Since January, Layer 1 token prices have surged over 7000%.
Inspired by Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election, the cryptocurrency market in 2024 has shown a vertical growth trend. As a platform for decentralized applications (dApps) and smart contracts, the demand for L1 solutions has surged, leading to fierce competition among major L1 blockchains for top positions. However, they face strong challenges from Layer 2 (L2) solutions, which aim to enhance transaction speed at very low costs, thus competing with established blockchains like Ethereum.
1. Which Layer 1 Tokens performed the best?
Among the best-performing Tokens, Mantra (OM) achieved unprecedented growth, with its value soaring by 7,035.2%. This surge is partly attributed to Mantra's collaboration with the UAE-based digital bank Zand. Zand has enabled the tokenization of real-world assets (RWA) by complying with the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) regulations. Additionally, the demand for RWA products has been steadily increasing, with traditional financial institutions introducing money market funds and bonds into the blockchain.
2. Other high-performing Tokens
AIOZ Network (AIOZ) is another standout performer, growing 427.6% year-to-date (YTD). The decentralized content distribution network of the platform has gained increasing adoption driven by ongoing ecosystem optimization. Also in the top three is Sui (SUI), which grew 388.2% YTD, benefiting from rapid developments within its ecosystem, including innovative dApp launches leveraging its high scalability and developer-friendly features.
Other notable performers include:


Bellscoin (BELLS): Growth 252.2%


Zano (ZANO): Growth 159%


Toncoin (TON): Growth 136.2%, successfully hosting dApps through integration with Telegram and launching 'click-to-earn' games.


3. The top ten Layer 1 Tokens by market cap have shown relatively mild growth.
Despite the impressive performance of small and medium market cap Layer 1 Tokens, larger Tokens like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana remain robust investment choices.
Bitcoin (BTC) achieved an annual growth of 112.9%.
Ethereum (ETH) grew by 34.9%, but underperformed compared to its peers. With the rise of new Layer 2 and other blockchains, Ethereum's dominance is declining year by year, despite the launch of a spot Ethereum ETF in the U.S. However, Ethereum still outperformed the S&P 500 index, which rose 24.8% in 2024.
Solana (SOL): Rising from the ashes
Solana (SOL) has risen from the shadow of the 2022 FTX bankruptcy, growing 134.3% year-to-date. Most of this increase occurred in 2023, driven by the memecoin frenzy, with prices skyrocketing from $15 to $120. This trend has also extended to other blockchains, such as Tron Network (TRX), which has grown 85.5% this year.
Meanwhile, Toncoin (TON) recorded an impressive growth of 136.2%, primarily due to its ability to host dApps on the popular messaging app Telegram. The 'click-to-earn' game model became extremely popular on Telegram, further driving its growth.
Sui: The standout performer
Sui has been the standout performer this year, growing by 338.2%. This increase is mainly attributed to heightened investor interest, increased on-chain activity, and enhanced utility from significant dApp expansion. Furthermore, Circle's USDC has been integrated into this network, and there is a trend of funds moving from Ethereum to Sui.
4. The largest declines
On the other hand, some Tokens have seen declines of up to -96% year-to-date.
Entangle (NGL) performed the worst, down -95.3% YTD.
Following closely are Kujira (KUJI) and Trias Lab (TRIAS), down -86.7% and -83.4%, respectively.
NGL was launched at a high valuation in March 2024, after which the price continued to decline. Kujira's performance was affected by the team's high-risk leveraged liquidity positions, which backfired during market volatility.
5. How have Layer 1 Tokens launched in 2024 performed?
Various Layer 1 cryptocurrencies launched in 2024 have exhibited mixed performances, reflecting the challenges of breaking through in a highly competitive market.
Aleo (ALEO), launched in September, has declined -58.1% since its issuance.
Saga (SAGA), launched in April, is facing a similar predicament, down -69.9% year-to-date.
Omni Network (OMNI), also launched in April, is down -68.8%.
Zeta Chain (ZETA) was issued in February and has fallen -57.3% so far.
Router Protocol (ROUTE) and other new projects' performance
Router Protocol (ROUTE), launched in July, has seen a price drop of 24.8%, while Ice Open Network (ICE), active since January, has experienced a relatively smaller decline of 34.5%. Meanwhile, Kaia (KAIA), which entered the market by the end of October, achieved a slight positive growth of 5.2%. These performances reflect the volatility of new Layer 1 projects and the importance of continuous innovation and user adoption for gaining market recognition.
6. Top ten Layer 1 projects ranked by price performance
Note: YTD stands for Year-to-Date, meaning 'year-to-date.' It is commonly used to describe the performance of a metric (such as returns, price changes, or performance) over a period from the beginning of the year (typically January 1) to the current date.
7. Conclusion
In 2024, the Layer 1 blockchain sector has shown diverse performances. Mantra leads with an impressive year-to-date (YTD) increase of 7035%, thanks to its strategic partnerships and cutting-edge blockchain use cases. Established players like Bitcoin, Solana, and Toncoin have shown stable performance, proving their robust viability in a changing market. At the same time, newly issued Tokens face significant challenges, often struggling due to starting from high valuations.
As competition intensifies between Layer 1 and Layer 2 solutions, the focus on scalability, usability, and compliance will determine the emergence of the next wave of winners, which is particularly crucial in this fast-changing crypto market.
Note: This study analyzed the price returns of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap in the Layer 1 category on CoinGecko. The YTD price increase data covers performance from January 1, 2024, to November 18, 2024. This data reflects a snapshot of the market, showcasing the performance differences of various tokens in the broader market environment.

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