According to figures provided by Messari, the decentralized digital platform – Tron – made a revenue of $47.9 million in the last quarter of 2022, a 25% increase compared to Q3. 

The entity also recorded a surge of average active daily addresses and average daily transactions.

Better Results Despite the FTX Collapse

In its most recent research, Messari outlined that 2022 has been a “rollercoaster” year for the cryptocurrency sector. Unfavorable macroeconomic conditions took their toll during the first months, while the crash of Terra in the spring intensified the problems. The failure of the once-prominent FTX added to the drama, causing a market crash and undermining the reputation of the industry.

Despite all these negative events, Q4 was quite successful for Tron. The Justin Sun-spearheaded platform generated almost $48 million in revenue during that period, 25% more than in Q3. The second quarter of 2022 remains the most productive, with a profit of $48.5 million. 

Tron also saw more new users and network activity growth. Average active daily addresses spiked from 2.6 million in Q3 to 3.1 million in Q4, while average daily transactions reached 6.5 million (compared to 5.3 million during the previous time period). Average transactions per second climbed to 76 (62 in Q3), and transaction fees remained at $0.08.

The platform enforced several upgrades to improve functionality and user experience and engaged with the DeFi, GameFi, and NFT sectors to diversify its investment strategy. 

“Community-building efforts were also prevalent, with the Grand Hackathon Season 3 and TRON joining the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance,” Messari added.

User activity during Q4 may have been sparked by the “recovery deal” inked between Tron and FTX. The partners planned to introduce a special facility to allow holders of TRX, BTT, JST, SUN, and HT to swap assets from the bankrupt exchange 1:1 to external wallets. Once realizing FTX’s insolvency, Tron’s users might have transferred tokens, “seeking refuge in USDT.” 

It is also worth noting that Tron burned over 800 million worth of TRX out of its 92 billion in circulating supply during Q4, nearly 40% more than the previous quarter.

Stablecoin Landscape

USDT regained its dominance on Tron during Q4, which “correlates with all of the USDT contract activity on-chain.” Its supremacy plunged to 87% in Q3, prompted by increased transactions with USDC. As of the end of 2022, though, USDT’s dominance climbed back to 94%. 

USDD – the stablecoin issued by Tron – was undercollateralized as bitcoin’s USD value dropped due to FTX’s demise and the consecutive market volatility. The token, whose value is pegged 1:1 to the US dollar, dropped to $0.97 one day before the exchange filed for bankruptcy but recovered its parity rather quickly.

Supply of USDD in Q4 remained the same as in Q3, while the number of wallets owning portions of the stablecoin climbed by 8%.

USDD holders surged to around 130,000 by the end of December 2022. On the other hand, the average size of holdings fell from $315,000 in May to less than $10,000 in Q4. 

Justin Sun’s ‘Ambitious Goal’

Tron’s Founder recently said his primary goal is to see TRX serving as legal tender in five different nations by the end of 2023. Upon stating this, he posted the flags of Sint Maarten and Dominica, indicating they could start the trend. 

The government of Dominica teamed up with Huobi (a crypto exchange where Sun is a member of the Global Advisory Board) to launch a national token on the Tron blockchain.

Rolando Brison – a top politician in Sint Maarten – said the local authorities have already made the first steps towards declaring TRX an official payment method. 

Sun went further, raising hopes that his homeland – China – could find its place on the list. Recall that the Chinese lawmakers prohibited all cryptocurrency activities in 2021.