforms isn’t particularly new though, and Solana isn’t the only platform that suffers from these either. However, the fact that such slowdowns have happened multiple times in less than six months could bother many decentralized app (Dapp) makers who may have otherwise considered Solana as the medium for their products and services. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/coinbase-ceo-brian-armstrong-has-bought-a-133-million-mansion-in-bel-air-a-report-says/articleshow/88690627.cms">Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has bought a $133 million mansion in Bel Air, a report says</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/the-sec-hires-a-senior-advisor-for-cryptocurrency-policy-after-a-blockbuster-year-for-digital-assets/articleshow/88694204.cms">The SEC hires a senior advisor for cryptocurrency policy after a blockbuster year for digital assets</a>

Solana’s network goes down for the third time in less than six months

<ul><li><keyword id="2810876" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ethereum" source="Orion">Ethereum</keyword>’s gas fees can move from a few dollars to a few hundreds in a matter of seconds.</li><li>According to an analyst at <keyword id="44660" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="jpmorgan" source="Orion">JPMorgan</keyword>, Ethereum might be losing out to competitors like <keyword id="5294933" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cardano" source="Orion">Cardano</keyword> and <keyword id="1905050" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="solana" source="Orion">Solana</keyword> already.</li><li>Ethereum’s valuation has dropped by $200 billion in less than six months.</li></ul>Ethereum’s high gas fee has been a concern for many, and is a key hurdle in the platform’s scaling ability. Now, investment bank JPMorgan has said that the platform is losing ground to rivals like Solana in the non-fungible token (NFT) sector due to these high gas fees. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="wazirx" comment="wazirx" text="wazirx">wazirx</cmsannotation> Gas fees is the fee paid to miners for validating a transaction on the Ethereum network. It is known to be as volatile as the price of Ether itself, and can add hundreds of dollars to the cost of a transaction. At the time of writing, the gas fee was averaging at around $6, but the value has been known to jump to over $150 quite often since it depends on the traffic on the network. "It looks like, similar to <keyword id="12997000" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="defi-apps" source="Orion">DeFi apps</keyword>, congestion and high gas fees has been inducing NFT applications to use other blockchains,” <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/ethereum-eth-killers-nfts-defi-solana-cardano-wax-crypto-investing-2022-1">said</a> JPMorgan analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, in a note. “If the loss of its NFT share starts looking more sustained in 2022, that would become a bigger problem for ethereum's valuation," he added. Panigirtzoglou isn’t the only one who feels this way either. To be sure, Ethereum’s market capitalization has dropped from a massive $568 billion in August 2021 to around $373 billion today, according to data from <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/">Coinmarketcap</a>. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="NFT market scaling fast" comment="subhead" text="NFT market scaling fast">NFT market scaling fast</cmsannotation> On the other hand, the market for <keyword id="902592" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nfts" source="Orion">NFTs</keyword> and decentralised applications (Dapps) have been scaling at a breakneck pace. For instance, NFT marketplace OpenSea was <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-59880739">valued</a> at a massive $13 billion earlier this month, when the company raised $300 million. At the time, the company said that trades on the platform grew by 600 times over 2021. NFT projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Cryptopunks are other examples of billion dollar NFT projects and how fast the industry has been growing. This is where the scaling problem comes in, since many or even most NFT projects are built on the Ethereum network and its smart contracts feature. And with more NFT transactions, the load on the Ethereum network keeps growing too. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Solving the problem" comment="subhead" text="Solving the problem">Solving the problem</cmsannotation> To be fair, Ethereum’s developers are well aware of the problem too. In August 2021, right around the time when Ethereum had hit its $500-plus billion market cap, the platform saw an an update called the London Hard Fork, which was the first big step towards moving to the second generation of the network — Ethereum 2.0. With the London Hard Fork, the platform introduced the ‘proof-of-stake’ system, which is meant to reduce the overall gas fees and its volatile nature. The problem is that Ethereum 2.0 will still take at least a few months to kick in and no concrete date has been set just yet. With Cardano and Solana already based on the same proof-of-stake system, experts like JPMorgan are concerned that developers will migrate to these competing platforms rather than depending on Ethereum for too long. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/cardano-jumps-on-the-metaverse-bandwagon-with-pavia-heres-everything-you-need-to-know-about-adas-entry-into-play-to-earn/articleshow/89012262.cms">Cardano jumps on the metaverse bandwagon with Pavia — here’s everything you need to know about ADA’s entry into play-to-earn</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/coindcx-hiring-2000-plus-people-this-year-crypto-coders-developers-product-development-and-other-roles/articleshow/88972086.cms">EXCLUSIVE: CoinDCX plans to hire more than 2,000 people this year — and they are not just looking at coders</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/one-of-the-largest-cryptocurrency-swapping-platforms-just-lost-1-3-million-as-users-failed-to-update-approvals/articleshow/88992186.cms">One of the largest cryptocurrency swapping platforms just lost $1.3 million as users failed to update approvals</a>

Ethereum may not have too long to get its high gas fee issue in check, according to JPMorgan

