The Web3 Foundation’s Grant Program for Polkadot Development
The Web3 Foundation has introduced a new initiative to support the development and growth of the Polkadot ecosystem. As the development agency for Polkadot and Kusama, the Foundation believes in community-driven growth and aims to provide support to teams and individuals contributing to the success of Polkadot.
Under this program, the Foundation plans to deploy 20 million Swiss Francs (approximately $22.1 million) and 5 million DOT tokens (valued at around $18.8 million) throughout 2024. The funding will supplement the existing community-governed funding mechanism from the Polkadot Treasury and will be directed towards projects that have a meaningful impact on the future of Polkadot.
Polkadot’s Continued Development Amidst Bear Market
Despite the bear market conditions that have negatively affected the price of DOT, the Polkadot ecosystem remains active in terms of development activity. According to Dotinsights’ Q3 ecosystem progress report, Polkadot has shown significant development activity and reached an all-time high in terms of active core developers during Q3.
In addition, validator staking on the network has remained relatively stable, and nomination pools have reached a milestone by surpassing 15,000 pool members in September. The top DeFi parachains on Polkadot, including Acala Network, Astar Network, Moonbeam, Parallel Finance, and Hydra, have collectively locked a total value of $125.6 million by the end of Q3.
DOT Token Price Decline
Despite positive fundamentals and ongoing development within the ecosystem, the native token of Polkadot, DOT, continues to experience a decline in price. At present, DOT is trading at its lowest level since August 2020, reflecting a loss of 93% from its peak during the bull market in November 2021.
Kusama (KSM), the canary network of Polkadot, is also facing a similar situation, with its price dropping 97% from its all-time high. This decline in token prices has contributed to the diminishing popularity of Polkadot as an “Ethereum killer.”
Hot Take: Polkadot’s Development Efforts Continue Despite Token Price Decline
Despite the significant decline in the price of DOT and KSM tokens, the Polkadot ecosystem remains resilient and continues to witness development and expansion. The Web3 Foundation’s grant program aims to further boost development on the platform by providing substantial funding for impactful projects.
While the current bear market may have impacted investor sentiment towards Polkadot, the ecosystem’s strong development activity and growing community indicate that it still holds potential for future growth and success.