Optimism Executes $89 Private Sale of OP Tokens

2024-03-19, 09:04

[TL; DR]

On 8 March Optimism Foundation announced that it had held a private sale of 19.5 million OP tokens.

Optimism will unlock 24.16 million OP tokens on 29 March.
By the end of 2024 the price of OP tokens may fluctuate between $4.48 and $7.93

Keywords: Optimism Foundation, Optimism coin, Ethereum network, L2 solutions for Ethereum, Ethereum Layer-2 Optimism, Ethereum L2 Optimism, hold OP, buy OP, OP tokens, Optimism network, OP price

Introduction

Crypto dynamics like private sales, token releases and airdrops can affect prices of cryptocurrencies. Optimism’s recent private sale and token releases may have a significant impact on the OP price in the short to medium terms.

This article looks at the possible effects of Optimism’s private token sale on its value. We will also uate the impact of its token release on its future price movement.

Optimism Foundation Announces $90 Million Private Sale of 19.5 Million OP Tokens to Mystery Buyer

On 8 March Optimism Foundation announced that it had sold 19.5 million OP tokens valued at around $89 million to an undisclosed buyer. As a result of the news, the price of the Optimism coin stabilized at around $4.57. Another important event that may influence the price of OP token is the unlock event that will take place at the end of this month.

Basically, Optimism coins which the Optimism Foundation recently sold were part of Treasury allocation set aside to fund its developmental agenda. This is because it is the responsibility of the Foundation to maintain and develop the Ethereum Layer-2 Optimism blockchain.

Nevertheless, the recently sold tokens will not go to the market for trading since they will be locked up for the next two years. Therefore, the buyer needs to hold OP during that period. Currently, OP tokens have a circulating supply of 1 billion and a total supply of 4.29 billion.

Notably, during the designated OP lockup period the buyer has the right to delegate the tokens to third parties that want to participate in the Optimism network governance. Basically, Ethereum L2 Optimism is part of the Ethereum network since it is a scaling solution.

The Optimism Foundation has not disclosed the buyer since it was a private sale. In related Optimism crypto news a token unlock event will take place on 29 March where 24.16 million OP tokens, valued at around $110.65 million, will be released.

This is not the first time that the Optimism Foundation has held a private sale for the OP tokens. According to ToBTC X post the Foundation also held another private sale in September 2023. ToBTC wrote: “Optimism also sold 116 million OP tokens in another private sale held back in September 2023.”

As the above screenshot indicates, on 20 September 2023, Optimism confirmed that private sale.

Nevertheless, the market fears that the OP price may fall after the earmarked token release since 2.40% of its circulating supply will be introduced into the market thereby increasing its selling pressure.

At the time of writing, the OP price is $3.65 after losing 21.3% within the last 7 days as the next price chart shows.

Optimism Coin Price - PancakeSwap crypto

As observed on The Graph, the value of OP token increased significantly on 5 March to reach $4.84 on 6 March setting a new all-time high. Nonetheless, it has since dropped to the current price level. As things stand, it is trading at 24.5% of its ATH.

Optimism Price Prediction: OP Holders Make Money despite Downturn

Before we look at the possible OP future price let’s briefly discuss its price performance since the beginning of the year. The coin began the year while trading at around $3.61 before dropping to $2.64 on 23 January. As noted earlier on, the OP attained a new ATH of $4.84 on 6 March.

Several analysts have predicted that the value of OP will rise during the year. CCN compiled the views of several analysts pertaining to the OP price predictions. The following table highlights some of the forecasts.

OP price predictions: CCN

As the table denotes, some experts believe that the price of OP, the native coin for the L2 solutions for Ethereum, will fluctuate between $4.48 and $7.93 in 2024. As an example, DigitalCoinPrice has predicted that the OP price will reach $6.76 while Bitnation says that it will fluctuate around $10.03.
PricePrediction.net anticipates the OP price to trade at around $4.48 by the end of the year.

As for 2025 PricePrediction.net has predicted the OP coin price to reach $10.03 while Bitnation and DigitalCoinPrice estimate its price to fluctuate around $13.69 and $9.36, respectively.

Interestingly, Google BardAI has forecasted the value of OP to fluctuate between $4 and $5 during 2024 and $8-$12 in 2025. It is vital to realize that various factors including the regulatory environment and market dynamics affect the value of cryptocurrencies. Therefore, investors should carry out thorough research before they buy OP.

Conclusion

Recently, Optimism sold OP tokens valued at around $89 million to an undisclosed buyer. However, the tokens will be vested for the next two years although the buyer may delegate them to third parties to participate in the network’s governance. In the meantime some analysts have predicted the price of OP token to range between $8 and $12 by the end of 2025.

FAQs about Optimism (OP)

Why optimism growing in popularity?

Optimism is growing in popularity due to the high demand for layer-2 solutions for the Ethereum blockchain. The blockchain improves the speed, scalability as well as the affordability of Ethereum transactions. This has led to a high demand for its native cryptocurrency also called Optimism (OP).

What is Optimism Network?

Optimism is a layer-2 blockchain which increases scalability and transaction speed for the Ethereum network. Also, its transactions are less costly than the Ethereum one.

What is Optimism coin?

The Optimism coin, popularly known as OP, is the native cryptocurrency for the Optimism blockchain, a layer-2 solution for Ethereum network. Currently, the OP coin is trading at around $3.65.

What is the all-time for Optimism coin?

Optimism coin’s all time high is $4.84 attained on 6 March 2024. However, it also attained an all-time low of $0.4022 on 18 June 2022. Currently, the Optimism coin is trading at around $3.65.

What is Optimism crypto worth?

The Optimism crypto, a native cryptocurrency for the Optimism blockchain, is currently trading at around $3.65. Nevertheless, some analysts anticipate its value to fluctuate between $4.48 and $7.93 by the end of 2024.

How old is Optimism crypto?

Optimism coin is close to 2 years since it was launched on 31 May 2022. Nevertheless, it is important to note that the Optimism blockchain was launched in March 2021.

Is Optimism a buy?

Optimism may be a good buy since it has the support of a strong team and is a utility coin for the Optimism blockchain. According to several analysts the value of the OP coin is likely to rise, as it is anticipated to fluctuate between $8 and $12 by the end of 2025.

Is Arbitrum better than Arbitrum?

The current network activity shows that Arbitrum is currently performing better than Optimism. However, both blockchains offer a similar service since they are layer-2 solutions for the Ethereum network.

Author: Mashell C., Gate.io Researcher

*This article represents only the views of the researcher and does not constitute any investment suggestions.

*Gate.io reserves all rights to this article. Reposting of the article will be permitted provided Gate.io is referenced. In all cases, legal action will be taken due to copyright infringement.