The crypto project behind the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/bitcoin-crash-saw-solana-quant-litecoin-and-algorand-price-remain-stable/slidelist/86038623.cms">ALGO token</a> may not be as well known as <keyword id="6354947" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bitcoin" source="Orion">Bitcoin</keyword>, Ethereum, <keyword id="5294933" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cardano" source="Orion">Cardano</keyword> or <keyword id="1905050" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="solana" source="Orion">Solana</keyword> — at least in the Indian crypto ecosystem — but it’s one of the many projects to watch out for today. At the time of writing, the <keyword id="1468526" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ALGO" source="Orion">ALGO</keyword> token was trading on <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">WazirX</a> at ₹110, having moved between ₹132-140 during the recent crypto downturn, unlike larger currencies that recorded big drops. The token is ranked at number 40 on the exchange. It is also one of the few projects that has its own investment arm, called Borderless Capital. The Miami-based venture capital firm announced a new $500 million fund on November 30 to invest in the Algo DeFi ecosystem. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="wazirx" comment="wazirx" text="wazirx"><keyword id="6672551" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="wazirx" source="Orion">wazirx</keyword></cmsannotation> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What is Algorand?" comment="subhead" text="What is Algorand?"><keyword id="12735796" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="what-is-algorand" source="Orion">What is Algorand</keyword>?</cmsannotation> Like every other public blockchain platform, <keyword id="12053767" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="algorand" source="Orion">Algorand</keyword> is also a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/from-solana-to-chainlink-to-chiliz-here-are-15-altcoins-headlining-a-world-of-tokens-that-extends-well-beyond-bitcoin-and-what-theyre-all-used-for/articleshow/82344809.cms">decentralised network</a>. However, this one aims to solve the ‘blockchain trilemma’, and tackles the three big problems that the ecosystem faces today — speed, scalability and security. It was launched in 2019 by Turing award winning computer scientist and MIT professor, Silvio Micali. <div type="image" title="blockchain trilemma" msid="88279202" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;The blockchain trilemma&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> Micali created Algorand to be a payments focused network, not unlike Bitcoin, but with the ability to handle many more transactions — 1,200 transactions per second (TPS) — and it’s set to touch around 3,000 TPS after an upcoming update that adds ‘instant finality’ to the network. In comparison Bitcoin can handle just under 5 TPS, while Ethereum can handle approximately 13 TPS. <div type="image" title="Silvio_Micali" msid="88279234" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Silvio Micali, the founder of Algorand&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> This is an important feature, since it helps achieve scalability, one of the biggest roadblocks in the crypto space today, and also why some peg ALGO to be among the ‘<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/solana-cardano-polkadot-and-others-heres-a-quick-look-at-why-these-crypto-tokens-are-being-touted-as-ethereum-killers/articleshow/88045517.cms">Ethereum Killers</a>’. Existing payments systems from Visa and Mastercard can process 1,700 and 5,000 transactions, respectively, and what comes in the way of scaling crypto apps is the fact that transactions can take a long time to process. It also uses the ‘pure-proof-of-stake’ (PPoS) consensus mechanism, which means that only a select group of miners are rewarded for lending their computing power to complete transactions. This is the same system that Cardano and Solana currently use, and Ethereum is moving towards, in order to reduce gas fees on the network. Speed and low transaction fees are prerequisites in order to make public blockchain networks real payments systems that can be scaled on a worldwide level. Algorand is also inflationary, in the sense that there’s a limit to how many ALGO tokens there will be on the network. The supply is capped at 10 billion ALGO tokens, of which 3 billion will be circulated in the first five years including 25 million that were auctioned at launch. Of the rest, 1.75 billion will be distributed to miners as rewards over time, while 2.5 billion is earmarked for relay nodes (a type of mining node supported by Algorand). Another 2.5 billion has been reserved for the Algorand Foundation and Algorand Inc, which run and maintain the network, respectively. The last 0.25 billion will be distributed for end user grants. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="How does Algorand work?" comment="subhead" text="How does Algorand work?">How does Algorand work?</cmsannotation> Yes, Algorand does use the proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, but the Algorand network’s mining protocols are quite different from what you may otherwise understand about PoS. Instead, the network functions on something called pure-proof-of-stake, or PPoS, which is a more egalitarian approach than PoS and is meant to avoid the ‘rich getting richer’ phenomenon. Essentially, while PoS rewards miners with the most stake, PPoS picks miners at random and irrespective of their stake in the system. The network has two kinds of nodes — participation nodes and relay nodes. The relay nodes serve as network hubs and their job is to maintain the connection between Algorand’s all the other nodes in the system. The participation nodes are the ones that actually lend computing power to validate transactions, and these are the ones that are rewarded the most. The participation nodes use the relay nodes to communicate with each other and maintain the ledger. Algorand allows anyone to run a relay or a participation node, but while participation nodes are rewarded for their work, relay nodes aren’t allowed to ‘mine’ ALGO. Instead, the Algorand Foundation has provided a reward mechanism for relay nodes, which will vest in two to five years. They run a virtualization software called Algorand Virtual Machine (AVM) in order to connect with the Algorand network. But the network’s inner workings don’t end there. The Algorand network has its own way of managing smart contracts — a feature of top blockchain networks that allows building decentralized apps (DApps) on them. