L1, L2, RWA, AI, DEFI, BRIDGES – Projects, Tokens & What You Should Know
What is L1 in simple terms?
Layer 1 (L1) blockchains are the main networks like Bitcoin or Ethereum. Think of them like banks that handle your money directly—recording all transactions and securing them. You can build apps, send crypto, or run smart contracts on top of them. Each L1 has its own rules, but they can sometimes be slow or expensive. That’s where L2 comes in.
Why do they need a token?
- Pay for transactions & smart contracts
- Reward validators
- Vote on network upgrades
- Act as digital money in apps
Basically, the token is your “ticket” to use the network.
L1 Projects & Their Tokens
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bitcoin | BTC | Digital gold, payments | 2009 |
| 2 | Ethereum | ETH | Smart contracts, dApps | 2015 |
| 3 | Cardano | ADA | Academic approach, PoS | 2017 |
| 4 | BNB | BNB | Low fees, DeFi | 2017 |
| 5 | Tron | TRX | Content, high throughput | 2017 |
| 6 | Tezos | XTZ | Self-upgrading network | 2018 |
| 7 | Algorand | ALGO | Fast finality | 2019 |
| 8 | Cosmos | ATOM | Cross-chain ecosystem | 2019 |
| 9 | Hedera | HBAR | Enterprise hashgraph | 2019 |
| 10 | Fantom | FTM | EVM compatible, aBFT | 2019 |
| 11 | Polkadot | DOT | Parachains, interoperability | 2020 |
| 12 | Avalanche | AVAX | Multi-chain, DeFi | 2020 |
| 13 | Near | NEAR | Sharding, simplicity | 2020 |
| 14 | Solana | SOL | Fast, NFT-friendly | 2020 |
| 15 | Internet Computer | ICP | Decentralized compute | 2021 |
| 16 | TON | TON | Telegram integration, sharding | 2021 |
| 17 | Kaspa | KAS | Fast PoW | 2022 |
| 18 | Aptos | APT | Move language, high speed | 2022 |
| 19 | Sei | SEI | Fast DeFi trading | 2023 |
| 20 | Sui | SUI | Parallel processing, Web3 | 2023 |
| 21 | Kroma | KRO | Web3 gaming | 2023 |
| 22 | Celestia | TIA | Modular blockchain | 2023 |
| 23 | Injective | INJ | DeFi & derivatives | 2023 |
| 24 | ZetaChain | ZETA | Cross-chain with BTC | 2024 |
| 25 | Berachain | BERA | PoL, DeFi ecosystem | 2024 |
| 26 | Monad | MONAD | High-speed EVM | 2024 |
| 27 | Movement | MOVE | Move-based, security focus | 2024 |
| 28 | Hyperliquid | HYPE | DeFi, derivatives | 2024 |
| 29 | Kaia | KAIA | Asia-focused | 2024 |
| 30 | Linera | LINERA | Microchains, scalability | 2024 |
| 31 | Mitosis | MITO | Modular architecture | 2025 |
📝 Most L1 tokens are used for gas, validation, and governance. They power the base for DeFi, NFTs, GameFi, and cross-chain bridges.
What is L2?
Layer 2s are built on top of L1s to make them faster and cheaper. They handle loads of transactions off-chain and then post the results back to L1.
Simple analogy:
If L1 is a bank, L2 is the fast checkout line that helps move things quicker.
L2 Projects & Their Tokens
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boba | BOBA | Scalable, Ethereum-compatible | 2021 |
| 2 | Immutable X | IMX | Gas-free NFTs | 2021 |
| 3 | Optimism | OP | Ethereum scaling | 2022 |
| 4 | Metis | METIS | Fast payments, DAO infra | 2022 |
| 5 | Arbitrum | ARB | Cheap & fast ETH L2 | 2023 |
| 6 | zkSync | ZK | zk-rollup scaling | 2024 |
| 7 | Linea | – | zkEVM by Consensys | 2024 |
| 8 | StarkNet | STRK | Secure zk-rollup | 2024 |
| 9 | Scroll | SCR | zkEVM scaling | 2025 |
📝 Some L2s (like zkSync) work without their own tokens. Others launch tokens to fuel growth, rewards, and ecosystem funding.
GameFi = Gaming + Crypto
Games where players earn crypto & own in-game NFTs. Items = assets you can trade or use elsewhere.
GameFi Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Enjin | ENJ | NFT infrastructure | 2017 |
| 2 | WAX | WAXP | Game platform + NFTs | 2017 |
| 3 | Axie Infinity | AXS | Pet battles | 2020 |
| 4 | The Sandbox | SAND | Virtual lands | 2020 |
| 5 | Decentraland | MANA | Metaverse + land | 2020 |
| 6 | My Neighbor Alice | ALICE | Farm & land NFTs | 2021 |
| 7 | Illuvium | ILV | RPG monster battles | 2021 |
| 8 | Gala | GALA | Game platform | 2021 |
| 9 | Star Atlas | ATLAS | Space strategy | 2021 |
| 10 | Stepn | GMT | Move-to-earn fitness | 2022 |
📝 Most GameFi projects use NFTs as the backbone of their economies.
