Here are 5 altcoins to study as crypto prices drop to near 1-year lows

Pain trading has been an unwelcome sight in the cryptocurrency market since the beginning of 2022 and in the last 24 days Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoin prices have ranged, leading some analysts to suggest a bear market is on the way.

Despite trader concerns that another extended crypto winter could be beginning, it is at times like these that investors can capitalize on great opportunities to acquire fundamentally sound cryptocurrencies at a discount.

Fear and greed crypto index. Source: Alternative.me

On that note, here is a closer look at several projects with strong fundamentals and a proven use case that could be good candidates for accumulation during the current market correction.

Polygon (MATIC)

The Ethereal (ETH) Polygon layer two scaling solution (MATIC) is currently 50.76% below its all-time high of $2.92 which was set on Dec 27, 2021.

MATIC/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

Polygon saw a lot of growth and adoption over the course of 2021 because its compatibility with Ethereum and low transaction costs made it a destination for users and protocols looking for a way to stay on the Ethereum network and avoid the high cost of the transactions. .

Total MATIC portfolios over time. Source: Dune Analytics

The network is capable of hosting all kinds of decentralized applications, including lending protocols such as AAVEdecentralized exchanges like Uniswap or games and non-fungible token projects like Aavegotchi.

With the capabilities and final date for Eth2 launch still unknown, it is likely that layer 2 solutions like Polygon will continue to see increased participation as users look for lower transaction fees.

Ghost (FTM)

Fantom (FTM) is a layer one blockchain protocol that also gained prominence during 2021, as its low-fee environment and Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) support helped attract new users and protocols to the network.

FTM/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

Data of Markets Cointelegraph Pro Y TradingView shows that the price of FTM is currently 36.3% below its December highs and is trading at a price of $2.15 at the time of writing.

The bull case for FTM is supported by the continued rise in total value locked (TVL) on the Fantom network despite the market-wide pullback, with data from Defi Llama showing that Fantom TVL is currently at an all-time high of $12.07 billion.

Total value locked in Fantom. Source: Defi Llama

Compared to competing chains like Solana (SUN) which has a TVL of $7.62 billion, Fantom has more value and has not experienced major network disruptions like Solana, but is trading at a significant discount compared to SOL's price.

With SOL's current price at roughly $90, FTM's price would need to be $18.10 to have an equivalent market cap, suggesting that Fantom is undervalued relative to its top-tier competitors and has the potential to close that gap as 2022 progresses.

Polka dots (DOT)

Another token that could potentially be in a good accumulation zone is Polkadot (POINT), a fragmented multi-chain protocol whose goal is to facilitate the cross-chain transfer of any type of data or assets across multiple blockchain networks.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that the price of DOT has been in decline since the beginning of November 2021 as a token underperformed its cohort of layer one projects possibly due to the lack of a working bridge to Ethereum.

DOT/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

This all changed on January 11 when Polkadot's Moonbeam Parachain (GLMR) officially launched and established the first cross-chain bridge for the Polkadot network. As of January 24, Moonbeam has processed more than 1,329,000 transactions and supports more than 700 ERC-20 tokens.

As other parachains officially launch on Polkadot in the coming months, DOT has the potential to see increased demand and price for the token as users seek to engage with the Polkadot network.

Lunar ecosystem. Source: Polka Project

Curve (CRV)

When it comes to the growing importance of stablecoins in the crypto market, the Curve DAO token has become one of the most sought after tokens by investors and protocols that have been vying for governance control on the platform.

CRV/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

After hitting an all-time high of $6.80 on Jan 4, the price of CRV has fallen by 60% and is now trading at $2.76 according to TradingView data.

Even with the drop in CRV price, the ongoing 'Curve Wars' suggest demand for the token is likely to increase once the current weakness in the market subsides as decentralized finance projects attempt to amass governance powers over the Curve ecosystem.

At the time of writing, a total of 49% of the circulating supply of CRV is locked in veCRV, the voting token for the Curve protocol.

Percentage of CRV tokens locked on Curve. Source: Dune Analytics

Related: Does a digital Fed dollar leave room for stablecoins?

Frax Share (FXS)

Another protocol that seems to play a bigger role in the stablecoin sector is Frax Share (FXS), the first fractionalized algorithmic stablecoin system in the cryptocurrency sector that started to gain ground in late 2021.

FXS/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView

The protocol's FRAX stablecoin has become a favorite of DeFi fans largely thanks to its decentralized nature in a field dominated by centralized projects like Tether (USDT) and currency USD (USDC).

As a result of its adoption, FRAX's total transaction volume has increased over the past six months and is currently at an all-time high of $6.3 billion.

FRAX monthly volume. Source: Dune Analytics

FXS's bullish momentum is supported by a steadily rising total value locked, rising 30.53% over the past week and 86.9% over the past month to hit a record high of $2.28bn on 24th June. January. as the prices of almost every other asset fell in the crypto market.

Total value locked in Frax Share. Source: Defi Llama

With FRAX now being adopted into DeFi by users seeking more decentralized stablecoin options, FXS could also see an increase in demand and price for the token as the importance of trusted stablecoin protocols intensifies.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should do your own research when making a decision.