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“Smart contracts make blockchains programmable. Like a vending machine, a smart contract establishes a clearly defined procedure for transferring assets. For example, Alice wants to buy tokens issued by Bob, so she sends coins to Bob’s smart contract. The contract&amp;#39;s code counts the coins, perhaps checks that Alice is in the contract&amp;#39;s database of qualified investors, and then transfers the correct number of tokens to Alice&amp;#39;s account. The exchange is transparent: Alice can inspect the contract’s code, and the code runs without Bob’s participation.”" auname="Excerpt from Silvio Micali's blog post"></div> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The secret sauce that makes Algorand an alternative to Ethereum" comment="subhead" text="The secret sauce that makes Algorand an alternative to Ethereum">The secret sauce that makes Algorand an alternative to Ethereum</cmsannotation> Algorand handles smart contracts in two layers, on-chain and off-chain. On Layer-1, the system allows the smart contracts to be run ‘on-chain’, much the same way Ethereum does. This means that every smart contract is directly adding traffic to the network, and too many of them can slow the network down. In order to avoid that, Algorand offers layer-2 smart contracts as well, where the contract will be executed “off-chain”. This means that the smart contract doesn’t add traffic to the network, but is executed outside its purview, and then added to the blockchain ledger. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What is AVM?" comment="subhead" text="What is AVM?">What is AVM?</cmsannotation> As mentioned above, the Algorand Virtual Machine is a piece of software that runs on every node on the Algorand network, both relay and participation nodes. The AVM contains a stack engine, which is what evaluates the smart contracts on the Algorand network. The AVM evaluates all the logic inside smart contracts and decides whether to execute them. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Algorand claims to be carbon neutral, if not carbon negative" comment="subhead" text="Algorand claims to be carbon neutral, if not carbon negative">Algorand claims to be carbon neutral, if not carbon negative</cmsannotation> No, Algorand doesn’t run on some magical green power source. While there’s no reason for miners not to power their infra using green power, the Algorand Foundation has pledged to offset the carbon footprint of its network through a partnership with Spanish environmental foundation ClimateTrade. In order to create a carbon-negative network, Algorand and ClimateTrade decided to implement a sustainability oracle, which will notarise the carbon footprint generated by Algorand’s on-chain transactions for a set amount of blocks. Algorand will lock the equivalent amount of carbon credit in a smart contract, and put the same amount into a green treasury to offset its carbon footprint. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Is Algorand an Ethereum killer?" comment="subhead" text="Is Algorand an Ethereum killer?">Is Algorand an <keyword id="11993734" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ethereum-killer" source="Orion">Ethereum killer</keyword>?</cmsannotation> This isn’t really a yes or no answer. There are pros and cons though, the big pros being the fact that Algorand is faster than Ethereum and that it has no concept of gas fees. The minimum transaction on Algorand is 0.001 Algos and it depends only on the size of the transaction. The Algorand Standard Asset (ASA) is also similar to the ERC-20 token, since both of them allow smart contracts to be built. However, while ERC-20 will always add traffic to Ethereum’s network and increase gas fees, ASA smart contracts can be run off-chain too and hence reduce transaction fees. In addition, bridges between ASA and ERC-20 allow applications built on Algorand to talk to those built on Ethereum. Which is why currencies like Tether and USDC can be transferred to ALGO at 1000 TPS. Algorand’s unyielding price on exchanges like WazirX is a good sign that the cryptocurrency is running on a strong foundation. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Algorand and CBDC" comment="subhead" text="Algorand and CBDC">Algorand and CBDC</cmsannotation> As mentioned earlier, Algorand’s biggest benefit is that it solves the blockchain trilemma. Which means that it’s one of the best suited networks to power central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), like the ones being formulated in countries like India right now. The Republic of Marshall Islands had selected Algorand to power its national currency earlier this year. 16 other such CBDC projects are in the works as well. Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post in partnership with WazirX. Do your own research (DYOR) before deciding to invest in any asset, cryptocurrency or otherwise. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/crypto-faqs-answered-everything-you-need-to-know-about-crypto-regulations-trading-taxes-and-cbdc-in-india/articleshow/88139203.cms">Crypto FAQs answered — everything you need to know about crypto regulations, trading, taxes and CBDC in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/facebook-and-microsoft-arent-the-only-ones-creating-a-metaverse-here-are-five-popular-coins-looking-to-create-digital-worlds/articleshow/87931051.cms">Facebook and Microsoft aren’t the only ones creating a metaverse — here are five popular coins looking to create digital worlds</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/what-is-bitcoin-golden-cross-and-death-cross/articleshow/87796591.cms">Bitcoin investors love the golden cross and death cross — here’s why they matter but there are other factors to keep in mind</a>

