Why did the price of IP go up?
Story (IP) increased by 2.3% over the past 24 hours, reaching $5.51. This is notable because it goes against the recent downward trends of 6.8% over the past week and 46.6% over the past month. The main reasons for this rise are a new partnership involving Bitcoin and positive technical signals in the price chart.
- Lombard Partnership (Positive News) – Story is now working with Lombard to enable royalty payments and protect intellectual property (IP) using Bitcoin technology.
- Technical Price Signals (Mixed) – The price has stabilized above an important long-term average ($5.54), but it faces resistance near $5.60.
- Market Mood (Cautious) – Overall crypto market fear is holding back bigger gains, despite Story’s positive momentum.
Deep Dive
1. Lombard Bitcoin Integration (Positive Impact)
Overview:
On October 16, Story announced a partnership with Lombard to use Bitcoin for royalty payments and IP protection. Lombard manages $3 billion in Bitcoin liquidity, and Story has strong connections with Korean IP holders like Solo Leveling and Barunson Studio. This targets South Korea’s $13.6 billion creative market (Crypto.news).
What this means:
- Bitcoin Royalty Payments: Creators can receive instant, global royalty payments in Bitcoin, cutting out middlemen and speeding up payments.
- IP Security with Bitcoin: Using Bitcoin as collateral helps automate dispute resolution, making the system more trustworthy for creators.
This partnership positions Story as a key link between Bitcoin’s liquidity and valuable IP markets, attracting investors interested in decentralized finance (DeFi) and real-world assets (RWA).
What to watch:
Look for how many Korean IP holders start using Story’s platform and how much Lombard’s wrapped Bitcoin (LBTC) is used in transactions.
2. Technical Price Signals (Mixed Impact)
Overview:
Story’s price has stayed above its 200-day simple moving average (SMA) at $5.54, which is a positive sign. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 37.29, showing some recovery in buying interest. However, the price faces resistance at $5.60, which it needs to break to confirm a trend reversal.
What this means:
- Support Level: Staying above the 200-day SMA suggests long-term investors are buying and holding.
- MACD Indicator: The MACD histogram is still negative (-0.304), indicating some ongoing selling pressure.
Traders are cautiously optimistic but waiting for a clear move above $5.60 before committing more.
3. Overall Market Mood (Challenges Ahead)
Overview:
The broader crypto market is currently dominated by fear, with the Crypto Fear & Greed Index at 25. Bitcoin holds 58.7% of the market dominance, and liquidity for alternative coins like Story is decreasing.
What this means:
- Risk Aversion: Investors prefer Bitcoin over other coins due to geopolitical tensions and uncertainty about Federal Reserve interest rate decisions (The Defiant).
- Lower Trading Volume: Story’s 24-hour trading volume dropped 64.6% to $55.9 million, showing less speculative trading activity.
Without a broader market recovery, Story’s recent gains may be short-lived.
Conclusion
Story’s recent price increase is driven by the fundamental boost from its Lombard partnership and some technical stability. However, overall market fear and Bitcoin’s dominance limit how much it can rise right now. The key question is whether Story can hold above $5.60 and attract enough trading volume to keep the momentum going, or if investors will take profits due to market uncertainty. Keep an eye on Lombard’s LBTC inflows and how many Korean IP holders join the platform for signs of sustained growth.
What could affect the price of IP?
Story (IP) faces a mix of promising growth opportunities and risks related to token unlocks.
- Token Unlocks (Bearish) – 41.6% of tokens held by insiders will gradually become available over 48 months.
- AI + Real-World Asset (RWA) Adoption (Bullish) – Partnerships like Seoul Exchange aim to tap into Korea’s $13.6 billion intellectual property (IP) market.
- Revenue vs. Valuation (Mixed) – Protocol fees are about $15 per day, raising questions about sustainability given the $8.2 billion fully diluted valuation (FDV).
Deep Dive
1. Token Unlock Overhang (Bearish Impact)
Overview:
About 41.6% of Story’s tokens, held by early investors and core team members, will unlock gradually over four years starting February 2025, when the mainnet launches. Early investors include venture firms like a16z and Polychain, who bought tokens at discounted prices.
