Author: Nancy, PANews

Crypto Veterans Stage Unexpected Comeback: Unpacking the Resurgence of Established Projects

In a recent period marked by a broad crypto market downturn, where most digital assets saw their annual gains evaporate, a surprising trend has emerged. A select group of “veteran” projects, many of which have navigated multiple market cycles and whose narratives were once deemed “disenchanted,” are now defying the prevailing liquidity crunch with significant upward momentum. This unexpected resurgence has sparked discussions, with some observers even likening it to a “doomsday vehicle” rally, prompting a deeper look into the underlying drivers.

PANews has compiled an analysis of 11 established projects that have demonstrated remarkable growth recently. As of November 11th, these projects boasted an average gain of approximately 55.3% over the preceding 30 days. Notably, assets like Zcash (ZEC) and Internet Computer (ICP) have led this charge, recouping substantial losses incurred around October 11th. Despite these impressive short-term recoveries, it’s crucial to acknowledge that most of these assets still trade at roughly 90% below their historical peak valuations. This phenomenon of “old trees sprouting new leaves” is not merely a product of market hype; it’s underpinned by a confluence of factors including significant technical upgrades, robust ecosystem development, and enhanced token utility, all contributing to their counter-trend performance.

Spotlight on the Resurgent Veterans:

Zcash (ZEC): Leading the Privacy Resurgence

Zcash has emerged as a primary catalyst in the renewed interest surrounding privacy-focused cryptocurrencies. CoinGecko data reveals ZEC surged by an impressive 151.2% over the past 30 days, briefly touching a high not seen since January 2018. Despite this rally, it remains approximately 79.1% below its all-time peak.

The heightened market attention can be partly attributed to public endorsements from influential figures, including Silicon Valley angel investor Naval and BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes. Concurrently, Zcash’s product and ecosystem advancements have aligned perfectly with its price trajectory. In October, Grayscale announced the Zcash Trust Fund was open for private subscription to accredited investors. November saw Zcash developer ECC unveil its Q4 roadmap, prioritizing technical debt reduction, enhancing Zashi user privacy and usability, and streamlining development fund management. Shortly thereafter, the Zcash Foundation launched a revamped official website, reinforcing its commitment to privacy-centric financial infrastructure.

Furthermore, the impending second Zcash halving in November 2024, which will reduce block rewards and consequently new market supply, is also providing a supportive tailwind for its price.

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Dash (DASH): Built on Enduring Fundamentals

Dash has also posted significant gains, with CoinGecko data showing a rise of approximately 104.5% over the last 30 days, marking a new high since December 2021. However, it still sits a considerable 94.6% below its historical peak. Dash attributes its recent strong performance not to fleeting trends but to years of dedicated fundamental development. Key achievements highlighted include the launch of DashSpend, extensive research into bill payment solutions, comprehensive enhancements to its confidential payment features, integration with DEX platforms like Maya Protocol, and the successful rollout of its decentralized application platform, Evolution.

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Monero (XMR): Sustained Focus on Privacy Innovation

As the privacy narrative heats up, Monero’s profile has risen significantly. According to CoinGecko, XMR’s price climbed 43.6% in the past 30 days, reaching a high last seen in May 2021, though still 22.7% below its all-time high.

Monero’s commitment to privacy and technological advancement remains steadfast. In October, the project rolled out the crucial Fluorine Fermi upgrade, substantially bolstering user protection against “spy nodes.” This was followed by a series of software and wallet updates, alongside plans for upcoming technical, research, and community-focused conferences, all while consistently advancing its Community Crowdfunding System (CCS).

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NEAR Protocol (NEAR): Powering Cross-Chain and AI-Friendly Innovation

NEAR Protocol has experienced a 20.6% increase over the past month, according to CoinGecko, though it remains 85.5% below its historical high.

The ecosystem’s resurgence is fueled by several key developments. Last month, NEAR Protocol’s House of Stake officially went live on the mainnet, enabling users to lock NEAR for governance rights and staking rewards. Critically, NEAR Protocol’s transaction execution framework, Near Intents—designed for cross-chain native transactions, ultra-fast settlement, and AI-friendly functionalities—is proving to be a vital engine. It has accumulated a staggering $4.5 billion in transaction volume, with $1.1 billion recorded in the last 7 days alone, generating $8.2 million in cumulative fees.

On the tokenomics front, a recent proposal to halve NEAR’s annual inflation rate to 2.5% did not pass due to failing to meet the voting threshold. However, the core team is committed to incorporating similar inflation reduction measures into future protocol upgrades. Furthermore, Nasdaq-listed shipping company OceanPal announced a $120 million PIPE in October to establish SovereignAI, a wholly-owned subsidiary collaborating with the NEAR Foundation to build a NEAR-based crypto treasury and a confidential AI cloud platform.

Related Reading: NEAR Intent Layer earns $400k daily, why is L1 mainnet still “starving”?

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Internet Computer (ICP): Riding the AI Wave

The Internet Computer has recaptured market attention, largely driven by its foray into AI products. CoinGecko data shows ICP surged by 111.1% over the last 30 days, reaching a new annual high, yet it remains a stark 99% below its historical peak.

Recently, the DFINITY Foundation unveiled a significant product update for Caffeine, its DeAI platform operating on ICP, which is now universally accessible. This innovative platform empowers users to rapidly generate, deploy, and iterate complete Web3 applications using natural language chat, eliminating the need for traditional programming skills.

