How will each Layer1 public chain perform in 2024?

Author: Prem Reginald Translation: Vernacular Blockchain

Encouraged by Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election, the cryptocurrency market in 2024 showed a vertical growth trend. As a platform for decentralized applications (dApps) and smart contracts, the demand for L1 solutions has risen sharply, and major L1 blockchains have competed fiercely for the top position. However, they face strong challenges from second-layer (Layer 2, L2) solutions, which are committed to increasing transaction speeds at extremely low costs, thereby competing with mature blockchains such as Ethereum.

1. Which Layer 1Tokens perform best?

Among the best performing tokens, Mantra (OM) achieved unprecedented growth, surging 7,035.2% in value. This surge was partly due to Mantra's partnership with Zand, a UAE-based digital bank. Zand tokenizes real-world assets (RWA) by complying with the regulations of Dubai's Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA). In addition, the demand for RWA products continues to grow, and traditional financial institutions have also introduced money funds and bonds to the blockchain.

2. Other outstanding tokens

AIOZ Network (AIOZ) is another outstanding player, with a year-to-date (YTD) increase of 427.6%. The platform’s decentralized content distribution network has seen growing adoption driven by continued ecosystem optimization. Rounding out the top three is Sui (SUI), which grew 388.2% YTD, benefiting from rapid development within its ecosystem, including the launch of innovative dApps that leverage its high scalability and developer-friendly features.

Other notable performers include:

• Bellscoin (BELLS): up 252.2%

• Zano (ZANO): up 159%

• Toncoin (TON): up 136.2%, successfully hosting dApps and launching “click-to-earn” games through integration with Telegram.

3. The top ten Layer 1 tokens by market value have seen a relatively modest increase

Despite the amazing performance of small and medium-sized Layer 1 tokens, tokens with larger market capitalizations such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana remain solid investment options.

Bitcoin (BTC) achieved an annual growth of 112.9%.

Ethereum (ETH) grew by 34.9%, but underperformed similar tokens. With the rise of new Layer 2 and other blockchains, Ethereum's dominance has declined year by year, despite the launch of a spot Ethereum ETF in the United States. However, Ethereum still outperformed the S&P 500, which rose 24.8% in 2024.

Solana (SOL): Rising from the Ashes

Solana (SOL) has emerged from the shadow of FTX's bankruptcy in 2022, and is up 134.3% year to date. Most of its gains occurred in 2023, when prices soared from $15 to $120, driven by the memecoin craze. The trend has also extended to other blockchains such as Tron Network (TRX), which is up 85.5% this year.

Meanwhile, Toncoin (TON) has recorded a staggering 136.2% growth, mainly due to its ability to host dApps on the popular social messaging app Telegram. The “click and earn” game model has become extremely popular on Telegram, further driving its growth.

Sui: The Most Eye-catching

Sui has performed the best this year, up 338.2%. This increase is mainly due to increased investor interest, growth in on-chain activity, and increased utility through significant dApp expansion. In addition, Circle’s USDC has been integrated into the network, and a trend of funds moving from Ethereum to Sui has been observed.

4. The biggest decline

On the other hand, some tokens have fallen as much as -96% so far this year.

Entangle (NGL) performed the worst, down -95.3% YTD.

It was followed by Kujira (KUJI) and Trias Lab (TRIAS), down -86.7% and -83.4%, respectively.

NGL was issued at a high valuation in March 2024, and its price has continued to fall since then. Kujira's performance was affected by the team's high-risk leveraged liquidity positions, which backfired during market volatility.

5. How did the Layer 1 Tokens issued in 2024 perform?

The performance of the various Layer 1 cryptocurrencies launched in 2024 was mixed, reflecting the challenges of breaking out in a highly competitive market.

Aleo (ALEO), launched in September, is down -58.1% since launch.

Saga (SAGA), launched in April, faces similar struggles, down -69.9% year to date.

Omni Network (OMNI), also launched in April, is down -68.8%.

Zeta Chain (ZETA), launched in February, is down -57.3% year to date.

Performance of Router Protocol (ROUTE) and Other New Projects

Router Protocol (ROUTE), launched in July, has seen a 24.8% price drop, while Ice Open Network (ICE) has seen a relatively small drop of 34.5% since becoming active in January. Meanwhile, Kaia (KAIA), which entered the market as late as the end of October, has achieved a small positive growth of 5.2%. These performances reflect the volatility of new Layer 1 projects and the importance of continued innovation and user adoption to gain market recognition.

6. Top 10 Layer 1 Projects by Price Performance

Note: YTD is the abbreviation of Year-to-Date, which means "this year so far". It is usually used to describe the performance of an indicator (such as earnings, ups and downs, or performance) in the period from the beginning of the year (usually January 1) to the current date.

7. Conclusion

In 2024, the Layer 1 blockchain field showed a diverse performance. Mantra is far ahead with a year-to-date (YTD) increase of up to 7035%, thanks to its strategic partnerships and cutting-edge blockchain application cases. On the other hand, established players such as Bitcoin, Solana, and Toncoin have performed steadily, proving that they still have strong vitality in the changing market. At the same time, newly issued tokens face huge challenges and often struggle due to high valuations.

As competition between Layer 1 and Layer 2 solutions intensifies, the focus on scalability, practicality, and compliance will determine the emergence of the next wave of winners, which is particularly important in this rapidly changing crypto market.

Note: This study analyzes the price returns of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization under the Layer 1 category in CoinGecko. The YTD gains in the data cover performance from January 1 to November 18, 2024. These data reflect a cross-section of the market and reflect the differences in performance of each currency in the broader market environment.