2024-05-02
According to recent reports, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), a prominent venture capital firm, has shown interest in Optimism, a Layer-2 platform for Ethereum. The firm has acquired a significant amount of OP tokens worth $90 million.
Despite the overall decline in the market, the price of Optimism (OP) has experienced a surge of 13.5% in the past 24 hours and is currently being traded at $2.65. The market capitalization of Optimism stands at $2.77 billion.
It is important to note that on March 7th, the Optimism Foundation announced the sale of approximately 19.5 million OP tokens, valued at nearly $90 million, to an undisclosed buyer.
These tokens were sourced from a 30% pool of OP's original treasury, which was intended for the foundation's initial operational budget.
Sources familiar with the matter have informed Unchained that a16z's purchase of OP tokens is subject to a two-year vesting period.
This purchase aligns with significant development activity in the Optimism ecosystem, including the increased usage of Optimism's OP Stack.
During token vesting periods, investors often benefit from discounted purchases compared to the token's current trading price.
Optimism's OP Stack product offers developers of Layer 2 blockchains the opportunity to deploy their mainnets using Optimism's open-source technology.
Recently, Optimism achieved a significant milestone when the developers of the Celo blockchain selected OP Stack to launch their highly anticipated Layer 2 solution.
Commenting on the development, a source stated, "It's interesting. Optimism has performed well. They're still conducting airdrops."
While not explicitly mentioning a16z's involvement, a spokesperson for the Ethereum Layer-2 platform expressed excitement about the energy and momentum that Optimism is gaining.
It is worth noting that a16z also holds an investment in Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange that operates its own Layer-2 solution, Base. Both Base and Optimism are potential competitors, attracting significant crypto projects to utilize their technology stacks.
The news of a16z's acquisition of Optimism tokens has generated substantial interest in the altcoin. In addition to the OP price surging over 13% despite the broader market sell-off, trading volumes have also increased by 90%, reaching $548 million.
Following the recent Bitcoin halving event, the OP found strong support around the $2 psychological threshold, establishing a local bottom. This support has triggered a positive reversal, propelling the asset by 45% in just two weeks to its current trading price of $2.63.
Currently, the coin price suggests a potential breakout from the overhead trendline. If a daily candle closes above this resistance trendline, it would indicate a shift in market dynamics favoring buyers. Consequently, the post-breakout rally could drive the Optimism coin towards potential targets of $3.4, $4, and $4.78.
