Hi Readers,
At Stakin we love innovative protocols such as NEAR. For those of you who don’t know much about this protocol yet, have a look at the introduction or the delegation guide. In today’s article, we’re having a look at all the different projects and DApps that are building in the NEAR Ecosystem. But before we do so, here is a quick refresher about NEAR Protocol.
NEAR Protocol, also referred to as NEAR, is a decentralized application platform that is designed to facilitate the open web of the future and power its economy. The envisioned web of the future for NEAR has everything from new currencies to new applications and even wholly new industries. On the NEAR platform, developers can host serverless applications and smart contracts with easy access to open finance networks and benefit from an entire ecosystem of open web components.
So, let’s have a look at the ecosystem.
NEAR Protocol Ecosystem
Coinbase Custody
Before we talk about what Coinbase Custody offers, it is important to note that it is a standalone, independently-capitalized business to Coinbase Inc. Coinbase Custody is an offline storage solution that can be used to exchange assets and obtain reliable custody solutions for assets.
Math Wallet
Math Wallet is an app, extension, web and hardware wallet that supports over 67 different projects. But that is not all, the app also offers a DApp database from which you can download whichever DApp you like, and learn how to develop your own. Furthermore, MathVault is a Decentralized Finance (DeFi) solution from Math Wallet that offers staking and storing solutions.
Magic Wallet
The Magic Wallet, formerly Fortmatic Wallet, is a simple option for Web3 wallets focused on DApps. This wallet is very easy to use because it is designed to be compatible with non-technical users. Most DApp interaction tools necessitate the use of a specific web browser or extension. The Magic wallet, on the other hand, authenticates users by linking a phone number or email address, eliminating the need for an extension. This feature allows applications to be accessed via any web browser or device.
Trust Wallet
Trust Wallet is a multi-asset mobile wallet that supports a wide range of assets that are not necessarily associated with the Ethereum and ERC20 ecosystems. As a result, it’s an excellent wallet for storing a variety of currencies. You can use the wallet to send, receive, and store a variety of digital assets. This platform’s design is centred on simplicity, with the goal of providing a straightforward, easy-to-setup and use solution. The wallet includes important security features such as a backup facility for easy recovery, and private keys are stored on the user’s device.
Portis
Portis is a non-custodial blockchain wallet that is focused on simplifying apps for everyone. Portis is created by ShapeShift and offers multiple asset support. Interestingly, this wallet is very nicely designed and offers an easy user interface.
IPFS
IPFS is a peer-to-peer hypermedia protocol designed to make the web faster, safer, and more open. This is how it works: your file, and all of the blocks within it, is given a unique fingerprint called a cryptographic hash. Next, IPFS removes duplicates across the network.
Each network node stores only content it is interested in, plus some indexing information that helps figure out which node is storing what. When you look up a file to view or download, you’re asking the network to find the nodes that are storing the content behind that file’s hash.
Finoa
Finoa offers digital asset financial services for professional investors. Finoa was established in 2018 by a group of former strategy consultants, banking technology veterans, FinTech entrepreneurs, and Digital Asset enthusiasts. Finoa began in the shared apartment of Chris and Henrik in the heart of Madrid (Spain) and is now based in Berlin (Germany). The company offers an all-in-one interface that is simple to integrate using RESTful API, which combines your user interfaces with their Digital Asset Management infrastructure to provide a unified user experience.
MAKER
Maker is one of the most well-known projects in the blockchain space and offers The world’s first unbiased currency. Dai is a non-discriminatory, stable, decentralized currency. The benefits of digital money can be realized by any individual or business.
Ontology
Ontology is a blockchain for self-sovereign data and ID. The company offers automotive industry solutions, DeFi solutions a data marketplace and data attestation.
Aave
Aave is a non-custodial liquidity market protocol that allows users to participate as depositors or borrowers. Depositors provide liquidity to the market in order to earn a passive income, whereas borrowers can borrow in either an overcollateralized (perpetual) or undercollateralized (one-block liquidity) fashion.
Octopus Protocol
Octopus is an open protocol to create, exchange, settle, and manage synthetic assets. Octopus Protocol aims to create a fair way for everyone to engage with synthetic assets and equal opportunities to access derivatives. Leveraging blockchain technology to create a global hub for trading, exchanging, lending and borrowing assets.
Huobi
Huobi is an exchange that offers secure trading solutions for a multitude of digital assets.
Band Protocol
Band Protocol is a cross-chain data oracle platform for connecting real-world data and APIs to smart contracts. Users can create and manage on-chain oracles, reputation scores, token issuance, and token curated registries using the Band Protocol.
The network’s goal is to ensure that blockchain smart contracts can communicate with the rest of the world. Their mission is to connect trusted real-world or off-chain data and services to blockchains and smart contracts. So, how exactly would that work? To resolve its logic and enable secure trading, smart contracts rely on external price feeds, events, and values provided via traditional web APIs.
Rainbow Bridge
The Rainbow Bridge, as the name suggests, is a Bridge from Ethereum to NEAR. This means the ERC-based assets can now also be “on” NEAR. It’s also very simple to use, all you need to do is send any selected ERC-20 asset directly from your MetaMask or another Web3 wallet to your selected NEAR wallet or app (and vice versa).
The Rainbow Bridge is a permissionless, trustless, and generic protocol for connecting blockchains and removes the need to trust anyone except the security of the connected chains. It’s also worth mentioning that anyone can deploy a new bridge, use an existing bridge or join the maintenance of an existing bridge without having to get approval from anyone else.
Ref Finance
Ref Finance is a pretty straightforward, but amazing project in the NEAR Ecosystem. It offers liquidity pools, lending and exchange for NEAR and is also connected with the Rainbow Bridge.
Berry Club
Berry Club is a DeFi app created mostly for users to just have fun creating shared pixel art while farming token rewards. The different assets within this project are called Avocados, Bananas and Cucumbers, which helps to underline the fun aspect of this project. What makes Berry Club so original is its features that aren’t found in any other blockchains (yet). For example, automatic fee payments to smart contract creators. The project initially started as a DeFi proof-of-concept but has now grown into a popular community project within the NEAR Ecosystem.
The above-named projects are just a small selection of what’s on the NEAR Ecosystem. Have a look at the image below for all the names.
DISCLAIMER: This is not financial advice. Staking, delegation, and cryptocurrencies involve a high degree of risk, and there is always the possibility of loss, including the loss of all staked digital assets. Additionally, delegators are at risk of slashing in case of security or liveness faults on some protocols. We advise you to do your due diligence before choosing a validator.
