Author: momo, ChainCatcher

The breakthrough of BNB above the important psychological barrier of $1000 has led to a resurgence in on-chain activity for BNB Chain. On September 21, its daily trading volume reached a nearly 30-day high, surpassing 16.5 million transactions in a single day. Meanwhile, BNB Chain and opBNB have become the public chains with the highest number of daily active users.

BNB Chain is gradually becoming an amplifier of market sentiment, evolving from "wealth code" to "wealth code" generator, with support from CZ, from Jobless and Aster to Giggle and Sign.

Additionally, BNB Chain is strengthening its fundamentals by planning to reduce the cost of a single transaction to about $0.005 through network upgrades. Wall Street asset management giant Franklin has also officially announced the expansion of its self-developed tokenization platform Benji to BNB Chain.

However, amidst the high prices and lively atmosphere, some long-term BNB holders have chosen not to sell off significantly and exit the market.

Limited Choices

Recently, after BNB broke the $1000 new high, a market maker for a Binance Alpha project, Kun, did not sell. He has held BNB since 2021, with 90% of his position in BNB.

Kun hardly participates in other non-mainstream altcoins, stating, "In a situation where I don't know where to exit, I prefer to hold BNB to absorb the benefits of interest rate cuts."

However, as the staking lock-up period ends, Kun may consider exiting a portion of his holdings due to reduced yields from Launchpool after the launch of Binance Alpha, which has diminished his passive income.

Another large BNB holder, Chen, has already sold 20% and invested part of the funds into other platform tokens, with a small portion betting on new hot meme projects on BNB Chain.

Starting in early 2024, when BNB was priced between $300 and $500, Chen gradually invested 50% of his position into BNB. After CZ's release from prison, Chen continued to increase his holdings. Recently, after selling 20% of his BNB, it now accounts for 30% of his total position.

From May of this year until now, BNB has nearly risen from around $500 for almost five months. For Chen, taking profits at the peak is a routine operation; the reason for not selling off significantly is that he believes BNB Chain is still on the rise, and there are no better alternatives. "Bitcoin and Ethereum are growing too slowly, and other altcoins and meme coins only dare to test the waters with small positions."

Crypto KOL BigFang generously shared on YouTube that $1000, as an important psychological barrier, is expected to attract traditional off-exchange funds after the breakthrough.

In early September, the compliant trading platform OSL in Hong Kong opened BNB trading services to professional investors, making BNB the sixth cryptocurrency listed on the exchange. Additionally, several listed companies have formed BNB strategic reserves, and VanEck and REX Shares&Osprey Funds have submitted applications for a BNB ETF to the U.S. SEC.

Moreover, crypto KOL Big Orange revealed on Twitter that he has held BNB since the ICO and continued to increase his holdings by 1000 BNB when it reached a new high of $990. After the new high, BNB remains his third-largest position, following Ethereum and Bitcoin.

In addition to continuing to hold BNB, he has also invested in the BNB Chain ecosystem, having purchased 1.4 million Aster, and stated, "Hold Aster like holding BNB eight years ago."

Why Can They Hold for So Long?

Compared to market sentiments such as CZ possibly returning to Binance's leadership, the long-term BNB holders interviewed seem to focus more on BNB's token economic model, the leadership capabilities of the team, and the future growth potential.

1. BNB Captures Real Income from the BNB Ecosystem

"From the perspective of the token economic model, BNB captures the real income of the BNB ecosystem," which is the most critical reason for Kun's holdings.

In Kun's view, on one hand, BNB undergoes buybacks and burns every quarter, and this deflationary mechanism directly feeds the exchange's profits back into the token's value. Through continuous token burns, the initial supply of BNB has decreased from 200 million to around 100 million, enhancing its scarcity and value.

Kun mentioned that CZ and his team hold a portion of BNB, and these tokens will not flow into the market, meaning that the circulating market value of BNB is lower than what is seen on the surface.

On the other hand, BNB allows project parties to build liquidity pools on BNB Chain through Binance Alpha. These liquidity pools will use BNB to form, thereby locking a large amount of BNB in the pools. This mechanism is similar to Solana's splitting principle, reducing circulation by locking tokens, thus enhancing the token's value.

Holding BNB also allows for additional benefits from Launchpool, HODLer airdrops, MegaDrop, etc., which is quite attractive. This is also a key reason for BNB holder Chen's long-term holding. Chen also mentioned that as the core asset of the Binance ecosystem, BNB can be used for trading fees, staking, and new activities such as airdrops, as well as applications in the BNB Chain ecosystem, giving it strong value capture capabilities.

2. "Bullish" on CZ

The strategic and execution capabilities of CZ and the BNB ecosystem are also important reasons why many are willing to hold long-term.

Chen believes that Ethereum is more like a slow-paced, externally capital-dependent large company, while BNB Chain resembles a proactive startup, especially after CZ's return, with the team continuously launching new projects and new plays, always finding ways to shift market attention and funds to the BNB ecosystem.