What is DeFi?
DeFi = Decentralized Finance. No banks, no middlemen. Just smart contracts. Borrow, earn, trade – all peer-to-peer.
Analogy: Like using a vending machine instead of a bank.
Top DeFi Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MakerDAO | MKR | DAI stablecoin | 2017 |
| 2 | Synthetix | SNX | Synthetic assets | 2019 |
| 3 | Aave | AAVE | Lending platform | 2020 |
| 4 | Compound | COMP | Earn interest | 2020 |
| 5 | Uniswap | UNI | Token swaps | 2020 |
| 6 | Curve | CRV | Stablecoin swaps | 2020 |
| 7 | Balancer | BAL | Liquidity pools | 2020 |
| 8 | SushiSwap | SUSHI | Yield farming | 2020 |
| 9 | Yearn | YFI | Yield automation | 2020 |
| 10 | PancakeSwap | CAKE | BNB Chain DEX | 2020 |
Oracles = Bringing real-world data on-chain
Blockchains don’t know the real world. Oracles send info like prices, scores, weather.
Analogy: Like a messenger bringing real-world news into a closed city.
Oracle Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chainlink | LINK | DeFi data | 2017 |
| 2 | Band | BAND | Fast data feeds | 2019 |
| 3 | Tellor | TRB | Decentralized price oracles | 2019 |
| 4 | DIA | DIA | Data for DeFi/NFTs | 2020 |
| 5 | Nest | NEST | Open price data | 2020 |
| 6 | API3 | API3 | Connect APIs to blockchain | 2020 |
| 7 | UMA | UMA | Synthetic oracles | 2020 |
| 8 | Witnet | WIT | Smart contract data | 2020 |
| 9 | Pyth | PYTH | Real-time trading data | 2021 |
| 10 | Razor | RAZOR | Decentralized oracles | 2021 |
| 11 | Supra | SUPRA | Fast cross-chain oracles | 2024 |
📝 If an oracle fails, the whole dApp can break – security is key.
Bridges = Connect different blockchains
Move assets or info across networks.
Bridge Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anyswap | ANY | Early DEX bridge | 2020 |
| 2 | Multichain | MULTI | Multi-network swaps | 2020 |
| 3 | Wormhole | – | ETH ↔ Solana bridge | 2021 |
| 4 | Celer | CELR | Fast low-cost bridging | 2021 |
| 5 | Synapse | SYN | Asset & data bridge | 2021 |
| 6 | Hop | HOP | ETH ↔ L2 bridge | 2021 |
| 7 | Stargate | STG | Unified liquidity | 2022 |
| 8 | LayerZero | ZRO | Universal messaging | 2022 |
| 9 | Axelar | AXL | Cross-chain Cosmos/Ethereum | 2022 |
| 10 | Across | ACX | L1↔L2 bridging | 2022 |
📝 Bridges are often attacked – security is a must.
Data Storage = Decentralized cloud
Store files across thousands of nodes, with no single owner.
Storage Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Filecoin | FIL | Rent file storage | 2020 |
| 2 | Sia | SC | Cheap storage | 2015 |
| 3 | Storj | STORJ | Fast decentralized cloud | 2017 |
| 4 | Arweave | AR | Permanent storage | 2020 |
| 5 | Crust | CRU | IPFS-based storage | 2021 |
Identity & Privacy
Prove who you are without exposing your full identity.
Analogy: Show a QR code instead of your passport.
Identity Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Civic | CVC | Identity verification | 2017 |
| 2 | Polygon ID | – | zk-based privacy ID | 2023 |
| 3 | Worldcoin | WLD | Biometric ID | 2023 |
| 4 | zkPass | – | Private verification | 2024 |
| 5 | Lit Protocol | – | Access control via blockchain | 2023 |
AI + Blockchain = Transparent Intelligence
Use blockchain to manage AI models and data.
Analogy: Instead of AI being in one company’s hands, it’s in everyone’s.
AI Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fetch.ai | FET | Autonomous agents | 2019 |
| 2 | Ocean | OCEAN | Data exchange for AI | 2019 |
| 3 | SingularityNET | AGIX | AI services marketplace | 2017 |
| 4 | Numeraire | NMR | Market predictions | 2017 |
| 5 | Bittensor | TAO | Decentralized AI training | 2023 |
RWA = Real-World Assets on Chain
Tokenize real assets: real estate, bonds, gold.
Analogy: Own part of a building through a digital token.
RWA Projects
| # | Project | Token | Description | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RealT | – | Tokenized U.S. real estate | 2019 |
| 2 | Ondo Finance | ONDO | Tokenized bonds | 2024 |
| 3 | Maple | MPL | Business lending | 2021 |
| 4 | Goldfinch | GFI | Emerging market loans | 2021 |
| 5 | Securitize | – | Digital securities (no token) | – |
📝 Institutions love RWAs – they make real assets tradable on-chain.
