ANKR Coin is one of the unsung heroes of the blockchain industry. While top cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) enjoy the limelight and are applauded as the future of finance, people often forget the humble infrastructure providers who turn up every single day, roll their sleeves up and get the job done.
Without projects like ANKR providing key infrastructure services, many of your favorite DeFi apps like AAVE or 1Inch couldn’t provide decentralized financial tools. Whether cloud computing servers, node operation, or liquid staking solutions, ANKR gives developers the tools they need to succeed in cryptocurrency.
In a gold rush, the people selling mining equipment often make more money than the hunters. Is ANKR the crypto market’s best pickaxe merchant?
Table of Contents
What Is Ankr?
Ankr is a decentralized Web3 infrastructure provider that gives blockchain developers the tools to create the dApps (Decentralized Applications) we know and love. It’s a protocol that offers a suite of Web3 development kits, data centers, and computing resources, making it easier for anyone to access the infrastructure of various blockchains through a single, decentralized platform.
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Of course, that’s a very high-level overview of the wider Ankr network. On top of these essential services, ANKR coin also provides liquid staking services for top Layer-1 blockchains like Ethereum, Binance Chain (BNB), and PolkaDot (DOT). This means that regular users like you and me can earn staking rewards without locking up tokens for long periods.
How Does ANKR Work?
Now that we’ve better understood Ankr, let’s highlight some of its key products and services. You see, the Ankr network is not a blockchain itself.
Instead, think of it as a toolbox for builders on every scale. Whether you are a budding developer stumbling through your first dApp or the CTO of a billion-dollar company, ANKR has got you covered.
Decentralized Node Infrastructure Services
One of the key offerings of ANKR is its decentralized node infrastructure services, which support the development of DeFi platforms, NFT projects, blockchain games, and all kinds of dApps. Offering a range of validator node services with endpoints across the globe, ANKR ensures faster, scalable, and more affordable access to blockchains. If you’re a developer or a project that doesn’t want to set up and run your own nodes, ANKR can do it for you.
Premium API and RPC Endpoints for Developers
Developers deploying smart contracts and DApps to a blockchain must work with specific APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). ANKR coin’s protocol provides instant API services and RPC (Remote Procedure Call) access via their network of decentralized node providers. This is a helpful service for developers who don’t have the means to operate their own full node.
What’s the benefit? Using specialized RPCs helps developers interact with a blockchain mainnet without being hindered by traffic. While this doesn’t decrease gas fees, it does improve transaction speeds and finality.
Ankr Scan
While still in Beta development, Ankr Scan is a blockchain explorer that helps on-chain analysts watch real-time blockchain transactions. Unlike most explorers, which only focus on a single blockchain network, Ankr Scan tracks eight separate chains, including popular networks like Polygon (MATIC) and Avalanche (AVAX), giving analysts a wider vision scope.
Liquid Staking
A common issue in the DeFi space is the loss of liquidity when you stake your crypto assets. ANKR solves this by offering staking across multiple chains and providing reward-earning tokens representing your staked funds. These ‘Liquid Staking tokens’ can be traded or used in DeFi for additional earning strategies like liquidity mining, yield farming, lending, and more.
ANKR Enterprise Solutions
For businesses that require flexible, custom-made solutions, ANKR offers a Web3 Infrastructure-as-a-Service model. Organizations dealing with multiple blockchain networks at scale can use Ankr’s API and RPC services to grow protocols without competing for block space with regular users.
The ANKR Token
The ANKR token is the native cryptocurrency of the ANKR network. While it was originally launched on the Ethereum network as an ERC-20 token, it’s now been integrated with several other EVM-compatible networks.
The ANKR token serves multiple purposes within the ANKR ecosystem:
- Payment for Infrastructure Services – The ANKR token is a payment method for services on the ANKR platform. Whether you’re staking, running nodes, or accessing the platform’s API and RPC services, you’ll need ANKR tokens to pay for these services.
- Staking Rewards – ANKR tokens are also used as staking rewards. When you stake your tokens on the ANKR platform, you earn crypto rewards paid out in ANKR tokens.
- Governance – As an ANKR coin holder, you can vote on governance proposals and have your say in the future development and direction of the ANKR network.
Ankr’s History
Founded in 2017 by UC Berkeley roommates Chandler Song, Ryan Fang, and Stanley Wu, an ex-Amazon engineer, Ankr began as a vision for a more decentralized internet, where applications, protocols, and systems are more private, secure, and free from central authorities.
Song, Fang, and Wu believed that the barrier to entry into Web 3 development was too high, so they built an ecosystem of tools and services that would make it easier to contribute to the growing Web 3 world. This led to the creation of the first ANKR Whitepaper and the platform’s birth.
Ankr had little trouble finding initial capital. Early funding rounds ANKR token sale raised over $12.M USD, with support from respected investment firms like Pantera Capital, Binance Labs, and NGC Ventures.
Now ANKR’s services support over 39,000 developers, all working towards the common goal of decentralizing the web and making Web3 applications and staking protocols more accessible. The platform boasts 345 nodes in service, handling over 7B API requests daily.
ANKR Pros and Cons
In the spirit of being objective, let’s look at ANKR coin’s advantages and potential drawbacks. Understanding these pros and cons can help us make informed decisions about the future of the ANKR protocol.
Pros
- Simplicity – Even for a non-developer, the ANKR protocol makes their service offering clear and easier to understand.
- Versatile Services – The Ankr platform offers an immense range of services that give blockchain developers everything they need to build innovative applications.
- Liquid Staking – ANKR’s liquid staking solution helps DeFi users retain control of their liquidity while earning staking rewards.
- Availability – The ANKR token is listed on many popular cryptocurrency exchanges.
Cons
- Irrelevant to non-developers – If you’re not a blockchain developer, you won’t be able to get much use of ANKR’s products and services.
- Competitive field – While operating in a different niche to mainstream altcoins like Ripple (XRP) or Litecoin (LTC), ANKR competes fiercely with other infrastructure providers like Infura or Consensys.
On the Flipside
- The fact that ANKR coin’s utility exists outside the scope of the average retail investor means that the ANKR protocol is often overlooked and isn’t given the credit it’s due.
Why This Matters
ANKR is a crypto project that provides required products and services in the crypto space. This means there will still be demand for ANKR regardless of market conditions.
FAQs
You can buy ANKR coin on popular crypto exchanges, including Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken. If you prefer to trade on-chain, ANKR is also listed on Uniswap.
If ANKR reached $10, its market cap would be $100B USD. At that market capitalization, ANKR would be larger than BNB Coin and Tether (USDT).
The all-time high price of ANKR is $0.22 USD. This peak was recorded on the 28th of March, 2021. At the other end of the spectrum, ANKR’s all-time low was registered on the 13th of March, 2020, at $0.0007. Talk about price volatility!
At the time of writing, ANKR has a max supply of 10,000,000,000 tokens. ANKR’s circulating supply is fully unlocked, meaning that all 10,000,000,000 tokens are either used on ANKR protocol or traded in the crypto market.
