The big one is coming! OpenZK's move is quite powerful, with OZK staking set to launch on July 14th, and it is rumored that the initial annualized yield will exceed 40%. Looking at today's staking landscape, it is indeed quite impressive. Even more shocking is that they are developing a dual-token Gas mechanism, which will allow users to use not only ETH as network Gas fees but also OZK. This design is a first in the L2 track.
In the past, L2 could only use ETH to pay for Gas, leading to a lack of real use cases for native tokens. OpenZK allows OZK to enter the network fuel system directly, essentially equipping the token with a value engine. Once this model is proven, OZK will upgrade from a regular governance token to a necessity asset with actual demand, and this transformation will inevitably lead to a reevaluation of its value.
OpenZK has chosen to launch these features before the expected approval of the Ethereum staking ETF in October, timing it quite accurately. The expectations for the Ethereum staking ETF approval are growing stronger, and as an important player in the ETH staking landscape, OpenZK is about to ride this favorable wave. With staking and the dual Gas mechanism, OpenZK meets the needs of short-term yield hunters while laying the groundwork for long-term ecological development.
Particularly, introducing OZK for Gas payment effectively locks in token demand at the protocol level; the empowerment effect brought by this underlying design is far more solid than simple buyback and burn. From the perspective of project development pace, OpenZK is clearly playing a bigger game. The July staking is just the first step, and as the dual Gas mechanism takes shape, the usage scenarios and demand curve for OZK may welcome a qualitative change.
