Since the beginning of the year, crypto prices have largely been stable, leading many analysts to argue that a general recovery is underway. At a minimum, there is a consensus that fiat values will likely not drop further. Now, a new pattern appears to be emerging, as the top decentralized application (dApp) platforms are making noteworthy gains, indicating that the market may be shifting, with larger, more established coins regaining the trust of investors. Should this scenario be the case, it could be a clear indication of market maturation, and perhaps a sign that the year-long bearish trend could soon end.
The positive moves among the dApp platforms appear to be based on specific developments by each one, rather than as part of a general move up. Despite the decline in values over the past several months, teams have been hard at work making technical developments and forging partnerships with governments and businesses. It appears that this work is beginning to pay off, as clear signs of mainstream adoption and long-term success are emerging.
Stellar Lumens is one platform that has seen a notable rise in value over the past few days, moving up 22% since February 5th. This advance is due largely to positive adoption and development news. For example, Mastercard has announced a partnership with Token.io to develop what it calls an “open banking hub” which will better connect financial institutions to third parties. Part of this network will include a stablecoin, Token X, that will operate on the Stellar blockchain. Also, Coinsquare, a Canadian exchange, has just acquired StellarX, a Stellar-based peer-to-peer crypto marketplace.
Neo has also seen a move up in price, having advanced 45% since the beginning of this month. Gas has also increased significantly in fiat value. The reasons for such an increase is the recent release of details on Neo 3.0, the next significant phase on the platform’s roadmap. The news is promising, with claims of greater scalability, faster transaction speed, and an upgrade in the programing capabilities for smart contracts. According to co-founder Eric Zhang, who gave the details, this upgrade is designed to enable Neo to better handle enterprise-level applications. The development team has also announced the opening of an office in Seattle, Washington.
Other positive performers include EOS, Stratis, and Ethereum, which have all had good news recently. Ethereum, for example, plans to implement its Constantinople upgrade by the end of the month, which will represent a major technical step forward. Also, EOS and Stratis have completed a number of steps on their roadmaps.
Although it is too early to know if a true price recovery is underway, there is no doubt that blockchain adoption is accelerating, and these platforms that enable decentralized applications and smart contracts are all but guaranteed to play a major role moving forward. Thus, it is little surprise that they will be stand outs during a period of market uncertainty. Their recovery could also be a catalyst that begins a bull run. For now, investors appear to be convinced that prices will not drop further, and are thus choosing to acquire them while prices are still well below their all time highs.
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