Algorand — here’s why crypto lovers are so bullish on this ‘Ethereum Killer’

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The <keyword id="11931714" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="solana" source="Orion">Solana</keyword> team announced on Twitter at around 02:00 ET that they were able to restart the network.</li><li>The network crashed the day before after high transaction volumes forced a restart.</li><li>The <keyword id="11902216" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blockchain" source="Orion">blockchain</keyword>'s <keyword id="12045888" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sol" source="Orion">sol</keyword> token was down by around 5% at $160.50, having hit a record above $200 last week.</li></ul>The solana network was up and running normally again on Wednesday after a surge in transaction volume prompted the blockchain to crash the day before, according to an announcement by the company <a href="https://twitter.com/SolanaStatus/status/1438020110451609603">Twitter</a> overnight.In its tweet, Solana told its validators, who help keep the system secure, how they could help restart the mainnet. This crash was caused by a surge in activity on the network. The company said ''intermittent instability" had disrupted some <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/solana-crash-network-crypto-blockchain-engineers-validators-restart-sol-2021-9">services</a> on Tuesday, after solana's transaction load peaked at 400,000 transactions per second."These transactions flooded the transaction processing queue, and lack of prioritization of network-critical messaging caused the network to start forking," Solana's team said on <a href="https://twitter.com/SolanaStatus/status/1437856638279487493">Twitter</a>.<a href="https://www.cmcmarkets.com/en/learn-cryptocurrencies/what-is-a-blockchain-fork">Forking</a>, which occurred after the transactions flooded in, is when the blockchain splits and the software of different <keyword id="12100261" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="miners" source="Orion">miners</keyword>, or validators, doesn't align. A decision on which version of the blockchain to use is critical. "The solana validator community successfully completed a restart of Mainnet Beta after an upgrade to 1.6.25. Dapps, block explorers, and supporting systems will recover over the next several hours, at which point full functionality should be restored,"Solana's team tweeted.Solana is known for its <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/solana-investment-altcoins-crypto-ethereum-bitcoin-coinshares-transaction-costs-2021-9">cheap</a>, fast transactions that have helped it be seen as a potential "ethereum killer" - a rival to the larger blockchain.When transactions peaked on Tuesday, this caused excessive memory consumption, prompting <a href="https://academy.binance.com/en/articles/what-are-nodes">network nodes</a>, a point where a message can be created, received or delivered, to go offline. Solana's sol's token was last around $160.20, down nearly 5% in the 24 hours to 05:45 ET, according to <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/">coinmarketcap</a>. Last week, sol reached record highs above $200, despite a <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/bitcoin-ether-price-el-salvador-leverage-liquidation-exchange-glitches-crypto-2021-9">huge sell-off</a> in the broader <keyword id="11892695" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="cryptocurrency" source="Orion">cryptocurrency</keyword> market.

Solana says it is back up and running after a surge in transactions caused the network to crash the day before

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="13037119" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="dappradar" source="Orion">DappRadar</keyword> sees 80% of <keyword id="11899100" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="defi" source="Orion">DeFi</keyword> apps vanishing if the <keyword id="11893898" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="crypto" source="Orion">crypto</keyword> bear run lasts, according to a Bloomberg report.</li><li>Plunging crypto has seen <keyword id="12681147" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="liquidations" source="Orion">liquidations</keyword> and usage drop in DeFi apps, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.</li></ul>Four out of five DeFi apps could disappear if the crypto rout lasts for a year, says DappRadar, according to a <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-01-25/defi-shakeout-seen-as-liquidations-lead-to-crypto-user-exodus?utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_content=crypto">Bloomberg report</a> Tuesday."As far as <keyword id="12751906" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="crypto-winter" source="Orion">crypto winter</keyword>, DeFi dapps have never gone through it," Pedro Herrera, senior data analyst at tracker DappRadar, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg."They have experienced crashes, but this feels like a prolonged one. Probably 20% of the apps that hold 80% of the industry value will survive," he said.Cryptocurrencies have come under intense pressure so far in January, with <keyword id="11893902" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="bitcoin" source="Orion">bitcoin</keyword> tumbling to six-month lows. Meanwhile, some of 2021's <keyword id="11961768" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="altcoin" source="Orion">altcoin</keyword> stars — such as solana, cardano and polygon — have fallen even more sharply this month, losing almost 40% in value. Decentralized finance, or DeFi, has a taken a drastic hit from the crypto market's ongoing bear run. Almost <a href="https://dune.xyz/dsalv/Liquidations">$300 million</a> assets were liquidated in DeFi protocols in the last week, according to industry data tracker Dune Analytics, as reported by Bloomberg.A report by <a href="https://news.bitcoin.com/value-locked-in-defi-slides-21-in-2-weeks-200b-tvl-still-10x-larger-than-this-time-last-year/">Bitcoin.com</a> found the value locked in DeFi has fallen by over 20% since January 4, although it is still 10 times higher than this time last year.There are almost 150 active DeFi-related decentralized apps, or dapps. They currently hold $30 billion less than at the start of 2021, according to DappRadar. Usage of DeFi dapps is decreasing, with active user wallets interacting with the major apps falling 20-30% in the last two weeks, it said. Ethereum-based DeFi apps such as Aave, Compound and MakerDAO processed a record $200 million of liquidations on Friday, data from Dune Analytics shared by Delphi Digital shows, <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2022/01/25/ethereum-money-markets-see-record-liquidations-as-ether-tanks-makerdao-revenue-surges/">according to CoinDesk</a>. DeFi apps aim to<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/17/mark-cuban-learn-about-defi-nfts-cryptocurrency-like-eth.html"> recreate traditional financial systems</a> with cryptocurrency. Most run on the <keyword id="11892696" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ethereum" source="Orion">ethereum</keyword> blockchain. Falling ether prices triggered the mass liquidation in DeFi apps. Ethereum's native ether token, the world's second largest by market value after bitcoin, is down 32% year to date.

A long 'crypto winter' of falling prices could end up killing off a slew of DeFi apps, according to DappRadar: report

