The excitement around non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is reaching new heights in Japan. The recent news of Tokyu Railways, one of the largest railway companies in Japan, distributing limited NFTs on the Astar Network has caused a frenzy among Japanese NFT enthusiasts.

Sonata Wantanabe, co-founder, and CEO of Astar Network, took to Twitter to announce the news and revealed that more than 6,000 NFTs were distributed in just one day. The announcement read, “Tokyu Railways is distributing limited NFT issued on Astar Network from today. In a day, more than 6000 NFT (new addresses) are distributed. Look at the queue”.

This news has attracted a lot of attention from the Japanese community. The limited NFTs were distributed for free only for the opening, and it caused long queues at Shin-Yokohama Station. This is a sign that NFTs are becoming more mainstream in Japan, with people queuing up to get their hands on these unique digital assets.

The Astar Network is a decentralized infrastructure that enables developers to build new blockchain applications. The partnership with Tokyu Railways is part of Astar’s initiative to drive web3 initiatives in Tokyo. According to a recent report by AZCoin News, Astar has partnered with Shibuya, a trendy district in Tokyo, to drive web3 initiatives in the area.

With the recent surge in popularity of NFTs globally, Astar’s partnership with Shibuya and Tokyu Railways shows that Japan is not far behind in embracing this new trend. This move is expected to pave the way for more collaborations between blockchain companies and traditional Japanese companies in the future.

In conclusion, the news of Tokyu Railways distributing limited NFTs on Astar Network has caused a stir in the Japanese NFT community. The long queues and excitement around this initiative show that NFTs are becoming more mainstream in Japan. This partnership between Astar and Tokyu Railways is expected to open doors for more collaborations between blockchain companies and traditional Japanese companies, driving web3 initiatives in Tokyo and beyond.

#Astarnetwork #ARST #NFT #azcoinnews

This article was republished from azcoinnews.com

In the following summary, let's take a look at the growth journey and tech developments of Astar Network $ASTR at the beginning of November 2023. This article is the first article to be written on a monthly basis and only published on Binance Square.
Astar collaborates with Biconomy, by integrating the Biconomy SDK. Biconomy SDK is an all-in-one toolkit for building applications (dApps) with ERC4337 account abstractions and smart accounts. With this collaboration, it will be easy for dApps builders to implement Account Abstraction. Currently available on Astar Native VM (Substrate) and Astar EVMThe Account Abstraction feature will also be available in the upcoming L2 Astar zkEVM chain. By utilizing social login, account recovery and so on, it will be easier for users to onboard into the Astar ecosystemThe first offline meetup in Japan was held by the Astar Network Japan community at the end of last week at Golden Egg, Tokyo, Japan. This large meeting was held for the first time and coincided with the presence of Maarten Henskens, Head of Astar Foundation and Luiz Ramirez, Lead Community GrowthHaneda Airport collaborates with Astar Network, where travelers can collect digital stamps across 17 stores at Haneda Airport, Haneda Innovation City, and Ota Ward. This partnership is supported by Sushi Top NFT, as one of the major NFT projects on the Astar NetworkAs an initial step to develop growth in the South Korean market. Astar Network announces collaboration with Factomind. This collaboration is believed to be able to increase the positive growth of Astar Network, especially in South Korea in early 2024As a step to get closer to users and the community, Astar held the Astar Idea Matsuri. An ideathon with rewards where anyone can present their wild ideas complete with a draft plan, without the need for an MVP (Minimum Viable Product), which means without having to code.From October 2023 to early November 2023, the testnet of Astar zKEVM (Astar zKatana) has achieved high traffic spikes. This traffic spike comes from various dApp builders who want to launch their dApps on Astar zKEVM, various tests carried out internally by the Astar Foundation along with its infrastructure partners and also from users who are taking advantage of this momentum to hope for retroactive rewards (which no official announcement until now).
Those are all the activities that occurred on Astar Network at the beginning of this month. With the speed and aggressiveness of the Astar Network team and with its big partnerships with several giant enterprises, we will see how lively the chain will be, especially on Astar zKEVM which is highly anticipated.

