Author: Vince Quill, CoinTelegraph; Translated by: Bai Shui, Jinse Finance.
2024 is set to be an important year for cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. This year, the U.S. launched exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for Bitcoin and Ethereum, altcoins underwent significant protocol upgrades, and new infrastructure networks were released.
Here are 10 crypto projects that implemented significant protocol upgrades or launched mainnets in 2024, in no particular order.
Avalanche9000/Etna protocol upgrade.
The Avalanche network's Avalanche9000 upgrade, also known as Etna, is hailed as the largest upgrade in the protocol's history and was launched on the Avalanche mainnet on December 16 after a testing phase on the Fuji testnet.
This update simplified the process of launching subnets (now called 'Layer 1') and changed the staking requirements for subnet validators from a fixed 2,000 AVAX to a fee structure based on the number of nodes the validator is operating.
According to the Avalanche Foundation, this upgrade has reduced the subnet deployment cost by 99.9% and the C-Chain network fees by 96%.
This update also transferred the management of validator responsibilities from the Avalanche P-Chain to Layer 1, giving them greater autonomy and control over their networks.
Sui implemented the Mysticeti consensus engine.
The Sui protocol is a high-throughput blockchain that implemented the Mysticeti consensus engine in August.
According to a spokesperson from Sui's developer Mysten Labs, this update reduced consensus latency to 390 milliseconds and minimized cross-validator communication to improve efficiency.
Sui's ability to handle a large number of transactions per second (TPS) and its shard architecture help it and other shard chains carve out a place on the existing smart contract platform Ethereum in 2024.
Throughput and latency of Mysticeti. Source: Sui.
The Sonic Foundation launched the Sonic mainnet.
In May 2024, the Fantom Foundation (the organization behind the Fantom network) announced that the Sonic Foundation would oversee the deployment of its Sonic Chain.
Sonic Chain is a Layer-1 blockchain compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine, featuring sub-second finality, a throughput of 10,000 TPS, and the introduction of Sonic Gateway (a bridge between Sonic and Ethereum).
On December 18, the Sonic mainnet went live. Fantom token holders can switch to the new network by upgrading from FTM to S tokens (the native asset of the Sonic network) on a one-to-one basis.
Hyperliquid launched a token, enabling staking.
Hyperliquid is a Layer-1 blockchain optimized for decentralized finance and initiated one of the largest token airdrops in cryptocurrency history on November 29.
The project distributed 310 million HYPE tokens to community members, valued at $1.2 billion at issuance. The initial price of HYPE was $3.90, and it currently trades at around $26.8.
On December 30, Hyper Foundation announced the launch of native staking on the Hyperliquid protocol, allowing users to secure the network by locking tokens in exchange for rewards.
HYPE token price trend. Source: CoinMarketCap.
Ethereum Dencun upgrade went live.
Ethereum's Dencun upgrade went live on March 13, reducing fees on Ethereum Layer 2 networks by up to 99%.
However, due to users migrating to lower-cost Layer 2 solutions, the significant reduction in L2 network fees also led to a crash in Ethereum Layer 1 fees in August and September.
According to data from Token Terminal, Ethereum Layer 1 network fees rebounded in November to levels prior to the Dencun implementation in early 2024.
This upgrade elicited mixed reactions from the Ethereum community, with some praising the affordability of transactions via Layer 2, while others criticized that many L2 solutions are eroding the revenue of Ethereum Layer 1.
Ethereum Layer 1 network fees from January to December 2024. Source: Token Terminal.
Cardano's Chang hard fork introduced on-chain governance.
Cardano's Chang hard fork was implemented on September 1, bringing on-chain, decentralized governance to the network.
This update enables all holders of Cardano's ADA token to participate in the voting process and determine the future direction of Layer 1 chain.
Near Protocol achieved stateless validation through Nightshade 2.0.
Near Protocol is a Layer-1 blockchain focused on decentralized artificial intelligence, which changed its network architecture in August with the implementation of Nightshade 2.0.
The protocol upgrade introduced stateless validation to Near, allowing validator nodes to validate transactions without storing a copy of the blockchain on their devices.
This approach lowers the hardware requirements for running validator nodes and reduces the entry barrier for new participants.
After the launch of Nightshade 2.0, the protocol's native asset NEAR skyrocketed by 50% within a month.
Near's sharding design. Source: NEARWEEK.
Movement mainnet launched.
On December 9, the Movement Network Foundation launched the Movement mainnet (an Ethereum scaling solution that settles transactions on the Ethereum network using the Move virtual machine) and the MOVE token.
According to a foundation spokesperson, the Move mainnet has sub-second finality and utilizes the Move programming language.
This programming language is widely praised by blockchain developers for its ease of use and expressiveness.
Chainlink launched the cross-chain interoperability protocol.
The Oracle network Chainlink released the cross-chain interoperability protocol (CCIP) in April 2024.
CCIP facilitates cross-chain transfer of tokens and smart contract communication between different blockchain ecosystems.
Since the interoperability solution was first introduced, CCIP has been integrated by multiple blockchain networks, including Layer 2 scaling solutions like ZKsync and gaming blockchain networks like Ronin.
A simple explanation of Chainlink CCIP. Source: Chainlink.
Stacks completed the Nakamoto upgrade.
Stacks is a Layer 2 scaling solution for Bitcoin that completed the Nakamoto upgrade via a hard fork on October 9.
This upgrade introduced 100% Bitcoin finality and increased network throughput.
After the update, block production is no longer determined by miner elections. Instead, blocks are now produced at fixed intervals.
In the weeks leading up to the protocol upgrade, the number of smart contracts on Stacks reached a historic high of 1,400 monthly contracts.