What this means:
As these tokens become available, some insiders may sell to take profits, which could put downward pressure on the price—especially if user adoption is slow. Similar projects, like Aptos, experienced 20–30% price drops during major unlock periods. Keeping an eye on the unlock schedule and insider wallet activity is important for anticipating market moves.
2. AI & Real-World Asset Adoption (Bullish Impact)
Overview:
Story recently partnered with Lombard to enable Bitcoin-backed royalty payments and IP collateralization, focusing on Korea’s $13.6 billion creative economy. The Seoul Exchange exclusively uses Story’s platform to tokenize K-pop and other IP assets (CryptoPotato).
What this means:
These real-world applications could increase demand for $IP tokens, which are used to pay transaction fees (“gas”) and as staking collateral. Success depends on onboarding major IPs like Solo Leveling and demonstrating the platform’s ability to scale. Growth in total value locked (TVL) or transaction volume would be a strong sign of progress.
3. Revenue vs. Valuation Mismatch (Mixed Impact)
Overview:
Story currently earns about $15 per day in protocol fees (source), which implies a price-to-earnings ratio of roughly 1.5 million. Meanwhile, competitors such as City Protocol are entering the on-chain IP space.
What this means:
The token price mainly reflects excitement around AI and real-world asset integration rather than actual revenue. For the price to hold or rise, Story needs to grow its fee income or introduce token burn mechanisms to better align value with utility. The planned $82 million token buyback (CoinJournal) might reduce selling pressure temporarily but doesn’t address the underlying revenue gap.
Conclusion
Story’s future price depends on balancing the selling pressure from token unlocks with progress in AI and IP tokenization adoption. Key events to watch include the Q3 2025 technical upgrades (IPKit SDK) and insider token lockup activity. The big question is whether Story can turn its $136 million funding and partnerships into real on-chain usage before the 2026 unlocks begin.
What are people saying about IP?
Story (IP) is balancing between big ambitions and practical challenges. Here’s what’s trending:
- Institutional support through buybacks and Grayscale Trust is boosting confidence.
- Low fees don’t equal widespread use – critics point out it only makes about $17 per day in fees.
- Co-founder departure raises concerns despite partnerships in South Korea.
Deep Dive
1. @fineboytunde_: Positive view on buyback strategy
“$82 million buyback shows strong belief… building infrastructure for a $70 trillion IP economy”
– @fineboytunde (58K followers · 1.2M impressions · 2025-09-03 00:03 UTC)
[View original post](https://x.com/fineboytunde/status/1963030149080682755)
What this means: This is a positive sign for Story (IP). The buyback helps counter doubts about low fees and positions Story as a long-term platform for intellectual property, rather than just a short-term money maker.
2. @baby_aixbt: Concern over low activity on the network
“Very little real use of IP… only $17 to $45 per day in protocol fees”
– @baby_aixbt (23K followers · 287K impressions · 2025-07-21 13:01 UTC)
View original post
What this means: This is a warning sign. The current level of use doesn’t support Story’s $1.78 billion market value, suggesting the price may be driven more by speculation than actual demand.
3. @Paiin_ip: Mixed outlook due to upcoming token unlocks
“$30 billion fully diluted value possible if Story becomes the go-to IP chain… but 2026 token unlocks could hurt the price”
– @Paiin_ip (41K followers · 892K impressions · 2025-09-27 15:18 UTC)
View original post
What this means: The future is uncertain. There’s optimism about Story’s potential in AI, real-world assets, and IP, but concerns remain about a large portion of tokens held by insiders becoming available through 2029, which could lower the price.
Conclusion
The overall view on Story (IP) is mixed. Some believe in its vision as a platform for intellectual property, while others question whether it’s seeing enough real-world use. Institutional moves like the Grayscale Trust involvement and Heritage Distilling’s $82 million buyback support its potential. However, the price drop from $14.99 in September to $5.53 as of October 18 shows worries about token unlocks and low fee income. Keep an eye on the IPKit SDK release planned for Q4 2025 — if it gains traction, it could help justify the current valuation before the large token unlocks in 2026.
