The Avalanche ecosystem contains hundreds of projects that were built specifically for the blockchain or integrated from other blockchains. These projects consist of a number of different focuses and services from decentralized finance, to NFTs, oracles, stablecoins, crypto wallets, and games. The AVAX coin is the native currency of Avalanche and is, therefore, the most important token within the ecosystem. However, there are other AVAX ecosystem coins. A quick search of the Avalanche ecosystem CoinGecko (1) will show you a list of dozens of the top ecosystem coins. These include Tether (USDT) (2), Binance Coin (BNB)(3), and USD Coin (USDC) (4). You can also make use of Avalanche ecosystem CoinMarketCap (5), which shows other important coins within the Avalanche ecosystem.

One of the most important features of Avalanche is that it is compatible with the Ethereum blockchain. Ethereum is the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization in the world with a value of over $372 billion (6). It is a blockchain platform that is well-established and has been trusted by millions. By contrast, Avalanche is somewhat new and untested. By making their platform compatible with Ethereum, AVAX encourages developers to take advantage of the speed and energy efficiency of their newer blockchain, without taking any risks that the blockchain startup will fail. A focus on scalability and cross-compatibility is also why so many of the coins within the AVAX ecosystem were built on other blockchains but were then able to be integrated into the Avalanche family. There are many different decentralized applications (DAPPs) that are currently in development and others that have already been released. 

One of the largest DAAPs within the ecosystem (7) is Pangolin (8), a speedy, decentralized crypto exchange that focuses exclusively on Avalanche and Ethereum assets. Governance over the exchange, as with many other decentralized organizations, is completed using a kind of forum where owners of the Pangolin token, PNG, can propose, discuss, and enact changes to the platform as they wish. 

AVAX Ecosystem Tokens

AVAX ecosystem tokens include a wide variety of coins besides just the Avalanche coin. For example, the SushiSwap (SUSHI) token is part of the AVAX ecosystem and currently has a price of around $4 USD (9). SushiSwap is another decentralized exchange (DEX) but was originally built on the Ethereum network. It was later integrated with the Avalanche network when it was announced that The Avalanche Foundation would be launching a joint incentive program to get SushiSwap incorporated (10). This integration reflects Avalanche’s growing commitment to the decentralized finance space and demonstrates the importance of this exchange. The SushiSwap coin has a market capitalization of $589 million dollars and has steadily grown into a sizable player in the world of decentralized crypto exchanges (11). Like Pangolin, holders of the platform’s governance token can vote on changes to the platform itself. SushiSwap can be purchased through exchanges like Coinbase (12), or the SushiSwap (13) exchange itself. 

Other AVAX ecosystem tokens are more in the gaming and metaverse space, such as TaleCraft (CRAFT) (14). TaleCraft is a medieval-themed, metaverse card game that was built entirely on the Avalanche blockchain network. Launched in 2021, the game features NFTs that allow players to stake, hold, and even mint new tokens. 

AVAX vs Solana

It’s a common thing to compare cryptocurrencies in order to determine which is the better bargain. When looking at AVAX vs Solana and Solana ecosystem coins, we are looking at two blockchain platforms that have established and growing ecosystems and are also members of a list of cryptocurrencies known as “Ethereum Killers” because of certain features they contain. Solana’s ecosystem possesses many different coins including Terra (LUNA) (15), Chainlink (LINK) (16), and The Graph (GRT) (17). When it comes to statistics, Solana tends to beat Avalanche in most areas except for future utility which AVAX looks slightly better on due to its various features (18). 

Solana vs. Polkadot vs. Ethereum

In the great conflict between Solana vs. Polkadot vs. Ethereum, it is difficult to tell who will be victorious and emerge as one of the great cryptocurrencies. Ethereum has been plagued with scalability issues, high fees, and slower speeds. It also uses the proof-of-work model which means that it is more energy inefficient than other, newer, cryptocurrencies. These two other cryptocurrencies appear to have solved many of the problems that have come up with Ethereum. Both use more energy-efficient models to manage and grow their currencies and both possess greater speeds and lower fees than Ethereum. Using sites like Investopedia (19) or CoinExams (20), you can compare all kinds of cryptocurrencies including Solana v Cosmos and Dfinity vs Solana. 

AVAX DeFi Projects

There are many Avalanche ecosystem projects to consider. Several of the AVAX projects within the Avalanche ecosystem are AVAX DeFi projects which means that they serve decentralized finance purposes. One of the best AVAX projects is could be BenQi (21). BenQi is a platform powered by Avalanche which allows its users to effortlessly supply, borrow, and earn interest on your digital assets. Furthermore, the platform doesn’t just support these transactions with the native Avalanche coin, but with all kinds of other cryptocurrencies including BitCoin and Ethereum. 

As with other projects, the idea is to provide an alternative to users who are tired of the challenges of using the Ethereum platform for all their decentralized financing services. Using the AVAX blockchain network, BenQi is able to be speedy, highly scalable, and more affordable, providing greater access to a larger number of people interested in accessing the opportunities within the cryptocurrency space. 

