Why did the price of POL fall?
Polygon (POL) dropped 0.94% in the last 24 hours, underperforming the overall crypto market, which fell 1.65%. This decline is due to ongoing technical challenges and a delayed market reaction to Coinbase’s removal of MATIC, all amid broader market instability.
- Market-wide sell-off ($1.2 billion lost, driven by fear)
- Aftereffects of Coinbase’s MATIC-to-POL swap (completed but causing continued selling)
- Technical weakness (indicators show oversold conditions and price below key averages)
Deep Dive
1. Crypto Market Sell-Off Impact
Overview: On October 17, 2025, the crypto market saw $1.23 billion wiped out through forced liquidations. Altcoins like POL were pulled down by Bitcoin’s 4.7% drop. The Fear & Greed Index fell to 25, signaling strong market fear—the lowest since March 2025.
What this means: Forced selling and cautious investor sentiment lowered demand for mid-sized coins like POL. Although POL’s 0.94% drop was less severe than some coins (like ASTER, down 16%), its close link to Ethereum (ETH, down 4.7%) and lower trading volume made it more vulnerable.
What to watch: Bitcoin’s price holding steady near $106,000 and derivatives funding rates (currently negative) could encourage short sellers to close positions if sentiment improves.
2. Coinbase’s MATIC-to-POL Swap Effects
Overview: Coinbase finished converting MATIC tokens to POL on October 14. Since then, POL’s price has fallen 5.3%. Nearly all MATIC tokens (99%) were swapped to POL by September 2025, according to Polygon Labs.
What this means: While this upgrade supports Polygon’s plan to operate across multiple blockchains, some former MATIC holders may be selling POL because:
- They’re uncertain about the new token’s use
- Automatic swaps increased selling pressure (POL’s 30-day trading volume dropped 28%)
What to watch: On-chain data like POL staking rates could help stabilize prices if more institutional investors start staking POL.
3. Technical Analysis Shows Weakness
Overview: POL’s price fell below its 200-day exponential moving average ($0.22426) and a key support level ($0.18493). The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is near oversold at 30.33, but the MACD indicator shows bearish momentum remains.
What this means: Traders are treating the $0.1651–$0.195 range as resistance. Unless POL climbs back above $0.20, it might retest its July 2025 low of $0.12676.
What to watch: A daily close above the 7-day simple moving average ($0.19548) could signal a short-term price rebound.
Conclusion
POL’s recent decline reflects a combination of market-wide sell-offs, selling pressure after the token migration, and broken technical support levels. However, upcoming developments like the Rio upgrade and AMINA’s institutional staking program offering 15% APY provide strong fundamentals. Recovery depends on Bitcoin stabilizing and POL holding above $0.18.
Key point to watch: Can POL hold its 2025 low of $0.12676 if the overall crypto market cap tests $3.5 trillion again? Watch for clusters of liquidations near $0.17–$0.18 as potential signs of buying interest.
What could affect the price of POL?
Polygon’s price is caught between strong efforts to scale its network and challenges from the overall crypto market.
- Migration Wrap-Up – Nearly all MATIC tokens have been swapped to POL (97.8%), but leftover selling pressure could cause short-term price dips.
- Gigagas Roadmap – Aiming for over 5,000 transactions per second (TPS) by late 2025 to lead in payments and real-world asset (RWA) use cases.
- Institutional Staking – AMINA Bank offers a 15% yield on POL staking, potentially attracting more institutional investors.
Deep Dive
1. Migration & Leadership Changes (Mixed Effects)
Overview:
The switch from MATIC to POL tokens is almost complete, reducing old token supply concerns. However, Coinbase’s removal of MATIC trading in mid-October 2025 might cause short-term price swings for remaining holders. New CEO Sandeep Nailwal has shifted focus away from the zkEVM technology to prioritize Proof-of-Stake (PoS) scalability and the new AggLayer interoperability solution.
What this means:
Finishing the migration clears up technical issues from the past but may disappoint developers who supported zkEVM. The new “Gigagas” plan aims to boost network speed to over 5,000 TPS, which could make Polygon more useful for stablecoins and real-world assets, though there are risks in delivering these upgrades on time.
