DappRadar – a popular dApp discovery and analysis platform – recently confirmed plans for a platform-native token called RADAR. It is intended to help DappRadar decentralize its future operations.
The company revealed the RADAR token at an event in the crypto VR game Somnium Space earlier this week. According to a statement seen by CryptoPotato, RADAR is a governance token granting its holders greater influence over DappRadar’s broader ecosystem.
Through various methods, the token will reward holders for their contribution and involvement with the platform’s growth. That includes taking part in decision-making processes, meaning users will become the core of the service.
Skirmantas Januškas – co-founder and CEO of DappRadar – said the token’s introduction is simply in line with DappRadar’s principles.
“We built DappRadar around decentralized apps. Decentralization stands at the very core of our success and it’s only right to take it to the next level — true decentralization of DappRadar. Bringing the community closer is the only way to keep ahead of the curve and remain successful in the years to come.”
DappRadar was launched in 2018 and is now used to track over 8,000 dApps across more than 20 blockchains. It also tracks price action and the trading volume for numerous top NFT collections.
Governance tokens are becoming an increasingly popular method for creating fairer, more distributed governance models in the crypto industry.
Ethereum Name Service – the popular Ethereum system for registering decentralized domain names – recently airdropped a DAO token to “pass governance over to the community.” The new coin spiked 160% in value upon arrival.
Days later, an upcoming play-to-earn game called Kart Racing announced its own governance token sale. The CEO of Blue Monster Games (the developers) called distributions of this type “the future of gaming.”
That said, governance tokens may also carry various risks. For instance, mass selloffs can put strong downward price pressure on smaller holders that actively contribute to their token’s ecosystem. Furthermore, many governance tokens still have a proclivity to disproportionately accumulate into the hands of a few whales, effectively leaving the project highly centralized.