Focus on NFTs and interoperability pushes Icon (ICX) higher

Projects focused on NFTs and cross-chain transactions continue to undergo explosive rallies as investors sharpen their focus on the sector. High levels of excitement continue to surround all things nonfungible token (NFT)-related as nonfungible art, collectibles and new business models built on the nascent sector attract a diverse array of investors. 

In addition to the development of lucrative secondary markets for NFT listings and sales, crypto projects that are focused on NFTs, decentralized finance (DeFi) and cross-chain interoperability have also seen their native tokens rally significantly.

Three projects that fit in this category are Axie Infinity, Icon and Ark.

AXS/USDT

Axie Infinity is a blockchain-based trading and battling game inspired by games like Pokémon and Tamagotchi that allows players to collect, breed, raise, battle and trade token-based creatures known as Axies. According to data provided by the project, the month of March was one of the fastest periods of growth for the Axie community, with more than 250,000 active users engaging with the protocol.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets and TradingView shows that the price of its native Axie Infinity Shard (AXS) token has surged 515% over the past month, going from a low of $1.27 on Feb. 28 to a new all-time high of $7.33 on March 30 as excitement for the release of Battle V2 lures new players and investors to the protocol.

According to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro, market conditions for AXS have been favorable for some time. The VORTECS™ Score, exclusive to Cointelegraph, is an algorithmic comparison of historic and current market conditions derived from a combination of data points including market sentiment, trading volume, recent price movements and Twitter activity.

The VORTECS™ Score for AXS has been in the green for some time, and it began to pick up on March 24 when it registered a high of 80 before dropping into the light green zone. As AXS' price began to increase on March 25, the VORTECS™ Score began to rise as well and reached a high of 87 on March 28, roughly 20 hours before the price increased 70% over the next two days.

ICX/USDT

Icon is a decentralized blockchain network that has taken a focus on cross-chain interoperability through the creation of its Blockchain Transmission Protocol (BTP). The project released the most recent update for the BTP on March 24, which kicked off the latest price rally for its Icon Exchange Token (ICX), as investors anticipate further activity once interoperability with the Bitcoin and Ethereum networks becomes a reality.

Following the initial spike after the release of the update on March 24, the price of ICX dropped back to a low of $1.69 on March 26 before rallying 70% to a high of $2.88 on March 30 as the possibility of interoperability helped increase token adoption.

VORTECS™ data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro began to detect a bullish outlook for ICX on March 24, prior to the recent price rise. The VORTECS™ Score for ICX began increasing on March 24 and registered a high of 69 on March 25, roughly five hours before the price began to increase 70% over the next five days.

ARK/USDT

Ark (ARK) is a cryptocurrency and blockchain development platform designed to offer solutions that allow anyone to create their own fully customizable, interoperable blockchain. Excitement for the project has been building recently thanks to the pending beta launch of MarketSquare, a “social platform that allows users to discover and connect with Blockchain-powered projects, businesses, applications, node operators, and more.”

A scroll through the MarketSquare and Ark Twitter feeds shows a host of significant partnerships for the upcoming marketplace, including integrations with Axie Infinity, NOWPayments and Uphold.

The price of ARK has rallied 200% since hitting a low of $1.15 on Feb. 28, reaching a high of $3.50 on March 30, which is its highest level in nearly three years. VORTECS™ data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro began to detect a bullish outlook for ARK on March 24, prior to the recent price rise.VORTECS™ Score (green) vs. ARK price. The VORTECS™ Score for ARK first turned green on March 24 and reached a high of 75 before pulling back into the yellow. The score oscillated between the yellow and green range over the next two days before reaching a high of 70 on March 26, roughly 24 hours before the price increased 100% over the next three days.

Recent developments including the ability of United States residents to pay with Bitcoin (BTC) at merchants using PayPal and the launch of micro BTC futures by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange signal that mainstream crypto adoption is just getting started. Projects that are focused on interoperability and NFTs are well positioned to capitalize on the future growth of the cryptocurrency ecosystem.