Coinbase finalizes MATIC→POL swap | Leadership changes
2. Technical Upgrades & Adoption (Positive Signs)
Overview:
The Heimdall v2 upgrade in July 2025 cut transaction finality time to about 5 seconds. The Rio update improved cross-chain payment tools. Big institutions like JPMorgan and BlackRock are using Polygon for tokenized assets, which now total $1.23 billion in value locked (TVL). AMINA Bank’s new regulated POL staking offers a 15% annual yield.
What this means:
Faster transaction times and growing institutional use strengthen Polygon’s role in payments and decentralized finance (DeFi). However, POL’s price has dropped 40% since the migration started in late 2024, showing that adoption doesn’t always lead to immediate price gains.
AMINA Bank staking launch | Heimdall v2
3. Market Sentiment & Macro Risks (Downward Pressure)
Overview:
POL is trading 68% below its June 2025 peak amid a broad crypto market crash that wiped out $1.2 billion on October 17. The Fear & Greed Index is at 28 (“Fear”), and Bitcoin’s dominance is nearly 59%, drawing investment away from altcoins like POL.
What this means:
POL’s price closely follows Bitcoin’s (correlation of 0.89 over 30 days), so ongoing weakness in the overall market could delay Polygon’s recovery. The success of AggLayer depends on reversing the current trend where investors prefer Bitcoin over other cryptocurrencies.
Conclusion
Polygon’s future depends on successfully delivering the Gigagas scalability upgrades while managing a cautious market environment. Growth in institutional real-world assets and completing the token migration offer strong potential upside. However, traders should watch if Polygon can hit its 5,000 TPS goal by fall 2025 and whether crypto market liquidity improves.
Will AggLayer’s cross-chain liquidity be enough to counter the ongoing “flight to Bitcoin” trend?
What are people saying about POL?
Polygon’s POL token is at a crossroads, balancing hopeful upgrades with some price struggles. Here’s the latest:
- 97.8% migration complete – The switch from MATIC to POL is almost done.
- CEO Sandeep Nailwal shifts strategy – New plans aim to boost POL’s value.
- Traders watch $0.28 level – Technical signals suggest this price point is crucial.
Deep Dive
1. @0xPolygon: Nearly complete MATIC-to-POL migration
"Every transaction on Polygon PoS runs on POL... upgrade expanded utility for gigagas roadmap."
– @0xPolygon (4.2M followers · 12.1K impressions · 2025-08-20 16:29 UTC)
View original post
What this means: This is good news for POL. With almost all users switching from MATIC to POL, the old token won’t hold back growth. POL now plays a bigger role in staking and transaction fees. Keep an eye on how many validators join and the final migration numbers.
2. @Tokocrypto: Mixed outlook on price potential
"Analis prediksi potensi reli hingga 2x... TVL $1,23B & 45.000+ dApps."
– @Tokocrypto (887K followers · 8.4K impressions · 2025-09-01 13:23 UTC)
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What this means: Opinions are split. Some expect POL’s price to double, targeting $0.37 to $0.50. The ecosystem is strong, with $1.23 billion in total value locked (TVL) and over 45,000 decentralized apps (dApps). However, POL’s price has dropped 29% in the last 30 days, showing some weakness.
3. Crypto Patel: Leadership changes raise concerns
"POL fell 68% in 6 months... Nailwal aims for 5,000 TPS by September."
– Crypto Patel (CoinMarketCap post · 2025-06-11 18:16 UTC)
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What this means: The recent leadership shuffle is seen as a warning sign. POL’s price dropped 68% over six months, and CEO Nailwal is pushing to increase transaction speed to 5,000 transactions per second (TPS) by September. The planned shutdown of zkEVM in 2026 could upset developers, but improvements to the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) system might help performance.
Conclusion
The outlook for POL is mixed. The migration from MATIC is nearly complete, which is positive, but price struggles and leadership changes create uncertainty. Traders are watching the $0.28 price level closely—it could signal a breakout if surpassed. Meanwhile, the ecosystem’s growth with over 45,000 dApps contrasts with the declining importance of zkEVM technology. Keep an eye on Polygon’s Q4 2025 AggLayer rollout, which could be a major boost for POL’s use across multiple blockchains.
What is the latest news about POL?
Polygon is managing its token migration and gaining traction with institutional investors, even as the crypto market faces ups and downs. Here are the key updates:
- Coinbase Completes MATIC-POL Swap (October 14, 2025) – Coinbase finished converting all remaining MATIC tokens to POL.
- AMINA Bank Launches POL Staking (October 9, 2025) – The first regulated bank offering POL staking with rewards up to 15%.
