Coinbase Listing and Parachain Progress Boost Polkadot 16%

The American cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase will soon begin trading DOT, the native token for Polkadot. A blog post reported that inbound transfers have already begun, and trading would kick off on June 16. 

DOT has since risen by more than 16%, thanks to what is commonly called the “Coinbase effect.” In a report from Messari, an analysis outlet, the average returns five days after a token listing on Coinbase is 91%. 

This is far higher than a listing on competitor exchanges like Binance, Kraken, FTX, Gemini, and Okex, reports Messari. 

Polkadot is a “multi-chain” platform that is looking to bring together siloed networks. Bitcoin and Ethereum, for example, cannot interact with one another because they are built using different technologies. This lack of interoperability is common throughout the crypto sector. 

Built by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood, Polkadot is just one project hoping to address this. Thorchain and Solana are also competing in this market. 

Wood’s technology is still several steps from achieving its objective, however. 

Before launching, each component is first launched and tested on Polkadot’s so-called “canary network.” A testnet of sorts, Kusama offers an environment in which each part of the Polkadot network can be tested before. 

These days, the team has been launching new tests on Kusama regularly too. Parachains, the spokes of this multi-chain wheel of blockchains, have already launched on Kusama, albeit in a reduced capacity. The next step is something called a parachain auction, in which different projects bet to earn a spot in the Kusama environment.

These auctions will continue deep into July, writes Wood.  

Now, thanks to Coinbase, users can speculate on both Kusama and Polkadot’s native token while they wait.