Since February, when CZ called for "test coin" TST, to CZ's dog, Mubarak, a CZ who originally claimed not to like memes has successfully shifted the community's enthusiasm for trading memecoins from Solana to BNB Chain.

After the meme craze subsided, Binance Alpha drove community trading of new Binance projects; subsequently, there were narratives around the platform token of Four.meme and BNB's reserve strategy, and last week, after CZ changed his X account bio from "ex-@binance" back to "@binance," he targeted Perp DEX, leading to Aster surging dozens of times. The CZ effect has begun to sweep the community, with projects interacting with CZ, including those invested in by YZi Labs, becoming the new password of the community.

Crypto KOL @yuyue_chris Yuyue also posted on the X platform that CZ's formal "return" really makes people feel they can make money with him, stating, "Binance has indeed figured out the essence of assets this time."

For Kun, who comes from a technical background, after seeing various "Ponzi schemes" in the crypto space that rely on technical innovations to deceive, CZ is one of the few who makes him feel that his intentions are good. "CZ is already financially free and is definitely not in it for the money; as a tech guy active on the front lines, he focuses on interesting content, feeling more like he is consolidating Binance's position."

3. Incremental Space from Traditional Fields

The confidence in holding BNB comes not only from the vitality within the community but also from the gradual recognition and adoption by traditional fields. This "external validation" brings greater application scenarios and substantial new funds to BNB.

In terms of application scenarios, on one hand, Wall Street financial giants are gradually expanding their RWA business to BNB Chain. Recently, Franklin Templeton, which manages $1.6 trillion, has expanded its tokenization products to BNB Chain. Another asset management giant, VanEck, has also launched a tokenized treasury fund, VBILL, on BNB Chain in collaboration with Securitize, while Ondo Finance and xStock have announced plans to introduce tokenized treasury bonds and structured products to BNB Chain.

On the other hand, Binance Pay is actively promoting adoption in traditional businesses, recently partnering with Zapper to launch in 30,000 merchants in South Africa.

In terms of new funds, the BNB strategy treasury of traditional listed companies has also brought structural buying pressure.

• BNB Network Company (BNC) is currently the largest BNB reserve listed company globally, holding over 410,000 BNB as of September 10;
• Nano Labs (NA) plans to invest $1 billion in BNB over three years, aiming to hold 5%-10% of the total circulating supply of BNB, with its half-year report showing it has already held 128,000 BNB;
• Windtree Therapeutics (WINT) has signed an agreement to use 99% of its raised funds to acquire BNB to strengthen its cryptocurrency funding strategy;
• Huaxing Capital has invested about $100 million in a special allocation for BNB assets;
• ……

Additionally, the economic special zone of the Kingdom of Bhutan, Glab Mindfulness City (GMC), has included BNB in its official strategic reserve asset list, indicating that BNB's value and security have gained attention and recognition at the sovereign level.

4. Reduced Policy Risks Facing Binance

In March of this year, Binance announced a $2 billion investment from Abu Dhabi's state-owned capital MGX, which is a very positive signal for Kun. This means Binance has found a strong "umbrella."

As the U.S. crypto environment gradually becomes friendlier this year, the policy risks facing Binance are also being alleviated.

In May, the SEC applied to withdraw the lawsuit against Binance, Binance US, and CZ. On September 16, Bloomberg reported that Binance is negotiating with the U.S. Department of Justice to potentially end the compliance monitoring period that began in 2023 early. This progress has alleviated the market's long-standing biggest concerns to some extent.

In the context of a global compliance trend, Binance has obtained regulatory licenses in about 21 countries or regions, including Dubai, Japan, the European Union, and Southeast Asia, establishing its business on a more compliant foundation.

Conclusion

In the current uncertain market environment, the long-term holding of BNB reflects investors' pragmatic tendencies in limited choices and represents a vote of confidence in a continuously evolving ecosystem.

The logic behind BNB's rise comes from multiple sources of value support. Its deflationary model feeds the real income of the Binance platform back into the token's value, forming an intrinsic value foundation. After CZ's return, the ecosystem's activity and project iteration speed have significantly increased, continuously attracting developers and users to participate, creating a virtuous cycle of development. Meanwhile, traditional financial institutions and listed companies are gradually incorporating BNB into their asset allocations or on-chain layouts, bringing structural capital inflows. The advancement of the global compliance process also provides a more stable policy environment for long-term holding. Additionally, on the technical side, the continuous optimization of BNB Chain's network performance and the reduction of transaction costs further enhance the on-chain experience.

However, the investment risks of BNB should not be overlooked; it remains a cryptocurrency with high price volatility, influenced by the performance of specific companies and ecosystems, and is highly sensitive to global macroeconomic sentiment.

Overall, BNB has gradually transcended the attributes of traditional platform tokens, transforming into a digital asset with an independent economic model and ecological logic. Its future value sustainability will depend on the team's strategic capabilities and execution, the continuous growth of ecological projects, the effectiveness of technological upgrades, and the ability to adapt to the ever-changing global regulatory landscape.

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