coindesk.com
Filecoin’s native token FIL is rallying in the lead up to a network upgrade that would make the storage network programmable.
FIL reached a high of $6.20 on Monday, gaining 18%, according to CoinDesk data. This also puts the token up 15% on the month. Bitcoin (BTC), meanwhile, has risen just 1% this month, while ether (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency, has chalked up 3% gains. The wider crypto industry has also struggled over the last month, with the overall market cap dropping below the $1 trillion mark.
The Filecoin Virtual Machine (FVM) network upgrade is set to go live Tuesday at 15:14 UTC. The software platform that will introduce smart contracts and enable developers to design decentralized applications on the Filecoin network.
Filecoin, which went mainnet in October 2020, enables users to rent out spare storage space on their computer. The platform rewards network participants who help in storing files and retrieving them.
Its FVM upgrade will unlock a range of possibilities, including dataDAOs, perpetual storage, financial services for miners (e.g. collateral lending, liquid staking, insurance protocols), according to its website.
Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, issued a statement on Monday stating it would be supporting Filecoin’s network upgrade, handling all technical requirements involved for users holding FIL in their Binance accounts.
Bitfrost, a multichain lending, staking, and liquidity pool platform, announced on Monday the launch of its liquid staking token for Filecoin. “$vFIL will be ready for minting on http://bifrost.app, soon!” the tweet said.