Polygon, formerly known as Matic, was originally meant to be a Layer-2 scaling solution for Ethereum to improve transaction throughput and speed. However, it has since become more popular as a stand-alone blockchain, with its own native projects and decentralized applications. Major DeFi protocols such as Aave and Curve have also found second homes on Polygon. Unlike Ethereum, Polygon operates on Proof-of-Stake (PoS) in which network participants can stake the network’s native MATIC tokens to validate transactions and participate in voting and other governance decisions. Polygon also hosts its own bridge that allows users to transfer assets from Ethereum to Polygon and vice versa.
