Six Upcoming Blockchain Projects You Should Be Watching
Six Upcoming Blockchain Projects You Should Be Watching Pixabay

Token offerings have been through multiple iterations over the years, fueled by the need for projects to gain recognition and liquidity for their tokens, and the insatiable appetite of crypto users for the latest and greatest new investments.

With multitude projects raising funding the DeFi and NFT ecosystem are exploding. The latest iteration of the funding raising is called an IDO (initial DEX offering).

Essentially, it’s the same model as an initial exchange offering, only with the added benefits of decentralization and more flexibility for token issuers. Given the serious liquidity that DEXs such as Uniswap and PancakeSwap now command, it’s hardly surprising that more and more projects are looking to the IDO as a means of crowdsourcing liquidity for their tokens.

Here are seven projects that recently concluded their IDO (or about to have it) that might be worth keeping an eye on.

1. BENQi

BENQi is a decentralized liquidity protocol based on the fintech-focused Avalanche network. It allows holders of idle assets to lock them into the protocol in return for yield-bearing tokens, or assets can be used as collateral for loans. The protocol will be subject to decentralized governance by QI token holders with 50% of supply to be distributed through liquidity mining.

BENQi recently underwent a $6 million private funding round led by Ascensive Assets. The round attracted investment from Mechanism Capital, Dragonfly Capital, Arrington XRP Capital, and The Spartan Group, among others.

The funding will help the final push towards a mainnet launch in Q2. Around the same time, the public sale of the QI token will take place on Avalanche’s Pangolin exchange.

2. Jigstack

Jigstack has the ambitious goal of becoming the “Microsoft of DeFi” – creating a safe, user-centric, and simplified experience. The project believes that DeFi in its current form is broken due to the high level of risk and fragmentation in the ecosystem.

The overall idea is to have DAOs governing a range of high-quality, revenue-generating solutions of Ethereum, making DeFi more accessible and eliminating the need for technical know-how.

The project plans to launch its STAK token as the first IDO on its own launchpad platform, called Lemonade, which will be launched soon. Lemonade aims to make it easy for anyone to launch a token with just a few clicks and for potential buyers to have full transparency into their investments. The project recently raised $2.7 million in a private token sale.

3. BlockSwap

London-based startup BlockSwap is aiming to unlock the increasing token liquidity that’s being tied up in staking platforms. Staking is proving to be a popular means of generating passive incoming on idle crypto, but users can’t access the liquidity while it’s staked.

However, BlockSwap is offering the chance to stake on major platforms via its protocol, which will generate tokens that can then be put to work in DeFi protocols.

The project is about to launch its Community Net, where it will test out the features of the platform with a select group of users who will be eligible for incentive-based rewards. Users can participate by getting their hands on some cBSN tokens via the BlockSwap Balancer Liquidity Bootstrapper pool. Follow the project’s Twitter account for more updates.

4. MakiSwap

MakiSwap is aiming to replicate the runaway success of platforms like Uniswap and PancakeSwap, but on the Huobi Eco Chain (Heco.) It will feature an automated market-making protocol and yield farming platform, powered by Unilayer.

Another project with VC backing, MakiSwap recently brought in $1.4 million in seed and private funding from Inclusion Capital, QCP Capital, Polygon Network, and others. The project will be doing an airdrop to holders of LAYER tokens on May 2. On the same day, Unilayer will release a limited edition NFT with special utility.

5. TeraBlock

TeraBlock is developing anML-enabled cryptocurrency exchange, allowing traders to automate their portfolio management. Machine learning algorithms are continually learning and improving to ensure successful trading with effective risk management.

The project has already established a partnership with Binance Cloud and the Binance platform, meaning that the exchange will offer access to all the liquidity and token pairs on one of the world’s biggest trading platforms. Binance will also handle backend functionality, including fund management, security, and user registration.

In late April, Terablock completed a successful funding round where it raised $2.4 million from top investors, including AU21, BSCPad, x21 Digital, and many more. Perhaps unsurprisingly, considering the Binance connection, TeraBlock is launching its IDO on BSCPad starting on May 11.

6. Hord

Hord is a protocol allowing users to create and trade ETFs, known as tokenized baskets. It’s comparable to the copy trading methodology in that participants on Hord are either Champions or part of a Champion’s Word.

Champions are market leaders, pro traders, or funds who broadcast their portfolio data using a Champion smart contract. Users who want to copy the investment deposit their funds into a Mirror contract which replicates the investment. Users receive a token to represent their deposit, which can be redeemed at any time or traded on the Hord DEX.

Hord has already gained backing from investors, including AU21, Master Ventures, and Blue Bridge Financial. On April 23, the project underwent a triple IEO on Gate.io, Kucoin, and Flybit, as well as a listing on Uniswap.