Appetite for auction remains robust despite delays, pressure on Polkadot token.
Since the Polkadot mainnet launch in 2020, the planned launch of the network’s eponymous and Kusama parachains has generated much eager anticipation. Yet delays to the auction of slots that have put pressure on Polkadot’s native token appear not to have dampened enthusiasm for the sale, according to a report by Cointelegraph.
Parachain slots had been due for release in the first quarter of 2021, but even with the rollout date still not yet in sight, it appears that projects will be ready to deploy on the network within weeks of obtaining those slots, and demand for them is expected to be strong.
Peter Mauric, head of public affairs at Parity Technologies, which was involved in the development of the Polkadot ecosystem, said, “Competition, especially for early slots on Kusama and Polkadot, is expected to be fairly intense, in my opinion.”
That demand is expected to translate into high prices for Kusama and Polkadot tokens, although because the live auction will be the first event of its kind, it may not proceed as expected. Things could turn ugly if, for instance, a bidding war is triggered by participants looking to sell slots at a premium on the secondary market, or if a bidder tries to “squat” on a slot merely to prevent another project from utilizing it.
Although the prices of many cryptocurrencies have soared in recent months, the performance of Polkadot’s native coin has been underwhelming since an initial surge above $40 in mid-February, and further delays to the auction are likely to heap more pressure on its price. The token is currently trading at around $39.
