Harmony is a high-speed, open-source, public blockchain with EVM compatibility and smart contract functionality that offers a more efficient platform for Ethereum decentralized applications (dApps). It boasts a transaction finality time of just over two seconds and transaction fees 100 times lower than Ethereum. As of July 2022, the Harmony ecosystem enjoys a total value locked (TVL) of over $1 billion across decentralized finance (DeFi), NFT, Web3, and gaming categories. The blockchains developers are focusing on improving its capabilities to support more Web3 dApps, adding features such as Zero Knowledge proofs to production, and decentralizing governance through funding and supporting decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). ONE is the native token of Harmony, used for paying transaction fees, gas fees, and storage fees within the blockchain network. In addition, users can stake ONE on the Harmony network to become nodes and participate in the consensus mechanism by validating transactions. Harmony is a smart contract, EVM-compatible blockchain designed as an attractive alternative to Ethereum for dApp developers and consumers. It is one of the key contenders among Ethereum killers in the crypto market, along with Solana, Avalanche, and Cosmos.

Stephen Tse founded Harmony along with co-founders Sahil Dewan, Rongjian Lan, and Nick White in 2018. The blockchain co-founders have professional experience across leading Big Tech firms such as Google, Amazon, Apple, and Facebook. The first version of the Harmony mainnet went live in June 2019, utilizing a new PoS consensus model known as Effective Proof of Stake (EPoS). In January 2020, Harmony launched the token swap option, allowing users to exchange their BEP-2 and ERC-20 tokens for native ONE tokens. The initial consensus model utilized a select group of validators, and support for Open Staking via permissionless validators was rolled out in May 2020. Fast forward to 2022, and Harmony launched a trustless bridge to the Bitcoin network in Q1 of the year. Other updates in the quarter include launching a social NFT wallet and cross-chain operation to OpenSea, the worlds leading non-fungible tokens' (NFT) marketplace. The Harmony team has plans to bridge to the Cosmos blockchain in Q3 2022, along with releasing a trustless bridge to the Ethereum network. Harmony's bridges will also enable cross-shard transactions for scalability and speed. By the end of 2022, Harmony aims to achieve 1-second transaction finality and help zkSync rollups and private authentication features to its network.

Harmony utilizes a Fast Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) protocol for its proof of stake consensus mechanism. Combined with random-state sharding and low latency, the blockchain offers higher levels of efficiency in operation and cost than Ethereum and several other Web3 blockchains in the market. The Harmony blockchain employs an Effective Proof of Stake (EPoS) consensus for increased decentralization and fairness. Validators are selected based on the amount staked for each epoch but block rewards and distributed based on the median number of ONE tokens staked by all validators within the network. This model prevents the likelihood of a single-shard attack on the blockchain. Harmony's scalable infrastructure utilizes the secure, random state sharding concept and leverages 250 nodes per shard and cryptographic randomness to re-shard at regular intervals. This is yet another mechanism employed for network security to avoid single-shard attacks that compromise infrastructure. In April 2020, Harmony announced its new tokenomics model, allocating a fixed annual reward of 441 million ONE tokens, irrespective of block time and staking ratio. The higher staking ratio model adopted ensures higher organic demand for ONE crypto, higher staking yields, and more stability as most tokens belong to HODLers who invest in ONE long-term.

The ONE cryptocurrency has several applications, including:

Native Protocol Token in Harmony Ecosystem

ONE is used to pay transaction, storage, and gas fees when using resources within the Harmony blockchain. You can also use the Harmony blockchain to transfer payments in ONE crypto to users worldwide.

Staking Token

You can stake ONE token on Harmony to participate in the consensus mechanism of the blockchain and contribute to block production. You can delegate your stake to existing validators on the network or become a validator yourself and earn block rewards for validating transactions.

Governance Token

Validators who stake ONE tokens on the Harmony network can participate in the governance mechanism of the ecosystem. As a validator, you are one of several community members eligible to vote on key proposals that will shape the future development of Harmony.

Crypto Asset to Invest in and HODL

The native Harmony token is among the actively traded cryptocurrencies on several exchanges in the crypto market. You can buy or sell ONE against other cryptocurrencies or hold it long-term if you believe in the future potential of the Harmony ecosystem. Check the current Harmony price, ONE market cap, current circulating supply, and 24-hour trading volume, and perform technical, sentiment, and fundamental analysis on the ONE price chart before placing a new trade in the market.

Earn Passive Income

You can hold ONE long-term and put your crypto investment to work via staking or lending to earn a stream of passive income. In addition to staking ONE to participate in the consensus, you can also earn ONE crypto through BYDFi in the following ways:

1. Stake ONE on BYDFi Earn for attractive APRs over flexible durations.

2. Lend liquidity for ONE to the exchange via BYDFi Crypto Lending to earn daily interest over seven days, 14 days, or 28 days.

While it is impossible to make an accurate Harmony (ONE) price prediction, this cryptocurrency has strong fundamentals that may indicate it is worth considering as an investment. One of the key factors is that the Harmony mainnet supports Ethereum applications through its EVM compatibility, providing developers with a faster and more cost-effective platform.

The Harmony price could potentially rise as more developers migrate from Ethereum to its ecosystem, increasing on-chain activity. Harmony's EVM compatibility also positions it as a cross-chain capable blockchain, offering improved scalability to leading dApps and ensuring the longevity of its technology and adoption.

Furthermore, Harmony's commitment to enhancing its Web3 capabilities as part of its Vision 2026 goals makes it an attractive investment opportunity. The Harmony price may increase as developers introduce additional features like Zero-Knowledge proofs to enhance efficiency and security, making it a desirable platform for future dApps.

Not only could the ONE price and market capitalization benefit from the growing adoption of the Harmony ecosystem, but they may also receive support from a bullish sentiment in the crypto market. As the prices of leading digital assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum rise, cryptocurrencies like ONE may experience increased buying interest due to improved investor confidence.

An analysis of Harmony's price statistics reveals that the crucial $1 level has not yet been surpassed as of July 2022. The all-time high price of ONE crypto is slightly above $0.37, significantly below this important milestone.

If market sentiment improves and Harmony's technology gains more adoption among dApp developers and consumers, it is possible that the Harmony price could approach and test the all-time high level in the future. However, reaching $1 would require significant effort for the ONE token.

One of the main challenges hindering such a price surge is the relatively high circulating supply of over 12.3 billion ONE tokens as of July 2022. To attempt to breach the all-time high and reach the key $1 mark, the circulating supply and total supply of the cryptocurrency would need to decrease significantly.

You can stake Harmony (ONE) as a delegator or a validator to participate in the consensus mechanism and earn rewards. Here's how to stake ONE on Harmony:

1. If you don't already have one, create a new wallet with Harmony One.

2. Purchase Harmony (ONE) on BYDFi or another supported exchange and fund your wallet. Withdraw your tokens by entering your Harmony One wallet address.

3. Visit the Harmony One staking website - https://staking.harmony.one to access the staking explorer of the blockchain.

4. Explore the existing validators, check their status, expected returns on stake offers, commission charges, and uptime.

5. Choose your preferred validator and click on the Delegate option to delegate your ONE tokens.

6. Enter the amount of ONE tokens you wish to stake via delegation and review the information before confirming the transaction.

7. Sit back and earn rewards for your delegated stake.

8. You can also become a validator by creating a Validator Wallet on Harmony One and funding it with a minimum of 10001 ONE tokens.

9. For more information on how to create a validator on the Harmony blockchain, click here.