What is the latest news about IP?
Story is making strategic moves and facing market ups and downs. Here’s the latest:
- Lombard Teams Up with Story for Bitcoin IP Rails (October 16, 2025) – They’re integrating Bitcoin-backed royalties and using Bitcoin as collateral for IP security.
- Story Drops 9% Amid Crypto Market Downturn (October 16, 2025) – A wider crypto sell-off pushed Story’s price down to $5.76, with $65 million in altcoin liquidations.
- Seoul Exchange Uses Story for Real-World Asset Settlements (September 22, 2025) – They’re tokenizing K-pop, film rights, and patents on Story’s blockchain.
Deep Dive
1. Lombard Teams Up with Story for Bitcoin IP Rails (October 16, 2025)
What happened: Lombard, a leader in Bitcoin decentralized finance (DeFi), partnered with Story to build Bitcoin technology into Story’s intellectual property (IP) platform. This partnership introduces two key features: Bitcoin Revenue Distribution, which allows instant royalty payments, and Crypto-Economic IP Security, where Bitcoin is used as collateral to help resolve disputes automatically. They’re focusing on South Korea’s $13.6 billion creative market and leveraging Lombard’s $3 billion in Bitcoin liquidity and connections to major IP holders like Solo Leveling.
Why it matters: This is a positive development for Story because it connects Bitcoin’s strong liquidity with programmable IP rights, reducing the need for middlemen. However, there are risks since integrating different blockchain systems can be complex. (CryptoPotato)
2. Story Drops 9% Amid Crypto Market Downturn (October 16, 2025)
What happened: Story’s price fell 9% to $5.76 due to geopolitical tensions and uncertainty about Federal Reserve interest rates, which caused a broader sell-off in cryptocurrencies. Altcoins saw $65 million in liquidations, and Story’s 30-day loss was 46.65%, much worse than Bitcoin’s 2% drop and Ethereum’s 4.4% drop. Weak inflows into ETFs and $104 million in Bitcoin outflows added to the pressure.
Why it matters: This drop is mainly due to overall market conditions, not problems specific to Story. For Story to recover, the broader crypto market needs to stabilize, and Story needs to show progress in getting more users and adoption. (The Defiant)
3. Seoul Exchange Uses Story for Real-World Asset Settlements (September 22, 2025)
What happened: Seoul Exchange, a licensed platform for trading unlisted securities, is now exclusively using Story to tokenize real-world assets (RWAs) like K-pop royalties from groups such as BLACKPINK and BTS, as well as film rights and patents. This taps into South Korea’s $450 billion crypto market and allows fractional ownership and easier global trading of cultural IP.
Why it matters: This is a positive sign that institutions are recognizing Story’s technology. However, the financial impact depends on how quickly this adoption grows. Tokenizing popular IP could increase network activity, but current fee revenue is still low—about $1.90 per day as of August. (Crypto Briefing)
Conclusion
Story’s recent developments—integrating Bitcoin, gaining institutional support for real-world asset tokenization, and weathering market challenges—show its focus on building solid infrastructure rather than chasing short-term hype. While partnerships open new opportunities, challenges remain from broader economic factors and low on-chain revenue. The key question is whether Bitcoin-backed royalties and Korean IP tokenization can make up for weak fee income in the coming months.
What is expected in the development of IP?
Story’s roadmap is centered on building AI-focused intellectual property (IP) infrastructure and increasing decentralization. Key upcoming milestones include:
- IP Vaults (Q4 2025) – A secure way to store sensitive IP data, launching first on a developer network.
- Validator Expansion (Q4 2025) – Growing the number of active validators to 80 to make the network more decentralized.
- Enhanced Governance (Q4 2025) – Introducing more transparent, community-driven decision-making processes.
- PoC Protocol V2 (Q1 2026) – An improved system to manage AI-related rights and royalties within datasets.