Related Reading: DFINITY Foundation bets on AI, how does Caffeine drive ICP’s surge?

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Uniswap (UNI): Revamping Tokenomics for Long-Term Value

On November 11th, Uniswap’s UNI token experienced a significant price surge following the announcement of a groundbreaking proposal to activate protocol fees and implement a UNI burning mechanism. CoinGecko data indicates UNI climbed 43.6% in the past 30 days, though it is still 80.4% below its all-time high.

The “UNIfication Proposal,” jointly put forth by Uniswap Labs and the Uniswap Foundation on November 11th, aims to harmonize the incentive structure across the entire Uniswap ecosystem. This includes activating the protocol fee mechanism, initiating UNI token burning, and establishing a dedicated Uniswap growth budget. The ultimate goal is to solidify Uniswap’s position as the default decentralized exchange (DEX) for tokenized value.

Related Reading: Uniswap’s major proposal goes live: activating fee switch and burning mechanism, but competitors call it a “strategic error”

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Filecoin (FIL): Evolving into an On-Chain Cloud Service

Filecoin has seen its FIL token rise by approximately 51.5% over the past 30 days, hitting an 8-month high. Despite this, it remains about 98.9% below its historical peak.

Filecoin is strategically integrating the AI and DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks) narratives, accelerating its transformation from a decentralized storage network into a comprehensive on-chain cloud service. Over the last month, Filecoin has intensely focused on bolstering its infrastructure and ecosystem, with key developments in data storage, cross-chain interoperability, and fee optimization. Highlights include the October launch of Filecoin Pin, enabling one-click anchoring of IPFS content to the Filecoin chain for cryptographically verifiable persistent storage, complete with CLI and GitHub Actions integration to lower developer barriers. The v26 network upgrade halved Gas fees, stimulating growth in daily new and active storage contracts. The ecosystem fund injected 500,000 FIL (worth millions of dollars) into over 200 ecosystem projects via the RetroPGF-3 program. More recently, Filecoin hinted at its transition to an on-chain cloud service, supporting on-chain data retrieval and computation, with an official page and whitelist applications now live. Additionally, Filecoin partnered with Akave Cloud to offer an S3-compatible decentralized object storage service, facilitating enterprise and DePIN migration to blockchain storage.

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Arweave (AR): Benefiting from Data Storage Demand

The rapid expansion of AI applications and the global push for data center infrastructure have significantly amplified the demand for high-performance storage solutions. This trend has, in turn, fueled a comprehensive surge in storage-related ecosystems, drawing capital attention to decentralized storage projects like Arweave. CoinGecko data indicates AR gained approximately 31.7% over the past 30 days, reaching a 3-month high, though it is still roughly 93.8% below its historical peak.

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Starknet (STRK): A Rising Star in ZK and Privacy Tech

Starknet has garnered considerable market attention recently, driven by the burgeoning interest in zero-knowledge proof (ZK) technology and the privacy sector. A notable connection boosting its profile is that Eli Ben-Sasson is a co-founder of both Starknet and Zcash. According to CoinGecko, STRK recorded approximately a 50.3% gain in the last 30 days, yet it remains about 96.1% below its historical peak.

Starknet has been exceptionally active on both technical and ecosystem fronts. Recent initiatives include the launch of its Bitcoin yield product, Starknet Earn, which has entered Beta testing. Circle’s native USDC and CCTP V2 have announced their deployment on Starknet, expanding its DeFi capabilities. Starkware released a new version, Starknet v0.14.1, and recently confirmed the deployment of its next-generation open-source S-two test on the Starknet mainnet, signaling continuous innovation.

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ZKsync (ZK): Vitalik’s Nod and Advanced ZK Tech

ZKsync has captured significant market interest, notably due to an endorsement from Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and its cutting-edge ZK technology. CoinGecko data shows ZK experienced approximately a 39.8% increase over the past 30 days, though it is still about 82.8% below its historical high.

On the technical side, ZKsync recently unveiled the Atlas upgrade for its ZK Stack, introducing a high-performance sequencer. This innovation promises sub-second transaction confirmation and accelerated cross-chain settlement, providing a faster and more flexible infrastructure for enterprises and institutions looking to migrate their operations to the blockchain.

In a significant development for its tokenomics, ZKsync founder Alex recently proposed a major update. Moving forward, the ZK token’s utility will extend beyond mere governance. The core mechanism will involve using all network-generated revenue to repurchase and burn ZK tokens, fostering a self-reinforcing, sustainable economic ecosystem for ZKsync.

Related Reading: ZKsync backed by Vitalik but activity remains low, some Ethereum L2s see phased recovery

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Neo (NEO): The “Smart Economy” Pioneer’s Evolution

Neo’s NEO token has shown a 16.1% gain over the past 30 days, according to CoinGecko, though it remains 97.3% below its all-time high. The past month has been dynamic for Neo, with multi-faceted advancements in both technology and market presence. For instance, Neo deployed the NEO X mainnet v0.4.2 upgrade, integrating protective measures against Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) exploitation at the consensus layer. Neo also officially decommissioned its Legacy mainnet, signaling a clear path forward. The Neo X core codebase has been opened to the community, fostering decentralized development. Most recently, Neo and SpoonOS jointly launched the Scoop AI hackathon, highlighting its engagement with emerging tech trends.

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