Bitcoin’s potential for a significant price movement is under scrutiny, as it hovers around $40,000.The contrast between investor strategies on Bitcoin and the general trend towards altcoins highlights a critical juncture in the cryptocurrency market.
In the realm of cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC) currently stands at a crossroads, hovering around the $40,000 mark. This critical point has ignited a flurry of speculation and analysis within the crypto community.
A notable observation comes from a recent tweet, where the focus is drawn to a quieter trend amidst the market’s noise:
This suggests a belief among these serious players in Bitcoin’s potential to ascend beyond $60,000, marking a significant contrast in market strategies.
Market Dynamics and Speculation
The cryptocurrency trading scene is a constantly evolving tapestry of investor behavior and market trends. Currently, there’s a noticeable diversion of interest towards altcoins, as traders seek out the next breakout star. However, this fascination with altcoins might be overshadowing Bitcoin’s latent potential for a significant price increase. Amidst this diversification, some market observers speculate that savvy investors are accumulating Bitcoin in anticipation of a robust upsurge, potentially setting new benchmarks in 2023.
The Future Trajectory of Bitcoin
Looking at Bitcoin’s short-term price behavior, there’s anticipation that it might briefly touch the $40,000 mark again before embarking on a steep upward trajectory. This prognosis paints a bullish picture for Bitcoin, suggesting a possible new high in the near future. As of the latest market update, Bitcoin is priced at $41,974, lending some weight to these predictions. This forecast places Bitcoin back in the limelight, hinting at its possible resurgence as a key player in the crypto market.
Market Watch and Investor Behavior
The trajectory of Bitcoin is more than a tale of numbers; it encapsulates the intricate interplay of market sentiment, investor strategies, and technological developments in the cryptocurrency world. As the community watches on, the decisions of both seasoned and casual investors will shape Bitcoin’s journey in the coming days. Whether it climbs to new heights or takes a downturn remains to be seen, but its role as a central figure in the digital currency landscape is undeniably prominent.
⚠️DISCLAIMER: This content aims to enrich readers with information. Always conduct independent research and use discretionary funds before investing. All buying, selling, and crypto asset investment activities are the responsibility of the reader.
#Astarnetwork #ACE

Astar zkEVM $ASTR was launched in early March 2024, adopting AggLayer technology from Polygon CDK, Astar zkEVM became the first Layer2 on top of $ETH to adopt the latest technology from Polygon $MATIC . At the same time, Astar's launching campaign called "Yoki Origins" began. A large campaign involving well-known NFT projects, DeFi dApps and several large enterprises in Japan.

It is speculated that Yoki Origins will provide rewards to all participants who take part in the campaign. How to play isn't difficult at all, just open the Yoki page on the Astar Network ( yoki . astar . network ) then mint Yoki capsule, open the capsule, collect and fuse as many Yokis as possible. Participants with the most Yokis will later get a score that can be seen on the global leaderboard. In order to play, there's a specific NFT called OMA tokens that users can claim daily, also OMAs will be dropped for them who completed tasks on Yo-Port (Yoki capsule machine from various projects joining this campaign).

The Dencun upgrade on the Ethereum network which occurred on March 13 did not bring significant changes to Astar zkEVM. Because Astar was built directly on the Validium type, it does not include transactions data on-chain to Ethereum L1, but instead uses a Data Availability manager which will then forward the proof to the Ethereum validator. Using this technology causes transactions on Astar to be very secure with already relatively cheap prices and near-instant transaction speeds.

Astar zkEVM ecosystem is also starting to appear, in the first week there were immediately Rarible, Dew, and Bluez as NFT marketplaces. Following this were several bridges from other L2 such as Stargate Finance, Relay Link, LayerSwap and OwlTo Finance. Names that are commonly heard among the Ethereum community, especially those who play in many L2s. ASTR holders on Astar L1 (both Astar Native/EVM) can bridge using Stargate Finance, the result of Astar's collaboration with LayerZero.