- POL Drops 21% During Market Downturn (October 17, 2025) – POL’s price fell to $0.187, down 29% over the past month amid broader crypto sell-offs.
Deep Dive
1. Coinbase Completes MATIC-POL Swap (October 14, 2025)
Overview:
On October 14, Coinbase stopped trading MATIC and completed the switch to POL, Polygon’s updated token. All MATIC balances on Coinbase were automatically swapped 1:1 for POL. Trading and transfers of POL were temporarily paused until October 18 to ensure wallets were ready. Polygon Labs reported in September that 99% of MATIC tokens had already moved to POL.
What this means:
This swap officially makes POL the main token for Polygon, but it also removes leftover MATIC tokens from the market. While this helps unify the Polygon ecosystem, POL’s price has dropped about 40% since the migration started in 2024, showing ongoing selling pressure.
(MEXC News)
2. AMINA Bank Launches POL Staking (October 9, 2025)
Overview:
Swiss-regulated AMINA Bank now offers POL staking services to institutional clients like asset managers and pension funds. They provide a base yield of 4-5%, boosted up to 15% annual percentage rate (APR) with support from the Polygon Foundation. This comes as Polygon’s real-world asset tokenization grows past $1 billion, including projects with BlackRock and JPMorgan.
What this means:
This is a positive sign for POL, as regulated staking options could bring in more institutional investors looking for steady returns through Polygon’s payment network. However, POL’s price has not responded strongly, likely because broader market conditions are weighing on crypto prices overall.
(CryptoNews)
3. POL Drops 21% During Market Downturn (October 17, 2025)
Overview:
POL’s price fell 21% in one week to $0.187, underperforming Bitcoin (-4.7%) and Ethereum (-8.5%). This decline happened amid $1.2 billion in crypto liquidations that unsettled traders. The Fear & Greed Index hit 23, signaling “extreme fear,” and POL’s 24-hour trading volume dropped 9% to $158 million.
What this means:
This short-term drop shows POL’s sensitivity to overall altcoin market sentiment. Still, Polygon’s core strengths—like handling 62% of tokenized bonds and 29% of U.S. Treasury tokens on its blockchain—remain strong. This suggests POL could bounce back if the broader market stabilizes.
(Crypto.News)
Conclusion
Polygon’s POL token is solidifying its place in institutional finance through staking and real-world asset growth. However, it remains vulnerable to the ups and downs of the crypto market. With the migration complete and regulated platforms like AMINA Bank expanding access, the big question is whether POL can break free from general altcoin weakness as its real-world use continues to grow.
What is expected in the development of POL?
Polygon’s roadmap is centered on improving scalability, enabling cross-chain connections, and increasing real-world use. Key upcoming milestones include:
- AggLayer Integration (Q4 2025) – Linking Polygon PoS with AggLayer to allow smooth interaction between different blockchains.
- 5,000 TPS Goal (October 2025) – Boosting Polygon PoS to handle 5,000 transactions per second, focusing on payments and real-world assets (RWAs).
- Gigagas Roadmap (2026) – Aiming for 100,000 transactions per second through phased technical upgrades.
- POL Utility Expansion (2025–2026) – Expanding the use of POL tokens for staking, governance, and rewards within AggLayer.
Deep Dive
1. AggLayer Integration (Q4 2025)
Overview: Polygon PoS will connect to AggLayer, a protocol designed to enable different blockchains to work together seamlessly. This comes after successfully switching from MATIC to POL as the main gas token in September 2024. AggLayer’s goal is to bring together Ethereum-compatible blockchains into one network, with POL as the key currency (Polygon Blog).
What this means: This is positive for POL’s usefulness, as it could increase cross-chain transactions and staking demand. However, the rollout of AggLayer’s fast interoperability feature has been delayed to late Q3 2025, which could slow progress.
2. 5,000 TPS Goal (October 2025)
Overview: After reaching 1,000 transactions per second (TPS) in July 2025 with the Heimdall v2 upgrade (which cut transaction finality time to about 5 seconds), Polygon aims to increase throughput to 5,000 TPS by October 2025. This upgrade targets real-world assets and payment systems, with partnerships underway with companies like Stripe and BlackRock (Coincu).
What this means: This is encouraging for adoption in regulated industries, but Polygon faces competition from other blockchains like Solana and Ethereum Layer 2 solutions such as Arbitrum.