<ul><li>Hike’s whitepaper for going web3 is set to go live next month.</li><li>The process of taking <keyword id="13026719" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="rush-by-hike" source="Orion">Rush by Hike</keyword> on-chain will occur over the next three to six months.</li><li>In an exclusive interview with Business Insider, <keyword id="6567188" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="kavin-bharti-mittal" source="Orion">Kavin Bharti Mittal</keyword> shares details on what the Hike virtual world will look like.</li></ul>Tech entrepreneur Kavin Bharti Mittal is ready to enter the web3 universe with his app, Rush by Hike, this year. The founder and CEO of Hike plans to launch the whitepaper for the <keyword id="13026722" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="rush-gaming-universe" source="Orion">Rush Gaming Universe</keyword> next month, which will spell out the details of his vision and the tokenomics of the platform that Mittal and the Hike team have been building for a while now. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“We are releasing a white paper, it’s on-track to be released next month. And, that’s going to be talking about everything we’ll be doing on-chain.&quot;" auname="Kavin Bharti Mittal revealed in an exclusive interview with Business Insider"></div> The details are still a work in progress and will be revealed over the next three to four weeks. However, Mittal hinted at non-fungible tokens (NFTs), Hike’s own cryptocurrency and other economic opportunities for players looking for ownership of their digital assets. Simply put, the Rush Gaming Universe will be a community-led virtual world where users will be able to own what they create and earn from the time they spend online. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“The Rush Gaming Universe is a social gaming universe. We call it a ‘virtual world’ — we differentiate that from the ‘metaverse’ a little bit. For us, the metaverse is simply an upgrade of the internet.”" auname="Kavin Bharti Mittal told Business Insider"></div> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="A made-in-India wallet" comment="subhead" text="A made-in-India wallet">A made-in-India wallet</cmsannotation> The number of people who have access to the internet in India has surged over the past decade. But, most of these people are accessing the online world through their phones — not through laptops or desktops. Meanwhile, when it comes to web3 and decentralised applications (DApps), they have thus far only been built for access through web browsers — like Chrome and Firefox — or using web extensions. “The only way for us to go along with everything we’re launching is to explore our own wallet or go work with a partner who has made a lot of progress,” Mittal explained. “We’re very close to making a decision. We’re exploring both opportunities. What we’ll do, we’ll know probably in a week, a week and a half.” And, where there’s a wallet, they have to be digital assets, whether those are NFTs or fungible cryptocurrency. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Non-fungible tokens in a play-to-earn (P2E) world" comment="subhead" text="Non-fungible tokens in a play-to-earn (P2E) world">Non-fungible tokens in a play-to-earn (P2E) world</cmsannotation> To the layman, Hike’s avatars may not look like anything more than digital headshots. However, each avatar is meant to be unique to each user. Just like the underlying philosophy behind a non-fungible token (NFT). To be fair, avatar NFT projects aren’t new. The Bored Ape Yacht Club, CryptoPunks, CryptoKitties, Meebits, and Cool Cats are some popular examples that saw explosive growth over the past one year. But, the space is far from saturated. Many consider avatars to be one of the most burgeoning subsets within the NFT ecosystem with users looking to create their own unique identities within virtual worlds. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="It’s going to take another three to six months to hammer out the details" comment="subhead" text="It’s going to take another three to six months to hammer out the details">It’s going to take another three to six months to hammer out the details </cmsannotation>Rush by Hike has a Telegram community of more than 50,000 subscribers. And, the team behind the gaming platform engages with fans for feedback on the gameplay, avatars, what games they would like to see next and other aspects. “And, the community actually votes, by the way. So they have a large role to play in the roadmap of the platform, which is how the web3 community is actually built,” Mittal revealed. Earlier this month, the community actually voted for their own moderators — an indicator of self-organisation. “It gives you a sense of what’s possible already. As you bring things on-chain, in say the next three to six months, when you share incentives building the Rush Gaming Universe, then so much more is possible, ”he added, hinting at the possibility of a governance token. Members of Hike’s team have already been experimenting with RUST for Solana, Solidity for Ethereum and other programming languages. However, there’s no final word on which blockchain Hike will choose to go with at the end of the day. Moreover, most crypto projects start small on-chain themselves. However, with Hike, Mittal plans to bring what’s already happening off-chain onto the blockchain. “We’re already doing 100 million games a quarter. You can’t put that on a blockchain immediately,” explained Mittal. <div type="ExtQuote" text="“The Rushing Gaming Universe aims to be one of the prominent virtual worlds within the metaverse. Inside which, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to become owners in the economies, in the networks, in the gameplay, and so on and so forth.”" auname="Kavin Bharti Mittal told Business Insider"></div> In order to build out his web3 vision for the Rush Gaming Universe, Mittal plans to expand the current team by 40% this year from its current strength of 145. “We’re hiring mostly product people, designers and engineers. And, a couple of other positions like chief of staff or chief economist and so on,” he said. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/bitcoin-recovers-with-equity-markets-but-altcoins-are-still-struggling-to-find-a-bottom/slidelist/89107434.cms">Bitcoin recovers with equity markets, but altcoins are still struggling to find a bottom</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/profit-from-bitcoin-mining-is-shrinking-with-prices-in-the-dumps-and-difficulty-on-the-rise/articleshow/89106547.cms">Bitcoin mining profit is shrinking with prices in dumps and difficulty on the riseBitcoin mining profit is shrinking with prices in dumps and difficulty on the rise</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/coindcx-hiring-2000-plus-people-this-year-crypto-coders-developers-product-development-and-other-roles/articleshow/88972086.cms">EXCLUSIVE: CoinDCX plans to hire more than 2,000 people this year — and they are not just looking at coders</a>

EXCLUSIVE: Kavin Bharti Mittal dives into what Hike’s version of the metaverse is going to look like

