Justin Sun Touts JST as ’Next 100x Token’ as TRON DeFi Ecosystem Expands

TRON founder Justin Sun is doubling down on JST—calling it the next moonshot play as the network’s DeFi activity heats up. The bold claim comes amid surging TVL and user adoption, though skeptics note Sun’s history of hype cycles.

Why the confidence? TRON’s DeFi ecosystem now boasts over $12B in locked value, with JST positioned as its governance token. Sun’s pitch: ’JST is undervalued relative to utility’—a familiar refrain from crypto’s king of pumpamentals.

Meanwhile, traders are split. Some see legitimate protocol growth, while others eye the 100x prediction as classic Sun theater. As one hedge fund manager quipped: ’In crypto, every token’s a 100x play until the leverage gets liquidated.’

The rise of JustLend and USDD

Central to Sun’s argument is the performance of JustLend, a permissionless lending platform built on the TRON blockchain and incubated by JST. Since its launch, JustLend has grown into one of the largest lending protocols in the TRON ecosystem, allowing users to lend and borrow native assets through decentralized liquidity pools.

The platform operates similarly to Compound or AAVE on Ethereum, but with the added advantage of TRON’s high throughput and low transaction fees. According to Sun, JustLend’s growth has translated into tens of millions of dollars in net profit, with interest rates for lenders sometimes reaching up to 30%.

Another ecosystem pillar is USDD, a decentralized stablecoin incubated by the Just platform and TRON DAO Reserve. According to Sun, USDD has seen “explosive growth,” quickly becoming a widely used stablecoin within the TRON network and beyond. Integration with lending and DeFi platforms has accelerated its adoption, further boosting the utility and demand for JST.

JST a ‘combination of Tron’s AAVE and MKR’

Sun likens JST’s evolving role to a combination of AAVE and MakerDAO’s MKR. JST is used for governance decisions within the Just ecosystem and plays a key role in the issuance and management of stablecoins and lending pools. According to Sun, annual net profits for the ecosystem have already reached tens of millions of dollars, with a “conservative revenue forecast” of over $100 million in revenue for the coming year.

Perhaps most notably, Sun has committed to using all profits to buy back and burn JST tokens “at the appropriate time.” This deflationary mechanism is designed to reduce the circulating supply and potentially increase the value of remaining tokens, a strategy that has been successful for other DeFi projects.

The success of JustLend and USDD shows TRON’s ambition to rival Ethereum’s DeFi dominance, offering attractive yields and a user-friendly experience. If they continue their upward trajectory and the promised buyback-and-burn program is implemented, JST could certainly appreciate. However, as with all crypto investments, DYOR and only invest what you can afford to lose.