Hold onto your digital hats, folks! Berachain is making waves and taking the lead in the crypto world. Over the past week, this fresh face has outpaced some of the well-established giants like Arbitrum in net bridge inflows. That's right, Berachain is not just another blockchain in the crowd; it's a rockstar breaking through the charts!
Berachain, an EVM-identical Layer 1 blockchain, has hit a new milestone just 20 days post its Mainnet launch. Imagine starting off strong and then sprinting past big names like SUI, Avalanche, and Arbitrum! Their Total Value Locked (TVL) soared to a whopping $3.27 billion before taking a slight breather. This achievement catapulted Berachain into the sixth spot in the DeFi TVL rankings, though it soon settled into the seventh position, right on the heels of Base.
To put things into perspective, Berachain's latest numbers crushed SUI’s $1.4 billion and AVAX’s $1.23 billion TVL. And here's the kicker – many of Berachain's native protocols are still warming up behind the scenes, hinting at a lot more action on the horizon. With a circulating market cap of $700 million, Berachain is cruising in the top 100 rankings on CoinMarketCap, trading at a cool $6.7 per token.
On the bridge inflow front, Berachain is the reigning champ, leaving other chains in the dust over the past seven days. Market gurus are buzzing about Berachain's rapid ascent, viewing it as a savvy bet with loads of potential for substantial gains.
Fueling this explosive growth are major protocols like Infrared Finance, which is leading the charge with $1.52 billion in TVL. Hot on its heels is the decentralized exchange Kodiak with $1.1 billion, and yield farming protocol Concrete is adding nearly $1.11 billion in locked assets to the mix.
The Bera Foundation recently turned heads with a massive BERA airdrop, which was one of the biggest in the industry, distributing 15.75% of its 500 million token supply to its community. However, not everyone was dancing in the streets. Some community members raised eyebrows over the perceived uneven allocations. Long-term testnet users got a modest 1.65%, while Bong Bears NFT holders snagged 6.9%, sparking quite the chatter online. The Berachain Foundation responded, citing the challenges in targeting for such distributions.
Berachain was the talk of the town at Token 2049, making headlines in April by raising a cool $100 million in a Series B round. This funding was co-led by Brevan Howard Digital’s Abu Dhabi branch and Framework Ventures, with backing from big names like Polychain Capital, Hack VC, and Tribe Capital. Co-founder “Smokey The Bera” enthusiastically explained that this funding round is a big thumbs up for their user-focused approach, aiming to drive value for those actively contributing to the network's success.
With these new funds, Berachain is setting its sights on expanding into vibrant markets in Hong Kong, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Keep your eyes peeled, because this blockchain dynamo is just getting started!