Meta’s (formerly <keyword id="6354576" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="facebook" source="Orion">Facebook</keyword>) <keyword id="6354630" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mark-zuckerberg" source="Orion">Mark Zuckerberg</keyword> says he wants to build the <keyword id="11121339" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="metaverse" source="Orion">metaverse</keyword>, as does <keyword id="10387" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="microsoft" source="Orion">Microsoft</keyword>’s Satya Nadella. While Big Tech may have popularized the term recently, the web3 community has actually been working towards this for a long time now. The relationship between cryptocurrency and the metaverse is undeniable. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are the future of ownership deeds, while cryptocurrencies will help build the networks of the future. For instance, while announcing Meta’s plans for the future metaverse last month, Zuckerberg said that the digital avatars people will use in this virtual space will be NFTs. You might be using Cryptopunks and Bored Apes on video calls today, but these will someday be replaced by realistic virtual avatars of our own selves. Microsoft, on the other hand, wants to power the metaverse for enterprises, through platforms like Dynamics 365 and more. But while Big Tech companies might be gung-ho about the metaverse, smaller yet interesting projects have already begun. And these are available on popular crypto exchanges like <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">WazirX</a>, Binance, Coinbase and more. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="wazirx" comment="wazirx" text="wazirx">wazirx</cmsannotation> Here are some of the top coins and metaverse projects you should be following. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The Sandbox" comment="subhead" text="The Sandbox">The Sandbox</cmsannotation> Token: SAND Hong Kong-based gaming firm Animoca Brands has been at work for over four years building The Sandbox. Now, the company’s metaverse game The Sandbox is finally set to go live on November 29 this year. It allows users to explore a virtual game world and monetize their activities in that world through a play-to-earn model. The Sandbox is powered by the SAND token, which is what players earn for playing the game. You have to complete quests in order to earn more of these tokens, and you can also spend them to acquire land and other in-game items. At the time of writing, the SAND token was priced at $5.59. The SAND token’s price briefly jumped by a whopping 260% on November 23, ahead of the game’s metaverse expansion. According to Coinmarketcap, the SAND token was the 41st largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, hitting almost $5 billion in terms of overall market capitalization. Its price has appreciated by 75% over the past seven day period and by over 23% in 24 hours. The November 23 jump came shortly after footwear giant Adidas <a href="https://twitter.com/adidasoriginals/status/1462873002350202882?s=20">mentioned</a> building an “adiVerse” using The Sandbox project. The SAND token may not have the same level of liquidity as some other projects yet, but it is available on popular crypto exchanges like <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">WazirX</a>. The company’s play-to-earn event, Sandbox Alpha is set to begin on November 29 and will allow a select group of players to earn 1000 SAND tokens. Sandbox Alpha will also include 18 new experiences and three NFTs to grab. The NFTs include a longsword, a dragon and a medieval gate. Pros: SAND token can have many uses in the game, SAND could become a governance token in the long run Cons: Other projects like The Sandbox exist so competition is tough <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Decentraland" comment="subhead" text="Decentraland">Decentraland</cmsannotation> Token: MANA Like The Sandbox, Decentraland is also a virtual world that is powered by cryptocurrencies and NFTs. Here, you earn the MANA token for spending time in Decentraland’s virtual world, while LAND again is the NFT. Users buy and sell digital real estate in the game and there are already <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3147981/why-members-south-koreas-gen-mz-are-buying-digital-land">users in South Korea</a> who are making long term plans for the real estate they own in the game. The MANA token was priced at around $4 at the time of writing. While the SAND token is 41st on the list of most valuable crypto’s, Decentraland’s MANA stands at number 29 with a market capitalization of over $7 billion. Its value has risen by almost 20% over the last seven day period and just about 3% over the past 24 hours. The MANA token can be bought on exchanges like <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">WazirX</a>. In October, Decentraland added native support for Polygon’s Matic network, which allows users to make transactions using the META token at much lower fees. The platform also supports Wallet Connect, which is an open protocol that allows Dapps to connect to mobile wallets through QR codes. It also announced a Metaverse Festival featuring EDM artist Deadmau5 last month. Pros: MANA token can be used for other purposes, LAND can be auctioned as NFTs Cons: Users cannot interact with each other yet, the game’s