MATIC Leads Market with 3% Rise Amid Broader Downtrend

Polygon’s POL Token Climbs 9% Before Paring Gains; Outperforms Broader Market

Polygon’s native token, POL, posted a sharp early-session rally on Tuesday, gaining as much as 9% before encountering resistance that trimmed intraday gains.

POL rose from $0.206 to a session high of $0.225 during early U.S. trading hours, supported by a surge in volume that reached 804,401 units — nearly double the 24-hour average of 410,606, according to CoinDesk Analytics. However, selling pressure emerged in the afternoon, capping the advance and pushing the token back toward $0.221.

Despite the pullback, POL remains up roughly 3% on the day, outperforming the broader crypto market. The CoinDesk 20 Index fell 2.4% during the same period.

Still, POL trades more than 90% below its record high of $2.92 set in December 2021, underscoring its lag behind leading assets like bitcoin and XRP, both of which have recently approached or surpassed new highs.

Polygon continues to focus on ecosystem expansion. CEO and co-founder Sandeep Nailwal said in a recent Bloomberg interview that the project is prioritizing the growth of AggLayer, a tool to streamline cross-chain access, alongside efforts in payments and real-world asset tokenization.

Nailwal, appointed CEO in June, is leading efforts to sharpen Polygon’s strategic direction amid intensifying competition in the Layer 2 and interoperability space.