Another platform that is in the Avalanche ecosystem is Trader Joe. Trader Joe is one of the top decentralized exchanges and provides a place for investors and collectors to buy, sell, and trade digital assets on the Avalanche blockchain such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs through AVAX NFT Markets. As mentioned previously, Pangolin is a third AVAX DeFi project that is also a decentralized crypto exchange. 

AVAX Token

According to CoinMarketCap (22), the price of the AVAX token is sitting at around $85 and the market capitalization of AVAX has now reached $21 billion USD. AVAX CoinMarketCap is another site you can use to research which cryptocurrencies are the best for your specific needs. Using the site, it is easy to find all kinds of data in terms of value, capitalization, and the latest news regarding the token. Sites like these can be invaluable for keeping up with the cryptocurrency markets and understanding what is going on in the space on a moment-by-moment basis. 

One of the unique features of the AVAX token is that the Avalanche blockchain network is actually based on three separate blockchains that work together to provide solutions for users (23). The first chain is called the Exchange Chain (X-Chain), the second chain is called the Platform Chain (P-Chain) and the third chain is known as the Contract Chain (C-Chain). All three of these chains are validated and secured by the Primary Network. The X-Chain can be used as a decentralized platform for creating and exchanging digital smart assets. The P-chain maintains metadata for the rest of the network and the C-chain provides for the creation of smart contracts. Smart contracts are the building blocks of decentralized applications and are basically programs that only run when certain conditions are met. 

AVAX Projects

DeFi projects are not the only AVAX projects within the ecosystem. There are also several AVAX NFT projects that allow for the collection, trade, and exchange of digital assets. The project YetiSwap (24) is an NFT exchange that was recently featured in AVAX news (25) that described how YetiSwap was one of the several important backers of Heroes of NFT, a metaverse gaming environment built on the Avalanche blockchain where players can create their own metasphere and play a collectible card game. Thanks to this support the project is currently revamping its design and creating 3D avatars which will become parts of the gaming experience. 

AVAX Exchange

If you are interested in investing in cryptocurrencies such as the native token of Avalanche, you may be wondering where to buy AVAX, what the AVAX exchange entails, how the AVAX wallet works. The answer is that there are several different exchanges that allow you to buy AVAX instantly. One of the first things you will need to decide on is whether you want to go with a decentralized exchange such as Uniswap (26), or a centralized one such as Coinbase. Before you can purchase any currency on these platforms, you will need to set up a cryptocurrency wallet. There are multiple common virtual wallets you could choose from including MetaMask (27), Coin98 (28), or the Avalanche wallet (29). Each of these wallets is accessible using a simple browser like Google Chrome. 

AVAX Trust Wallet (30) is a mobile option that is fully compatible with the Avalanche blockchain. You can download this wallet on iOS or Android devices. Alternatively, you could go with what is arguably the most secure option which is a physical crypto wallet. A physical wallet such as the Ledger Nano X is basically a flash drive where your cryptocurrencies can be stored offline, safe from hackers It is compatible across both desktop and mobile platforms and allows you to perform all kinds of transactions from within a completely secure environment. Once you have your wallet set up, all you need to do is head over to your preferred exchanges and connect them to your wallet. Then, you can start making trades and investing in cryptocurrencies like AVAX. 

Sources Cited

(1) https://www.coingecko.com/
(2) https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/tether
(3) https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/binance-usd
(4) https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/usd-coin
(5) https://coinmarketcap.com/view/avalanche-ecosystem/
(6) https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/
(7) https://cryptoseq.medium.com/why-im-so-bullish-on-avalanche-avax-67ed4d91d100
(8) https://pangolin.exchange/
(9) https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/sushiswap/
(10) https://crypto.news/avalanche-avax-sushi-defi-incentive-program/
(11) https://www.coinbase.com/price/sushiswap
(12) https://www.coinbase.com/
(13) https://sushi.com/
(14)​​https://www.coinbase.com/price/talecraft
(15) https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/terra-luna/
(16) https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/chainlink/
(17) https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/the-graph/
(18) https://coinexams.com/compare?solana-vs-avalanche
(19) https://www.investopedia.com/solana-5210472#:~:text=Understanding%20Solana,-Proof%20of%20History&text=Solana%27s%20blockchain%20operates%20on%20both,of%20Stake%20(PoS)%20model
(20) https://coinexams.com/
(21) https://benqi.fi/
(22) https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/avalanche/
(23) https://docs.avax.network/learn/platform-overview/#:~:text=Avalanche%20features%203%20built%2Din,secured%20by%20the%20Primary%20Network.
(24) https://www.yetiswap.app/
(25) https://cointelegraph.com/press-releases/heroes-of-nft-unveils-its-first-collectible-nft-card-game-on-avalanche
(26) https://uniswap.org/
(27) https://www.cada.news/set-up-metamask-for-avalanche/
(28) https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/coin98-wallet/aeachknmefphepccionboohckonoeemg/related?hl=en
(29) https://wallet.avax.network/
(30) https://trustwallet.com/

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