terrain remains more or less the same <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Gala Games" comment="subhead" text="Gala Games">Gala Games</cmsannotation> Token: GALA Unlike MANA, BLOK, SAND and others, the GALA token doesn’t power one game. Instead, it is the cryptocurrency introduced by Gala Games, a company that aims to make many blockchain-based games. Gala Games was founded in 2016 by Eric Schiermeyer, who was the co-founder Zynga, one of the most successful gaming companies ever. It has five games at the moment, which run either on the Mac and Windows platforms, or through web browsers. The company also allows users to buy a license and operate their own node on the Gala network. The GALA token was listed on Binance on September 13 and has been growing in value steadily since then. Its price stood at around $0.68 at the time of writing, but given that the company will be making more games, it could increase substantially in future. The GALA token can be bought on exchanges like <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-advertorial">WazirX</a>. The company claims to be the only project in the blockchain gaming space that hasn’t taken money from venture capitalists yet. Instead, it tried to fund the development of its games by selling licenses for its nodes. The sixth game, called Betwixt, was announced on November 24 and the company says its development is funded by the money that it acquired from selling nodes. Pros: Multiple games means more chances of success, Eric Schiermeyer has a rich history in gaming Cons: One of its games might become more popular than all others, making the time spent on others less fruitful later <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Star Atlas" comment="subhead" text="Star Atlas">Star Atlas</cmsannotation> Token: ATLAS Like many other metaverse projects, Star Atlas is also a blockchain-based game that is building its own metaverse. It’s built on the Solana blockchain, and hence benefits from the network’s high throughput in terms of transactions. Star Atlas is a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG), meaning its world is as expansive as popular games MMORPGs like World of Warcraft etc. It’s built on the Unreal Engine 5’s Nanite platform, which gives it pretty good graphics too, something that games like Decentraland, The Sandbox and others have been lacking. The Atlas token was priced at $0.15 at the time of writing, making this a good time to jump in. The ATLAS token is also listed on Coinbase at the moment, though it will surely be more widely available once the project picks up. While the ATLAS token is Star Atlas’ utility token and what players will be rewarded with, the game will also have a governance token called POLIS. This means that POLIS holders will actually have a say in the game’s future developments. The POLIS token is set to come at a later date and could be a big difference maker for Star Atlas in future. Pros: Great graphics could attract more gamers easily, Solana can support high transaction throughput, only AAA-class metaverse game on the horizon right now Cons: Great graphics also means it will have higher hardware requirements than simpler games, and hence create barriers to entry <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Bloktopia" comment="subhead" text="Bloktopia">Bloktopia</cmsannotation> Token: BLOK All metaverse projects are expected to adopt virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) sometime in future, but Bloktopia is already on it. It’s the only VR metaverse being built right now, and includes a virtual skyscraper which has 21 levels. Why 21? To honour the 21 million Bitcoins that will ever be in circulation, as detailed in the Bitcoin whitepaper. Those who own the Bloktopia token, predictably called the BLOK, will be called Bloktopians. “For the first time ever, users will have access to crypto information and immersive content all in one place. Bloktopians will be able to earn revenue through real estate ownership, advertising revenue, play games, build networks and much more,” the company says on its website. On November 22, founder Paddy Carroll told Cointelegraph that the company is building floors one and six right now, along with the auditorium, and wants to have a working beta up by March 2022. It’s built on the Polygon platform and is available on crypto exchanges like OKex and KuCoin. Pros: Already being built for virtual reality, one of the founders worked on PlayStation VR, great graphics Cons: Yet to launch, VR would also mean entry barriers are high and hence usage might be low SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/what-is-bitcoin-golden-cross-and-death-cross/articleshow/87796591.cms">Bitcoin investors love the golden cross and death cross — here’s why they matter but there are other factors to keep in mind</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/bitcoin-digital-gold-may-give-higher-returns-than-actual-gold/articleshow/87152395.cms">Bitcoin may be more festive with 'digital' gold giving higher returns than the actual yellow metal this festive season</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/elon-musks-puppy-burning-tokens-and-altcoin-rally-made-shiba-inu-price-rise/articleshow/86966623.cms">Elon Musk’s puppy, a new strategy to burn tokens, and altcoins playing catch up — the perfect storm for cryptocurrency Shiba Inu to skyrocket</a>