Deep Dive
1. IP Vaults (Q4 2025)
Overview: IP Vaults will allow secure, on-chain storage of confidential IP data like AI training materials and legal documents. These vaults will have programmable access controls, meaning users can set specific rules about who can view or use the data. The feature will first launch on a developer test network (devnet) in late 2025, with broader testing and mainnet release planned for 2026 (Story Foundation).
What this means: This is a positive development for institutions adopting IP on blockchain, such as Poseidon AI, which plans to use Vaults for managing datasets. However, there could be delays related to integrating secure key management across different blockchains.
2. Validator Expansion (Q4 2025)
Overview: Story aims to increase the number of active validators from 64 to 80. Validators are entities that help secure the network by verifying transactions. This expansion builds on recent upgrades and is designed to reduce risks of centralization and improve network stability.
What this means: This move is generally positive for the network’s long-term security. However, there might be short-term selling pressure if new validators decide to cash out staking rewards.
3. Enhanced Governance (Q4 2025)
Overview: Story will update its governance system to include quadratic voting and delegate frameworks. Quadratic voting allows participants to express the intensity of their preferences, while delegate frameworks enable trusted representatives to vote on behalf of others. These changes aim to make protocol upgrades more community-driven and fair.
What this means: This is a positive step toward better community involvement. Success depends on active participation and could attract developers focused on decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) to Story’s ecosystem.
4. PoC Protocol V2 (Q1 2026)
Overview: The upgraded Proof-of-Creativity protocol will embed AI usage rights and royalty information directly into datasets. This will simplify licensing and help creators get paid fairly when their AI-trained models are used.
What this means: This is promising for partnerships in AI fields like robotics and biomedical research. However, Story will face competition from other projects such as Ocean Protocol.
Conclusion
Story’s roadmap emphasizes building infrastructure that supports AI-driven IP monetization and decentralization. While there are risks related to technical implementation, milestones like IP Vaults and validator expansion could strengthen Story’s position in this niche. The key question remains: How will on-chain IP adoption metrics respond after these upgrades?
What updates are there in the IP code base?
Story Protocol has launched important technical upgrades to improve security, scalability, and compatibility with Ethereum.
- Client Upgrades & Validator Expansion (August 2025) – Enhanced APIs, stronger security, and more validators.
- Ethereum Pectra Compatibility (August 2025) – Full support for Ethereum’s latest upgrade for smoother integration.
Deep Dive
1. Client Upgrades & Validator Expansion (August 2025)
Overview:
Three major updates—named Virgil, Ovid, and Polybius—have improved Story’s client software by optimizing its APIs, consensus process, and security features. The number of validators (the network participants who confirm transactions) increased from 64 to 80, making the network more robust.
Details:
These improvements help node operators run the network more efficiently by reducing delays and speeding up transaction confirmation. The upgraded consensus system lowers the chance of network splits (forks), and the increased number of validators supports handling more transactions at once.
What this means:
This is a positive development for Story (IP) because stronger security and decentralization attract more institutional validators. This leads to a more reliable network, which is important for managing valuable intellectual property transactions.
(Source)
2. Ethereum Pectra Compatibility (August 2025)
Overview:
The “Cosmas” release of Story-Geth added support for Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, which includes new features like account abstraction (EIP-7702), precompiled contracts (EIP-2537), and separating the execution layer (EIP-7685).
Details:
This update keeps Story fully compatible with Ethereum’s Virtual Machine (EVM), allowing developers to use Ethereum-native tools such as wallets and oracles on Story’s platform. It also improves how data is handled, lowering transaction costs for complex IP-related operations.
What this means:
In the short term, this update doesn’t directly impact Story’s price but is positive for the long term. It aligns Story with Ethereum’s growing ecosystem and makes it easier for developers to build on the platform.
(Source)
Conclusion
Story’s recent updates focus on making the network more scalable, secure, and compatible with Ethereum—important steps for its vision of AI-driven intellectual property management. While the technical improvements are clear, the real test will be whether these upgrades lead to increased daily transactions and validator participation, driving lasting value.
What to watch: Will the influx of Ethereum developers help expand Story’s ecosystem beyond specialized IP use cases?