What Is Synthetix ? (Explained)

If you're a crypto person or a trader or more than that you're a fan of DeFi's (Decentralised Finance) then you've definitely heard about the platform called 'Synthetix'. But if you're still unaware of this project then don't worry, in this article we'll go through the common questions like What is Synthetix ? Who invented it ? It's tokenomics and some other things.

So let's dive into the hottest DeFi project...!!

What Is Synthetix ?

Synthetix is a platform which allows users to bet on real world assets like stocks, precious metals, foreign currencies and even other crypto assets. The Synthetix platform is built on Ethereum network and is bringing all of the financial assets under one roof. The Synthetic assets or 'Synths' replicate the original price of the real world assets and and brings it to the Ethereum blockchain giving that Synth all the properties of an ERC20 token. It uses the Chainlink as an oracle to get the real time prices of the real world assets. SNX is the native token of the platform which can be stacked, traded or HODLed.

Holding any Synth does not mean that you're actually own the asset. Let's understand with an example :

Let say you own some Synthetic MKR tokens which is replicates the price of the real MKR token. But, by holding synthetic MKR does not give you the voting power which is given in the case of real MKR token, as you're not holding the real MKR token, you're just playing with the prices. Synthetix allows anyone to bet on the prices of the assets without holding the actual asset.

Who Invented Synthetix ?

Actually the whole project started as an Stablecoin project previously known as 'Havven' and was founded by Kain Warwick, the current CEO. Now Synthetix is one of the successful DeFi project with more than $180 million locked into the protocol in 2018.

Do You Know ? 💡💡

The 'a16z crypto' - a venture fund who bought the 6% of the total MakerDAO supply in 2018 is also the holder of 374,111 SNX tokens, which is a native token of Synthetix platform.

Though the fund never publicly announced or stated this investment but it sites the amount of SNX tokens in their address

How To Get SNX Tokens ?

If you're interested in the platform and want to involve SNX tokens in your crypto portfolio or simply want to explore the Synthetix platform then you can get SNX tokens from the decentralised exchanges like Kyber or Uniswap. You can also stake SNX tokens to create new Synths using their Mintr dApp.

Things you can do with Synthetix

Originally the Synthetix platform was created for trading Synths. Holders of Synths can go long or short on an asset, long to bet the price will increase and short to bet the price will decrease.

You can also stake SNX tokens to create new Synths, collect rewards and watch your holding grow. And it is quite predictable that the holders of SNX are loving it as 85% of the SNX supply is locked into their protocol.

Future

Synthetix was started as a stablecoin project and now it's one of the best DeFi project, this is really a great success. The actual growth of the platform started in 2019 due to their collaborations with bZx margin trading protocol and integrating their sUSD stablecoin.

But the real feature that everyone is waiting for is the ability to trade popular stocks like Tesla, Amazon, Apple on Ethereum, that would be the game changer for the DeFi projects and the believers.

So friends this is it from my side on Synthetix platform. Don't forget to share your thoughts about this project in comments.

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