​Facebook and Microsoft aren’t the only ones creating a metaverse — here are five popular coins looking to create digital worlds​

<ul class="summary-list"><li>There are many new terms and acronyms that have developed around <keyword id="11893898" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="crypto" source="Orion">crypto</keyword> and <keyword id="11901075" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="nfts" source="Orion">NFTs</keyword>. </li><li>For example, a PFP project is a profile picture project like Bored Ape Yacht Club. HODL means not selling.</li></ul>If you're inexperienced with NFTS, some terms may be confusing.I'm a full-time YouTuber focused on demystifying all things Web3, but when I was first learning about the Web3 space, it seemed like people were speaking a different language.Sharding? Rugpull? WAGMI? The jargon was a lot to absorb.So after scouring the internet for hours looking for answers, I pulled together a list of Web3 definitions so that even the most tech-averse folks can understand.<h2>Here are 50 terms you should know </h2><ol><li>Airdrop: To send someone free crypto things such as NFTs or tokens. This has nothing to do with Apple's airdrop feature. Sometimes airdropping gives NFT holders something special. But usually airdropping is for giveaways or a sketchy marketing tactic. </li><li>Alpha: This is another term for "insider information." If someone has "alpha," they have information the rest of the market hasn't found out about yet. </li><li>Ape in: To invest a lot of money into a new cryptocurrency or NFT project without doing the proper research first. It comes from the "apes together strong" meme. </li><li>Bearish: The belief that a project is going to lose value over time. </li><li>Blockchain: A type of database. Information is stored in groups (blocks) that can't be changed after they're created. The entire group of groups (chain of blocks = blockchain) is copied across many different computers so the data is public and safe.</li><li>Blue chip: As close to a "reliable" investment as you can get in the NFT space. These NFT projects are well-known and generally perceived as having a high value. Bored Ape Yacht Club, CryptoPunks, World of Women are considered bluechips. </li><li>Bullish: The belief that a project is going to gain value over time. </li><li>Coinbase: A popular platform to buy and sell crypto. </li><li>Crypto wallet: A place (app or physical item) where you can keep your crypto holdings (NFTs, Ethereum, etc.) A wallet is necessary to buy things (NFTs) with crypto. Some popular wallets are Coinbase Wallet and MetaMask.</li><li>Crypto wallet address: A public address you can give people so they can send crypto/NFTs to you. Usually it's a long alphanumeric string, but you can also purchase a shorter domain name if you want. For example, mine is aprilynne.eth. </li><li>Decentralized: Power is spread across many people instead of a through a single person. </li><li><keyword id="12561214" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="dao" source="Orion">DAO</keyword>: Short for "decentralized autonomous organization." This group's members votes are automatically tallied and used to decide on things. Sometimes actions are automatically taken. The code for all automatic actions are publicly available so everyone can make sure things are run correctly. </li><li>DAPP: Short for "decentralized application," it's an app built on the blockchain. Instead of data being collected/manipulated/sold by Big Brother (*cough, cough, Meta*), all data is stored publicly on the blockchain. </li><li>DEFI: Short for "decentralized finance." It basically means banking but without the fees/approvals for transactions and loans. You can lend, trade, and borrow crypto through public code that automatically stores/verifies transactions. </li><li>Diamond hands: Holding onto a high-risk NFT despite the pressure to sell. Sometimes people use this as justification when an NFT of theirs starts dropping in value. It originates from "diamonds are created under pressure."</li><li>Doxxed: When the true identities of a team behind an NFT project are revealed. Usually used to build credibility in a project.</li><li>Drop: The initial launch of a new collection or project.</li><li>DYOR: Short for "do your own research." This is a disclaimer, and honestly pretty good advice,often added to the end of an opinion on an NFT project. Its pronounced like Dior the brand. </li><li>DOT ETH (.eth): A personal crypto wallet address someone can purchase. For example, my Ethereum wallet address is aprilynne.eth. </li><li>Ethereum: A popular blockchain used for NFTs often criticized for its slow, expensive transactions. Also home of Ether (ETH), the second most popular cryptocurrency. </li><li>Flip: Buying an NFT and selling it quickly rather than holding it with the intent to try to make immediate profits. It's a pretty common yet risky strategy. </li><li>Floor: The NFTs at the floor price of a collection. </li><li>Floor price: The lowest market price for NFTs within a collection. Often used as a rule-of-thumb measure of the value of an NFT project. </li><li>Floor sweep: When someone buys all of the NFTs of a collection at the floor price. Buyers can do this because they believe in the project. Sellers can do this to artificially inflate the floor price of the NFT collection. </li><li>FOMO: Short for "fear of missing out." It's an emotional factor that drives someone to irrationally buy into a project. </li><li>FUD: Short for "fear, uncertainty, doubt" and is used to express concerns about the legitimacy/value of an NFT project. For example, someone can come into an NFT Discord server and spread FUD.</li><li>Gas fee: Basically a transaction fee for crypto (Ethereum) transactions. The busier the Ethereum network, the more expensive the gas fee. This is one of the most complained-about feature of the Ethereum network. </li><li>GM: Short for "good morning," it's a popular greeting on NFT Twitter. It signals that someone is online. </li><li>HODL: A misspelling of "hold" that caught on and earned the acronym "hold on (for) dear life." The term signals that someone is not selling, despite potential volatility and uncertainty. </li><li>LFG: Short for "let's fucking go." Usually used to hype up an NFT project. </li><li>Marketplace: A platform for buying and selling NFTs. Popular NFT marketplaces include OpenSea, Rarible, and Magic Eden. </li><li>MetaMask: A popular crypto wallet. MetaMask has a logo that looks like a fox. </li><li>Metaverse: A virtual world where you have an avatar and you can buy things, play games, and even build businesses. Many different companies (*cough, cough, Meta*) are trying to make a metaverse that "wins" and will become mainstream. </li><li>Minting: Taking a digital asset and putting it onto the blockchain to create an NFT. </li><li>Mooning: Describes the trend when numbers go up. It means growing in price very quickly. </li><li>NGMI: Short for "not gonna make it." It's used to roast people and projects that won't last long in the NFT space. </li><li>OpenSea: A popular NFT marketplace. Currently only supporting NFTs on the Etherium and Polygon blockchains.</li><li>Paper hands: Selling NFTs under pressure. Usually used by "diamond hands" as a roast against people who actually sell. </li><li>PFP project: Short for "profile picture project." These are collections launched with the intent of being avatars that people can use as their Twitter profile picture to flex ownership. </li><li>Polygon: A blockchain used for NFTs that's popular for its lack of gas fees. Technically built on top of Ethereum. </li><li>Pump and dump: A nefarious scheme to artificially "pump" (drive up) the price of an NFT project before selling everything at once, effectively "dumping" the price while making a profit. </li><li>P2E: Short for "pay to earn." You get paid in crypto/NFTs for playing certain kinds of games.</li><li>Road map: A public general plan for an NFT project. Usually gives insight into the timeline and the <keyword id="12326608" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="utility" source="Orion">utility</keyword> of the project. </li><li>Rugpull: An NFT project gone wrong. People lie about an NFT project in order to lure others into buying in. Once they've collected the money, they abandon the project, leave with the cash, and everyone is left sad and broke. </li><li>Sharding: Breaking down a single NFT into smaller pieces, or shards so a group of people can buy and own an NFT that is otherwise too expensive to be bought in its entirety. </li><li>Solana: A popular blockchain for NFTs known for its cheap, fast transactions. </li><li>Smart contract: Public code attached to an NFT that runs by itself. Usually how the utility of an NFT is enforced. Useful because you don't have to trust the individual behind a project — you just need to trust the code that you can see and verify yourself.</li><li>Staking: A way to earn passive income by locking up your NFTs on the blockchain for a period of time. You can earn rewards for this in the form of crypto. </li><li>To the moon: A celebratory term used when prices of an NFT project are going up and up. </li><li>Utility: Underlying value of an NFT. Utility is the perks, products, services, benefits, or rights associated with owning an NFT. For example, some NFTS come with 30% off of future products, membership to a private fund, access to an online course, access to private events, or copyright rights to a brand.</li></ol>Aprilynne Alter is an NFT YouTuber and startup founder.

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