MELD Novel ISPO launch: The First in the Crypto Space
The fast-growing and booming DeFi crypto space has encouraged projects to innovate and better position themselves to stay relevant in today’s market. Most of these projects are adopting new features and becoming more robust for users. This is exactly what the MELD DeFi protocol has done by launching the first ISPO in the crypto space. Seeing these new crypto projects and project features is an indication that it is only a matter of time before crypto goes mainstream.
Today, the MELD ISPO launch is the first of its kind in the cryptocurrency industry; tomorrow, we might have another completely different product seeking to solve one or more problems currently facing the crypto and blockchain space. Before we go further to look into the details of the MELD ISPO, let us take a look at its business model.
MELD Business Model
MELD is a decentralized finance protocol that allows users to borrow fiat (EUR & USD) using their crypto assets as collateral. The interesting thing here is that borrowers can earn yields on their deposited crypto collateral, which allows MELD to offer services like negative interest rate loans. MELD’s open-source DeFi platform is the first in the crypto space to incorporate fiat loan capabilities. It is undoubtedly a groundbreaking move that is good for the industry. The platform is built on the Cardano blockchain network and has drastically improved its transaction efficiency. When compared to other Ethereum blockchain-based solutions, Cardano reduces gas fees by at least 99%. This is key to ensure users keep the most value.
Some core features of the MELD network are high-speed, and low-cost transactions, and because it’s built on Cardano, is secured with over $50 billion worth of ADA (Cardano’s native token). MELD provides more capital efficiency for borrowing and lending solutions than other centralized platforms and traditional fintech establishments. Running on a third-generation blockchain protocol like Cardano, MELD is able to integrate with and serve the general crypto community.
For MELD, the target is to have a DeFi product that offers financial services for the billions of people who don’t have access to financial credits. The platform offers a solution that allows people to borrow and lend fiat and crypto easily. Within the MELDapp, borrowers are able to access fiat currency provided by lenders by collateralizing their crypto assets in a MELD smart contract. This is attractive for the fiat borrower as they are able to maintain their crypto positions while still gaining access to the locked value within their crypto asset.
The MELD ISPO Launch
Before now, there hasn’t been an ISPO on the Cardano platform. MELD was the first, and it has been quite successful so far, to say the least. Only 13 days after their ISPO launch, MELD managed to attract more than 220m ADA to their ISPO! The ISPO (initial Stake Pool Offering) is a way to provide a fairer and more community-based approach for fundraising and new token launches in the crypto space. The MELD ISPO allows users to stake their ADA using the Yoroi or Daedalus wallets to the MELD stake pools for a specified period of their choice.
Those who take part in the ISPO will be rewarded based on the quantity and the duration of the ADA in the MELD ISPO. There are two ways those who have delegated their ADA to MELD’s public stake pools can be rewarded. They either get rewarded with 100% MELD tokens or 50% ADA and 50% MELD. The reward system is entirely dependent on the type of pool selected by the delegator. According to MELD LABS, the MELD ISPO started on July 1, 2021, and will be concluded on December 8, 2021.
Upon its launch on July 1, the first pool was filled within the first 24 hours with a total of 64 million ADA worth approximately $94 million. On the fifth day, five pools were already opened and filled with 133 million ADA worth about $200 million. At the time of writing this article, there are approximately 220 million ADA already staked. MELD certainly hit the “bull’s eye” on this one.
Conclusion
The success of the MELD ISPO launch serves as a positive pointer to upcoming and new projects. The concept that people can access fiat loans using their crypto holdings as collateral is a positive development as it further moves crypto adoption to the mainstream.
