Thread by @ICXBuddy

1/ The case for #ICON $ICX for 2021. The new revolution of finance & blockchain is here & I truly believe $ICX represents the best value out of any protocol on the market. The next few months will be some of the most exciting in recent memory for $ICX holders. Let us dive in. 👇

2/ Firstly we have one of the most bullish updates to the #ICON network in its history (coming in Q2). That update is called: ICON 2.0: BATANG. “Batang” is a Korean word for Foundation (or Foundational). ICON 2.0 is a cleaner, more polished version & a complete overhaul of 1.0.

3/ ICON 2.0 will come with additional functionality & scalability (EVM & BTP will launch with it). There will be no token swap & the migration process from 1.0 to 2.0 won’t require any action from token holders.

4/ With BTP (Blockchain Transmission Protocol), $ICX will become the network of networks and will have the ability to connect w/ other chains. BTP is the smart contract-based interoperability protocol for $ICX and will allow for the transfer of information & data across networks.

5/ BTP will offer the ability to transfer high amounts of value without intermediaries w/ low cost & will be secured by the $ICX network. Also, a fully functional testnet for ICON 2.0 (which will allow devs to stress test the network) will be launching sometime in March 2021.

6/ ICON 2.0 & BTP will also allow for interoperability between private blockchains which will open up many use cases for the partners #ICON has made over the years.

7/ A number of these partners are using private networks (via the on-boarding & services of ICONLOOP) and $ICX will act as the bridge allowing them to not only interact with other private blockchains but with public blockchains as well.

8/ We have already seen a push to trial & use the public $ICX chain from many organizations including Jeju Government (for COVID-19 tracing), Shinhan Bank, LINE, Saramin & more. This will only continue to grow after the ICON 2.0 update.

9/ Aiming for a March release @BalancedDAO (#ICON’s premier Defi platform) will allow #ICON holders to collateralize their $ICX and in return receive an $ICX based stablecoin. As a comparison, a similar project based on Ethereum is MakerDAO.

10/ The Balanced team is creating new & exciting ways to incentivize users to use their platform (quality UI/UX, built on ICX w/ fast & cheap fees, easy to follow layout, ongoing airdips). ICON holders who are staked & voting $ICX will be able to receive the $BALN token.

11/ You will only receive the $BALN airdrips providing you're staked, have voted & log into the Balanced platform weekly. Balanced will also have an AMM – where you can mint synthetic assets on the Balanced network based on your $ICX position (like Mirror Protocol).

12/ @ommfinance (Open Money Market) is a platform that will give #ICON holders the ability to lend / borrow against their $ICX. This opens up various options including the ability to go short or long on other assets. OMM is like AAVE or Compound (both are built on Ethereum).

13/ There is less information on the details of the OMM release, however there are rumors of another airdrip (possible OMM ongoing airdrop) for $ICX holders.

14/ Bridge can be seen as a fiat on-ramp platform for those looking to avoid the big exchanges to switch fiat dollars for a regulated stablecoin built on the $ICX network.

15/ Bridge aims to offer a simple user experience where you will be able to switch your fiat for an $ICX stablecoin (sICX) which will then allow you to interact with #ICON’s wide range of platforms (including ICONFi for those who want crypto custody, Balanced, OMM & more).

16/ The $ICX team is actively looking into security tokens / tokens backed by assets. This will be a big push going forward for the $ICX team. Security tokens are becoming popular & will allow for the transition of real world finance & value (ie. real estate) to use blockchain.

17/ I can see the $ICX team building a platform for this (tokenization of assets) to complement their upcoming suite of DeFi projects.

18/ NFTs are becoming a new phenomenon. We’ve seen the likes of @flow_blockchain w/ their popular @nba_topshot gaining momentum as well as some ETH based NFTs (art, 3D animations, clips etc) selling for obscene amounts & generating an entirely new industry.

19/ $ICX is now poised to enter this budding ecosystem w/ CRAFT (by @staky_icon) which is an NFT marketplace. There is also the possibility of other P-reps creating new NFT platforms / offerings which is exciting. This a space set to explode over the next 12 – 24 months.

20/ We’re seeing many quality organizations join the #ICON ecosystem as P-reps. We’ve seen Danal Fintech, @BandProtocol and @binance recently become P-reps and offer their support for $ICX.

21/ Danal will be supporting $ICX in their Paycoin app which will allow Koreans to actively use $ICX as a form of payment with many merchants (including 7-Eleven, KFC and Domino’s Pizza).

22/ Band Protocol & ICON have reached a mutual agreement to be validators on each other’s networks – which shows commitment between projects. $BAND is also the oracle that powers many Dapps and platforms on the $ICX network.

23/ Binance, the most recent P-rep has shot to the number two spot and now offers staking on Binance (the world’s largest #crypto exchange). It's a great show of faith from the Binance team to actively get involved in the #ICON ecosystem & show their commitment to the network.

24/ The $ICX team has completed its integration w/ Rosetta (a necessary step that could allow for a potential @coinbase listing). $ICX ticks all of the boxes for a listing; decentralized, a utility token, strong community & a seasoned team that is committed to growing $ICX.

25/ In 2021, #ICON is getting closer to achieving its original vision of “Hyperconnecting the world” by adding new communities to our ecosystem from other blockchain projects through cooperation and integration.

26/ With everything that is happening in the world of $ICX and being known as an “enterprise ready blockchain” that is cheap to use, has an ability to scale & offers fast txs, $ICX has an incredibly bright future.

27/ I believe as the #crypto market grows #ICON $ICX will outpace the market. In other words, $ICX has the best risk to reward (R:R) when compared to its peers. The next few years will be some of the best in the history of this project. $ICX is primed for exponential growth.