3. Gigagas Roadmap (2026)
Overview: The “Gigagas” plan is a multi-step effort to reach 100,000 TPS by 2026. It starts with the Bhilai upgrade, which will deliver over 1,000 TPS with very low fees (around $0.001). Later phases will improve node design and add zero-knowledge proofs to boost scalability (Coinspeaker).
What this means: This is a long-term positive for POL, especially for high-volume use cases. However, the technical challenges and reliance on community funding could pose risks.
4. POL Utility Expansion (2025–2026)
Overview: POL tokens will be used for more than just staking. They will play a role in governance, securing cross-chain operations, and qualifying for rewards through AggLayer’s Breakout Program (including projects like Katana and Miden). Additionally, 1% of token emissions will fund grants to support developers (Polygon Blog).
What this means: This could help stabilize POL’s price, which has dropped 48% year-over-year. Still, concerns about token oversupply remain, with 10.5 billion tokens currently circulating.
Conclusion
Polygon’s roadmap focuses on boosting transaction speeds (from 5,000 to 100,000 TPS), enabling cross-chain interoperability through AggLayer, and expanding POL’s role as a multi-chain asset. The project’s success depends on how quickly these upgrades roll out and how well they are adopted in payments and real-world asset markets. With POL down 27% in the past month, the question is whether AggLayer integration can improve sentiment or if competitors will outpace Polygon’s progress.
What updates are there in the POL code base?
Polygon’s latest updates focus on making the network faster, more secure, and completing its token upgrade.
- Heimdall v2 Mainnet Upgrade (July 10, 2025) – Transaction finality cut down to about 5 seconds, boosting network reliability.
- MATIC-to-POL Migration (99% Complete as of September 3, 2025) – Most MATIC tokens on Polygon PoS have been automatically upgraded to POL.
- Gigagas Roadmap Progress (July 16, 2025) – Testnet reached over 1,000 transactions per second (TPS), aiming for 5,000+ TPS to support real-world use.
In-Depth Look
1. Heimdall v2 Mainnet Upgrade (July 10, 2025)
What happened: Polygon upgraded its Heimdall consensus layer to a newer technology, reducing the time it takes to confirm transactions from several minutes to around 5 seconds.
This update also fixed older technical issues, making cross-chain transfers safer and improving the overall user experience. Validators temporarily increased block confirmations during the upgrade to avoid network disruptions.
Why it matters:
Faster transaction finality means users can complete payments and decentralized finance (DeFi) activities almost instantly. Improved bridge security lowers the risk of hacks. Overall, this makes Polygon more reliable and user-friendly.
(Source)
2. MATIC-to-POL Migration (99% Complete as of September 3, 2025)
What happened: Nearly all MATIC tokens on Polygon’s Proof-of-Stake (PoS) network have been automatically converted to POL tokens. Users holding MATIC on Ethereum are encouraged to migrate their tokens through the Polygon Portal.
The migration keeps everything compatible with existing decentralized apps (dApps). The new token system now directs 2% of token emissions toward staking rewards (which help secure the network) and community grants to support ecosystem growth.
Why it matters:
This migration removes uncertainty around the token upgrade. While it doesn’t immediately change POL’s value, it opens up opportunities for holders to earn staking rewards and participate in ecosystem incentives like airdrops (for example, Katana).
(Source)
3. Gigagas Roadmap Progress (July 16, 2025)
What happened: Polygon’s test network (testnet) has processed over 1,000 transactions per second, with internal development networks exceeding 5,000 TPS. The goal is to achieve transaction finality in under one second and eventually handle up to 100,000 TPS to support institutional real-world asset (RWA) applications.
This improvement uses advanced cryptographic proofs (zk-proofs) and parallel transaction processing to boost speed and efficiency.
Why it matters:
Higher transaction speeds and faster confirmations make Polygon a strong platform for global payments and traditional finance (TradFi) applications. Developers can build scalable, fast, and efficient decentralized apps on Polygon’s infrastructure.
(Source)
Conclusion
Polygon’s recent upgrades focus on enterprise-level scalability (Gigagas), smooth token migration, and faster transaction finality (Heimdall v2). These improvements enhance POL’s role as both a staking and gas token, supporting Polygon’s vision of seamless cross-chain operations through Agglayer. The big question: will growing adoption of real-world assets on Polygon PoS spark the next wave of liquidity for POL?