The Polygon crypto MATIC and its blockchain emerged a few years ago and have already managed to secure themselves prominent places in the decentralized space. If you’re not familiar with MATIC, here you can learn how it came to be, how it works, what its price is, and other things you should know about it in case you’re considering investing in this asset.
What Is Polygon Crypto (MATIC)?
The Polygon crypto, also known as MATIC, is the native cryptocurrency of the Polygon ecosystem. It was born back in 2017, with the first launch of the network in question. The creator is Jaynti Kanani who, together with Sandeep Nailwal and Anurag Arjun, has created one of the most important projects in the world of cryptocurrencies.
The idea stems from an Ethereum scalability problem, due to congestion due to the launch of an NFT, Crypto Kitties, and initially, the project used sidechains.
After that, on February 9th, 2021, MATIC underwent a rebranding becoming Polygon MATIC. Currently the entire ecosystem includes not only additional tools such as the Polygon crypto, but is also capable of acting as a bridge between blockchain and Ethereum-based networks. The network has made itself a worthy competitor of the most popular programmable blockchain, as it can execute over 5 million transactions per day, more than double that of Ethereum.
How Does Polygon Work?
The difference from normal blockchains is that Polygon uses the Ethereum blockchain by linking different protocols together. This allows you to increase scalability, flexibility and governance options in an efficient and low-cost way. The Polygon crypto is useful for those who want to move within the Ethereum network without spending staggering amounts to pay commissions. This cryptocurrency can be used to pay commissions for interacting with Ethereum-based protocols and compatible with EVM. The utility of the MATIC network, has also brought positive effect over the Polygon crypto price.
The Current Polygon Crypto Price
The starting Polygon crypto price was very low, around $0.01. This fact has made early investors incredibly happy when the MATIC coin reached its high of almost $3 in December 2021. Although this cryptocurrency has suffered with the whole market as a result of the crash that started at the end of 2021 and still continues, many people are optimistic about its price in the future.
If you’re curious to see how the MATIC token is behaving in price right now, you can see it on the price below.
Where to Buy Polygon Crypto (MATIC)
The Polygon crypto has gained considerable popularity since the price runs it had in 2021, that’s why you could now find it on more platforms for crypto trading and there, it’d be the fastest and easiest to purchase the coin. Based on the types of assets they provide, we can categorize trading platforms in two: brokers (they provide crypto as well as other trading assets) and exchanges (platforms specifically for crypto trading).
Brokers like eToro will allow you to buy Polygon crypto with fiat currency on it, and there you can use different payment methods to complete your purchase, like bank transfer or card payment.
If you want to buy your MATIC tokens on an exchange, you’ll have a big variety to pick from, since the crypto got listed on quite a few exchanges, once it gained popularity. If you’re looking to buy Polygon crypto on a centralized exchange, meaning you want a third party to control your transaction, you can find MATIC on exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, FTX, and Gemini.
If you’re looking for a decentralized exchange, a place where you won’t be asked to confirm your identity and your crypto transaction will be facilitated without a third party in it, you can opt for places like Uniswap, where you can find the Polygon coin.
After you’ve bought your MATIC tokens on a broker or exchange of your choice, you can also store them there, if the platforms allows it. Some online trading platforms will have the option of a built-in crypto wallet, meaning you won’t have to look for a separate one for your MATIC coins. Consider that when you’re choosing where to buy your Polygon cryptos as well.
What Is the Best Wallet for Polygon Crypto (MATIC)
As mentioned, you could store your MATIC coins on a built-in wallet if your exchange provides one. If you want to explore more options, though, you can store your Polygon crypto on two types of wallets – hot and cold storage wallets.
If you pick a hot storage wallet, that means you’ll have your private key as well as your coins stored constantly online. You’ll be able to access them very easily, from your desktop, your browser, or even an app on your phone, depending on what services the wallets provides. You can store your Polygon coins on hot wallets like MetaMask. With this type of wallet what you should consider is that you may be more prone to hacking or online malicious attacks.
If you’re worried about your wallet being hacked and your MATIC tokens stolen, then you may want to consider choosing a cold storage wallet, also known as hardware wallets. With wallets like Trezor or Safepal you’ll have to connect your device to your computer and the internet only when you’re buying or selling your assets. In that way they’re more safe from hot wallets in regards of hacking, though there may be other ways how malicious sites will try to steal your data, even if you’re using a hardware wallet, so you should be careful whatever storage your decide on for your Polygon coins.
How to Make Money With Polygon Crypto
You now may be wondering how you can make money with the MATIC token. That would depend on what returns you’re aiming for. If you want to generate returns in the short term, it’d be best to choose trading Polygon. That means that you’ll closely follow the Polygon crypto price daily and pick the best moment to buy and sell the crypto, ideally buying when the price is low and selling when it’s high, so you can get the best returns for your money.
However, if you’re not easily influenced by your emotions, and you can overcome the fear and greed on the market, you can pick long term investing. Using that strategy you’ll be buying the MATIC crypto, again at a lower price if possible, and holding it for a longer period of time, to generate bigger returns. With the hodl strategy, you’ll have to have patience and be able to control your emotions well when the prices of the asset start falling, as well as they rise, since you will want to wait for even bigger opportunities to sell your coins and make gains.
You can also earn from staking Polygon, as it uses a modified Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism. In that way you’ll be able to earn passive income from the crypto.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Polygon Crypto (MATIC)
Pros of Polygon Crypto
✔️ Guarantees high security, thanks to transaction validators
✔️ Low transaction costs
✔️ Being a multi-chain, it allows strict control of transactions, reduces risk due to using side chains and gives access to Ethereum-based and EVM-compatible solutions
Cons of Polygon Crypto
❌ Uncertainty for the future, as Ethereum is moving to Proof-of-Stake
❌ Strong competition in the face of new systems, like Solana and Polkadot
Is Polygon Crypto Worth Following?
The proven potential of Polygon crypto and the whole network has made many investors optimistic about the future of the project. The low costs that the MATIC network provides are favored by many, thus increasing the interest in the native crypto as well. However, the Polygon network is created to solve issues that Ethereum has. But once Ethereum upgrades, it’ll potentially have less issues for solving and some believe that will make Polygon lose its footing. Luckily for the developers and users of the network and coin, the migration of Ethereum to Proof-of-Stake hasn’t happened yet and it’s not certain when it will, since the deadline keeps being pushed forwards.
If the team behind the Polygon crypto manages to expand the ecosystem in the meantime, and the market turns favorable again, this project can soar once more. It’s certain that nobody can predict the future of any cryptocurrency. However, the projects like Polygon crypto that have shown potential and have solid fundamentals, may be the ones to look forward to in the future as well.
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