Polygon is an Ethereum-compatible blockchain network known for low fees and fast payments. Its main chain, Polygon PoS, runs Ethereum smart contracts, and POL is the token used for gas fees and staking. Polygon also builds Agglayer, which connects Polygon and other blockchains.
What is the difference between MATIC and POL?
POL replaced MATIC as Polygon's native token on 4 September 2024. MATIC holders could upgrade one-for-one, and POL is now the gas and staking token on Polygon PoS. Most exchanges converted MATIC balances automatically.
Polygon PoS is a proof-of-stake chain with its own validators that regularly records checkpoints on Ethereum, so it is usually called a sidechain rather than a true layer 2. Polygon zkEVM was its layer 2 rollup, but it was shut down in 2026 as Polygon refocused on Polygon PoS and Agglayer.
What happened to Polygon zkEVM?
Polygon announced in 2025 that it would retire Polygon zkEVM, which had little use, and the network stopped producing blocks in July 2026. Users who still held assets there can recover them on Ethereum through Polygon's claims process.
What is POL used for?
POL pays transaction fees on Polygon PoS and is staked with validators to secure the network, either directly or by delegating to a validator. Stakers earn a share of rewards. Part of the new POL issued each year also funds a community treasury.
How fast is Polygon?
After the Heimdall v2 and Rio upgrades in 2025, Polygon PoS can handle about 5,000 transactions per second, with transactions final within seconds. Fees are usually a fraction of a cent.
Who founded Polygon?
Polygon was founded in 2017 as Matic Network by Jaynti Kanani, Sandeep Nailwal, Anurag Arjun and Mihailo Bjelic, and rebranded as Polygon in 2021. Sandeep Nailwal became Polygon's CEO in 2025.
How do I store POL?
You can hold POL in any self-custody wallet that supports the Polygon network, including the Bitcoin.com Wallet app, which supports POL and Polygon tokens such as USDC and USDT, needs no custom network setup and can swap POL for other supported assets. Make sure you send POL on Polygon, not as a token on Ethereum, unless the recipient expects that.
Where can I buy Polygon?
You can buy POL with a card or bank transfer on Bitcoin.com, and it is listed on most large crypto exchanges. When you withdraw, check whether the platform sends POL on the Polygon network or on Ethereum.
Is Polygon a good investment?
Whether POL suits you depends on your goals and risk tolerance, and this page is not financial advice. Polygon is widely used for stablecoin payments, but POL's price has fallen sharply from its 2024 high, new POL is issued every year, and Polygon competes with many other low-fee networks. Only invest what you can afford to lose, and speak to a licensed financial adviser before making investment decisions.
What is Polygon (POL)?
Polygon is an Ethereum-compatible blockchain network known for low fees and fast payments. Its main chain, Polygon PoS, runs the same smart contracts as Ethereum, handles thousands of transactions per second for a fraction of a cent each, and is one of the most used networks for stablecoin payments. POL is the network's token: it pays gas fees on Polygon PoS and is staked to secure it.
Polygon started in 2017 as Matic Network, a project to make Ethereum cheaper and faster to use. Over the years it has tried several scaling technologies, and since 2025 it has focused on two things: making Polygon PoS a fast payments chain, and Agglayer, which connects Polygon and other blockchains so assets can move between them.
About 5,000 transactions per second after the 2025 upgrades
Validators
About 100
Interoperability
Agglayer
History of Polygon
Polygon was founded in India in 2017 as Matic Network by Jaynti Kanani, Sandeep Nailwal, Anurag Arjun and Mihailo Bjelic. Its proof-of-stake chain went live in 2020 and quickly became one of the busiest Ethereum-compatible networks, because it offered the same apps at a fraction of Ethereum's fees.
The project rebranded as Polygon in 2021 and spent the next years building several scaling products, including Polygon zkEVM, a zero-knowledge rollup. In 2023 it announced Polygon 2.0, a plan to replace the MATIC token with POL and connect many chains through a shared layer.
In 2025 Polygon narrowed its focus. Sandeep Nailwal became CEO, the team announced it would retire Polygon zkEVM, and the roadmap turned to speeding up Polygon PoS for payments and to Agglayer. In January 2026 Polygon Labs agreed to buy Coinme, a US crypto payments company with money transmitter licences, and the developer platform Sequence, for more than $250 million.
