Several tokens in the Cardano ecosystem, including Minswap (MIN), Indigo (INDY), and Liqwid (LQ), have the potential to provide impressive returns for investors in 2024.
Despite Cardano (ADA) token not performing as well as expected, its ecosystem has continued to experience significant growth. This bullish trend began last year and has carried over into the current market phase.
In November of last year, The Crypto Basic reported that the Cardano Total Value Locked (TVL) reached 669 million ADA, marking a new all-time high. At ADA’s peak price of $3.10, this would translate to over $2 billion.
As the Cardano DeFi ecosystem continued to grow, it surpassed Bitcoin in terms of DeFi TVL, becoming the 11th largest blockchain by TVL. At that time, Cardano’s DeFi TVL had reached an impressive $240 million, while Bitcoin stood at $237 million.
This growth was a result of the capital invested in Cardano-based projects, which attracted the interest of investors. As a result, market observers expect the tokens associated with these projects to experience significant price growth in this cycle.
Minswap (MIN) is a decentralized exchange (DEX) on the Cardano blockchain that operates as a community-governed platform. It enables token swaps with reduced costs and improved efficiency compared to traditional exchanges.
Minswap received the Best Cardano DeFi/DEX Project Award at the Cardano Summit in 2023. In July of that year, the protocol’s TVL reached a peak of 179 million ADA. Although it has slightly decreased since then, Minswap’s TVL remains above 160 million ADA, equivalent to $96.94 million at current rates. This makes it the second-largest DeFi protocol on Cardano.
Holders of MIN, the native token of Minswap, enjoy various benefits such as governance voting and the opportunity to earn rewards through staking. MIN has already performed well, with a 58% increase since November, trading at $0.0355.
Indigo (INDY) is a decentralized protocol for synthetic assets that allows users to create fully collateralized synthetic assets called iAssets. These iAssets mirror real-world assets, providing users with exposure without needing to hold the actual underlying assets.
Since its launch, Indigo has attracted significant capital, with its TVL reaching $125 million last month. The native token, INDY, which allows holders to participate in governance voting, currently has a market cap of $10.88 million, suggesting room for further growth.
Although INDY has not performed well since the third quarter of last year, investors remain optimistic. The token has seen a 20% drop year-to-date, trading at $2.11. However, as the protocol gains more traction, INDY could potentially rebound this year.
Liqwid is one of the fastest-growing Cardano protocols to watch this year. The protocol allows users to borrow and lend tokens, with lenders supplying liquidity to pools and minting qTokens. Borrowers can then borrow against their qToken balance.
Liqwid reached a new TVL all-time high last month, with a total value locked of $68 million, equivalent to 88 million ADA. As of now, Liqwid’s TVL has dropped to $49.75 million, making it the third-largest Cardano-based protocol.
The native token, LQ, has also underperformed since late last year when it dropped from a high of $5.4 in December 2023. However, LQ still has a market cap below $1 million, indicating significant room for growth. The token is currently trading at $2.20.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article are the author’s personal opinions and do not reflect the opinion of The Crypto Basic. Readers are advised to conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
