The BP token of the young crypto exchange Backpack soared 150% in a week, and the market is increasingly asking whether it can repeat FTX's path. According to the observation of DeFi analyst Ignas, Backpack is a contender for the role of the cycle's new major exchange amid the prospect that Binance may lose its license to operate in the European Union. Backpack, on the other hand, has already obtained such a permit.
Ignas recalls the history: in 2010 the market was ruled by Mt. Gox, in 2012–2014 by Coinbase, Kraken and Bitfinex, in 2017–2019 by Binance, Bybit and OKX, and in the 2020s by FTX. The only exception was the previous cycle, when the rules of the game were changed by the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid.
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Why Backpack is still in the role of the one catching up
The analyst called Backpack's current figures rather modest. Daily spot trading volume is about $18 million, and open interest on perpetual contracts (perps) is around $68 million. For comparison, at Hyperliquid this figure reaches $9 billion. Moreover, the daily BP token most often yields even more liquid fees on the blockchain than on the exchange itself.
That is why the researcher considers tokenized stocks to be Backpack's main advantage — that is, digital copies of real securities issued on the blockchain. Here the exchange gains a unique synergy with the Solana network, which after the collapse of the memecoin sector lost its former drive, and whose perpetual-contracts market never took off.
To become "the Nasdaq exchange on the blockchain," Solana needs the success of Backpack, which would draw traders, arbitrageurs and "yield hunters" into the network. Interestingly, this partnership reminds Ignas of Solana's former close ties with FTX.
The link to FTX and unusual tokenomics
The parallel with FTX is no accident. Backpack was founded by former exchange employees, and the company bought out the European license of the bankrupt platform. According to Ignas himself, even Backpack's interface reminds him of FTX — although he cautions that this may be merely a subjective impression.
Source: BeInCrypto