How Polygon works
Polygon PoS
Polygon PoS is a proof-of-stake blockchain that runs alongside Ethereum. About 100 validators stake POL to produce and confirm blocks, and the chain regularly records checkpoints of its state on Ethereum. Because it has its own validators instead of relying fully on Ethereum for security, it is usually described as a sidechain rather than a true layer 2.
The 2025 speed upgrades
A series of upgrades in 2025 made Polygon PoS much faster. Heimdall v2 cut the time to finality to a few seconds, the Bhilai upgrade raised capacity, and the Rio upgrade in October 2025 brought throughput to about 5,000 transactions per second with near-instant finality. Polygon has set a longer-term goal of 100,000 transactions per second.
Agglayer
Agglayer is Polygon's cross-chain layer. Chains connected to it share a common bridge to Ethereum and use cryptographic proofs to check that no chain can withdraw more than was deposited. The goal is for users and apps to move assets between connected chains as if they were one network.
What happened to Polygon zkEVM?
Polygon zkEVM was Polygon's zero-knowledge rollup on Ethereum. It never gained much use, and in 2025 Polygon announced it would shut it down. The network stopped producing blocks in July 2026, and users who still held assets there can recover them on Ethereum through Polygon's claims process.
The POL token
POL replaced MATIC as Polygon's native token on 4 September 2024. MATIC holders could upgrade one-for-one, and most exchanges converted balances automatically.
Gas fees: every transaction on Polygon PoS is paid for in POL.
Staking: validators stake POL to secure the network, and holders can delegate POL to a validator to share in its rewards.
Ecosystem funding: new POL is issued each year, split between staking rewards and a community treasury that funds grants and development.
POL started with a supply of 10 billion, matching the old MATIC supply, and grows slowly through the annual issuance. The live circulating supply is shown in the market data on this page.
What is Polygon used for?
Stablecoin payments: USDC, USDT and other stablecoins move on Polygon PoS for a fraction of a cent, which has made it a common choice for payment companies, remittances and fintech apps.
DeFi: lending markets, exchanges and other DeFi apps that started on Ethereum also run on Polygon with lower fees.
Tokenized assets: asset managers and financial firms have issued tokenized funds and other real-world assets on Polygon.
Consumer apps and games: low fees make Polygon practical for apps that need many small transactions.
Key milestones
Date
Milestone
2017
Matic Network founded
2020
Proof-of-stake chain goes live
Feb 2021
Rebrand to Polygon
2023
Polygon 2.0 and the POL token announced
Feb 2024
Agglayer launches
Sep 2024
POL replaces MATIC
2025
Heimdall v2, Bhilai and Rio upgrades; zkEVM retirement announced
Jan 2026
Polygon Labs agrees to buy Coinme and Sequence
Jul 2026
Polygon zkEVM shut down
Risks and limitations
Security model: Polygon PoS relies on its own set of about 100 validators rather than inheriting Ethereum's full security, and some core contracts and upgrades are controlled by a small group of signers.
Changing strategy: Polygon has moved through several technologies, from Plasma to zkEVM to Agglayer, and has shut down products that did not take off. Builders and users have to follow these shifts.
Token issuance: new POL is created every year, which adds to supply unless demand for the token grows.
Competition: Polygon competes with Ethereum layer 2 networks and other low-fee chains for payments, DeFi and developers.
Price volatility: POL's price has fallen sharply from its 2024 high, and like any crypto asset it can move sharply. This page is not financial advice.
How to buy, sell and store POL
You can buy POL on Bitcoin.com with a card or bank transfer, sell POL for local currency, and check what your tokens are worth with the POL to USD converter.
To hold POL yourself, use a self-custody wallet that supports the Polygon network. The Bitcoin.com Wallet app supports POL and Polygon tokens such as USDC and USDT without any custom network setup, shows the network fee before you confirm, and can swap POL for other supported assets. POL also exists as a token on Ethereum, so always check which network you and the recipient are using before you send.
Polygon PoS vs. Ethereum
Feature
Polygon PoS
Ethereum
Role
Fast, low-fee chain for payments and apps
Main settlement layer
Native token
POL
ETH
Validators
Polygon has gone from a single scaling sidechain to a payments-focused network with its own interoperability layer. Its open questions are whether its narrower focus on payments and Agglayer pays off, and whether demand for POL keeps pace with new issuance.