Because the Astar zkEVM gas fee is ETH, ASTR token still plays a role in Astar zkEVM. Bifrost opens opportunities for those who want to stake on the Astar Network but don't want to bridge to the Astar Portal (Astar L1 / Native), Bifrost provides vASTR (ASTR vouchers), a liquidity staking tokens whose value will always increase similar to the user's experience of staking directly on Astar Portal.

DeFi dApps that were immediately available on the day Astar zkEVM launched last week were Quickswap, a well-known DEX from Polygon that immediately expanded on the Astar Network from day one. Followed by VeryLongSwap, this native dApps build by the same team from VeryLongAnimals, an NFT project from Japan.

Yoki Origins lasted for 2 full months, from early March to late April. Bridge your ETH and interact with Yo-Port. Don't forget to follow the official campaign which is also present on Intract.

#HotTrends #Astarnetwork #Ethereum(ETH)

Last month during Astar Network $ASTR Community Call, Astar's founder Sota Watanabe was announcing that Astar going to expand its B2B penetration in Korea. It may seem like it doesn't mean anything to crypto enthusiasts who generally always look at price movements and hype alone, but this step is a long-term plan for the development of the Astar Network from a global perspective, especially Asia. Astar has established an outstanding B2B record with traditional institutional entities, and has proven to be a huge success in Japan. B2B collaboration was announced first with NTT Docomo, then Toyota Global, followed by Sony Network, and also others such as Calbee, Mazda or Mitsubishi Estate. Even though the majority of this collaboration is more experimental, this is quite an eye-opener for stakeholders from these institutions. Until finally Sony Network announced that it would build their own blockchain in collaboration with Startale, a for-profit company for the development of the Astar Network, and the Astar Foundation itself.

The first step in market expansion in Korea is to become a member of the Busan Blockchain Alliance. This membership was announced during Blockhain Week in Busan 2023 (BWB 23). Rhee Sanghyun, one of the Business Development team from Astar Network, introduced Astar in front of the visitors who incidentally were executives from giant industries in Korea and of course crypto enthusiasts. This positive step was warmly welcomed by Astar holders, who believe that blockchain should be used more for various utilities, not just trading, staking and NFT collection.

Also in the next week, the presence of Sota Watanabe, Astar Founder / Startale CEO and Marteen Henskens, Head of Astar Foundation, where they will carry out various activities to introduce the Astar Network, especially to industrial giants in Korea. As we know, the same as its neighbor Japan, Korea also has globalized industries such as Samsung, LG or Hyundai. Even though if there is a partnership it will not be announced openly because it is an NDA, it cannot be denied that this will happen, just when Astar collaborated with Toyota Global at the hackaton contest earlier this year.

With the recovery of crypto market conditions globally, and the increasing value of Bitcoin in the market and the return of both retail and institutional investors. So it cannot be denied that the world needs the presence of Web3.0. Web3.0 infrastructure cannot be denied is the best upgrade that must be quickly implemented to welcome the future. And of course Astar will try its best in the global market, and Asia is just the beginning.

