Polkadot is widely considered one of the up-and-coming blockchain ecosystems taking the industry to the next level. Its innovative use of parachains will address scaling and efficiency concerns. Moreover, several tokens and projects on this technology stack noted a price gain of over 460% this year.
Celer Network (CELR)
As a layer-two scaling solution for Ethereum Polkadot, and other blockchains, Celer Network is an infrastructure project well worth keeping an eye on. The focus on fast, easy, and secure off-chain payments and smart contracts can drive the mass adoption of blockchain technology. The CELR token noted an impressive 1,510% price increase this year. Even then, its market cap is just $402 million, which seems relatively low.
Ankr Network (ANKR)
One can consider Ankr network as a Web3 infrastructure provider with a globally distributed network of nodes across dozens of proof-of-stake chains. Moreover, it can act as a cloud-computing service provider rivaling Amazon and Alibaba through decentralized technology. With its low cost and eco-friendly solution, Ankr holds a strong market position. Furthermore, the ANKR token notes a 1,231% price increase this year, bringing its market cap to $885 million.
Dego Finance (DEGO)
NFTs and decentralized finance reside on many blockchains, including Polkadot. Dego Finance, as an NFT + DeFi protocol and infrastructure, is one such project. Through Dego, anyone can issue NFTs, participate in auctions, trade non-fungible tokens, and much more. Additionally, the ecosystem spans a cross-chain layer-2 infrastructure connecting multiple blockchains to Polkadot, including Binance Smart Chain and Ethereum. Throughout 2021, DEGO noted a substantial uptrend of 1,126%, and Dego Finance now has a market cap of $53.7 million.
OriginTrail (TRAC)
The neutral Web3 protocol allows companies to share trusted data via blockchain technology seamlessly. The end-to-end information is shared in a decentralized knowledge graph network monitored by artificial intelligence and oracles. Moreover, the network’s infrastructure is multi-chain as it runs on Ethereum, xDai, and Polygon, with an expansion to more blockchains on the horizon. At a $414 million market cap, TRAC notes a 635% price increase this year.
Polkastarter (POLS)
Polkastarter is the permissionless decentralized exchange for cross-chain token pools and auctions on the Polkadot technology stack. Projects can raise capital in a decentralized and interoperable environment cheaply and quickly. Several projects have launched on this platform already, with many more to come. All projects raise capital through an IDO, with maximum allocations per investor kept purposefully low. POLS, the asset of Polkastarter, gained 463% in value this year, bringing the project’s market cap to $293 million.