There’s always an abundance of news in the crypto world. Of late, most of this news has been bearish, tied to systemic concerns and a bearish backdrop for this sector broadly. However, there are always cryptos to watch for investors seeking positive price momentum, with a number of intriguing positive catalysts worth considering.
It’s a tough time to look at any news in a positive light right now. However, the news investors received late last month that Meta (NASDAQ:META) has integrated non-fungible token (NFT) sharing on its Instagram platform after months of testing did provide a periodic boon to certain cryptos.
The idea that users can create their own digital collectibles on Instagram, and sell these tokens to fans on and off the platform, is exciting for many bullish on NFTs. Within this announcement, Meta highlighted that it will be working with different NFT blockchains, such as Polygon (MATIC-USD) and Solana (SOL-USD), to bring this about (more on these tokens shortly).
Currently, the platform has launched this feature in around 100 countries. This, in turn, has allowed users to showcase their NFTs and connect their digital wallets.
With this major move by Meta, it seems that the otherwise fallen crypto market could have a catalyst for a revival. While calls for a bull market may be premature, this is the kind of major news crypto investors will want to keep an eye on.
With that said, here are three cryptos to watch as Meta wades into the world of crypto in a big way.
| MATIC-USD | Polygon | $0.94 |
| SOL-USD | Solana | $14.63 |
| AR-USD | Arweave | $9.11 |
Polygon (MATIC-USD)
First on our list of cryptos to watch following this news is Polygon. As mentioned above, Polygon is among the blockchains included in Meta’s announced rollout of its digital collectibles feature. This should come as no surprise, seeing as Polygon is a leading blockchain used for smaller-scale transactions, such as those involving NFTs.
An Ethereum (ETH-USD) layer-2 scaling solution, Polygon essentially allows for quicker and cheaper transactions on the Ethereum blockchain. Given Ethereum’s network size, congestion has led to relatively high fees and latency across the network for years. Thus, those looking to get a transaction done on the cheap on Ethereum often look first to Polygon to execute said transactions.
Polygon’s low transaction fees has made it a go-to platform for NFT trading for avatars on Reddit. It has also become famous for developing Disney’s (NYSE:DIS) entertainment-linked digital collectibles. This is one of the many bright spots for considering Polygon as a viable investment option now.
Some analysts believe that Meta moving towards Polygon could actually provide support to MATIC tokens during bear markets. Thus, this project is clearly among the cryptos to watch for those concerned about the current market dynamics right now.
Solana (SOL-USD)
One of the most divisive blockchains out there, Solana has been hit very hard in recent days due to contagion-related concerns tied to the demise of FTX (FTT-USD) (and its holdings of SOL).
That said, the amount of NFT-related activity on the Solana blockchain is notable. This is partly because of Solana’s speed and cost advantage relative to other layer-1 networks.
Now, Solana has had its fair share of issues. Aside from being entangled in the whole FTX debacle, this is a network that’s had a series of slowdowns and outages in the recent past. Thus, it’s an investment that carries higher level of risk.
However, Solana’s ability to handle tens of thousands of transactions per second, while doing so at a fraction of a penny each, makes it an ideal place for NFT trading. Accordingly, it’s clear why the networks’ launch of its SolSea NFT marketplace has been a relative success of late.
This is certainly one of the top cryptos to watch for investors bullish on NFTs over the long term.
Arweave (AR-USD)
Founded in 2017, Arweave (AR-USD) is a project with a notable aim. This network looks to create the “permaweb,” essentially storing user data forever, in a decentralized and safe fashion. For those with excess computing power on their hard drives, lending this storage to the network will generate revenue over time. Thus, it’s a sort of “Airbnb (NASDAQ:ABNB) for decentralized storage.” Many in the crypto community have thought this should be a key vertical at some point.
Like other tokens in the market, Arweave has struggled of late. That said, Meta’s announcement move to integrate NFTs within Instagram caused a massive spike of 75% in Arweave’s value.
That’s because Meta announced Arweave will serve as the decentralized storage service to help make this whole program run. If successful, Arweave could continue to be a beneficiary, as more corporate and institutional adoption takes place.
Now, it’s fair to say we’re unclear on how far this whole NFT integration will ultimately go. But for those bullish on the future of mainstream NFTs, Arweave is a unique pick-and-shovel play on this space worth considering.
On the date of publication, Chris MacDonald did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