The beginning of December was marked by the return of bulls in the crypto market. The positive situation and the sudden return of holders and various analysts on various social media are signs of the start of the bull season. Likewise, the activity of the core team at Astar Network reached its peak to this December. Below we discuss Astar's various achievements from last month to today. Let's take a look :
The implementation of Phase 2 of Tokenomic 2.0 has resulted in an increase in gas fees for using the Astar Network, especially on the EVM side. This is a bit surprising to many people who are very used to very, very cheap gas fees. However, if Tokenomic 2.0 is 100 percent implemented, it is hoped that the gas fee will result in an efficient token burn mechanism and will reduce annual inflation in Astar.The Astar Portal comes with a new look. This is believed to make it easier for users to connect to the Astar Network. Especially for the transfer flow between Astar Native / EVM and Astar zkEVM (L2 on Ethereum)The number of transactions on the Astar Network reached the 10M milestone with a total of 593k holders, this figure is predicted to explode even more after Astar zkEVM is launched.LayerZero, Sentio and Band Protocol, all of them are partnering with Astar Network, currently they have been testing on Astar zKatana (Astar zkEVM testnet)Even though Astar Network has openly announced market expansion to Korea. However, incognito, the presence of Astar Network as the best blockchain for B2B is present in Indonesia, specifically at Aeon Mall BSD. Sushi Top collaborates with PT Aeon Mall Indonesia for NFT (SBT) distribution services at the "Aksi Bersama Untuk SDGs" event.Verifiable Random Function (VRF) will be launched on Astar zkEVM. It is believed that this will enrich the convenience of builders, especially those who focus on gaming, NFT generation and various other things. This was realized through the collaboration of Astar Network and Gelato.Astar Network will launch Astar zkEVM on Q1 2024, There will also be a rumored launch campaign with attractive reward.
Astar Network currently the biggest L1 on top of Polkadot ecosystem based on market cap.
#Astarnetwork #AltcoinPotential #ASTR/USDT #Polkadot
$ASTR

Happy New Year 2024! $ASTR prices experienced a significant and fantastic increase during December, before a correction occurred in early January 2024. In December, the Astar team also worked hard on one of the most important upgrades to the Astar Network before launching Astar zkEVM in February, namely dApp Staking v3. Currently dApp Staking v3 is in the final audit and UI polishing so that users can be comfortable when using the Astar portal. dApp Staking v3 marked the final phase for Tokenomic 2.0. What's changed? Let's take a look.

Voting and Staking Mechanism:
For Stakers, the minimum requirement to stake is 500 ASTR and the token unstaking time is ~10 ERAs (10 Days). In 1 Periode (~3 months) There are 2 SubPeriodes : Voting phase and BuildAndEarn phase.Voting phase is ~10 DaysBuildAndEarn phase are ~81 daysDuring the Voting phase, stakers didn't received any staking rewards, and their token were locked. The same happened with the dApps / Projects, they don't earn any staking rewards either.During the Voting phase, if a staker put 1000 ASTR and didn't reduced his/her stake below that number until the 1 Periode end (after 3 months) then he/she are eligible for bonus reward. During the Voting phase, a staker can move to whichever projects that he/she wants.During Voting and BuildAndEarn phases, stakers can add or unstake their tokens and claiming their rewards any time they want.Users who didn't stake their token on Voting phase, didn't eligible for rewards.There's a limit of how many days you can claim your staking reward. Be advised to claim your rewards each week, otherwise it will be expired by the end of the periode.Every new periode start all dApps stakes will be reset.By staking means all staker's ASTR never leave their wallet. They are just locked and can't be transferred.
dApp/Project Tiers:
Now there are 4 tiers for the dApp. Each has limited slots.Different with previous dApp Staking v2, in v3 all dApps got reward depending on their tier.If a dApp/project has a lot ASTR delegated to them, their chances to land on the highest tier is big.There is possibility of another reward from a dApp or project if a staker staked their ASTR with them, kindly DYOR before you delegate your $ASTR with them.If there are empty slots in a tier, all reward for that slot will be burned.

Tokenomic 2.0:
Staker's APY still ~10%There's no max supply, but now ASTR has less inflation, reduced from ~10% to ~5.8%All $ETH revenue on Astar zkEVM will be use to buyback ASTR and burn (both actions using third party)ASTR gas fee on Astar Native VM (the one using Substrate wallet) now equals with Astar EVM with all tips to Collator (Tx validator on Polkadot eco terms), and the rest is burned.In the case if the traffic txs on Astar is very high, the actual number of inflation can be extremely lower than ~5.8% because of the massive burn mechanism.
#Astarnetwork #astar