Next Big Crypto To Hit $1: This New Crypto Protocol Grabs The Q1 2026 Attention

The post Next Big Crypto To Hit $1: This New Crypto Protocol Grabs The Q1 2026 Attention appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

The momentum within the decentralized finance sector is undergoing a structural shift as we enter the first quarter of 2026. While several big cryptocurrency projects are experiencing a period of consolidation, significant development is emerging within the decentralized lending vertical. Market participants are increasingly reallocating capital toward new crypto protocols that have reached critical technical milestones.

This transition is underscored by the evolution of specific projects from speculative roadmaps to functional, utility-driven platforms. For institutional and retail investors monitoring market cycles, the delivery of a live protocol represents a fundamental shift in valuation potential, suggesting that a broader market breakout is increasingly imminent.

Momentum and Structured Growth

The funding journey of Mutuum Finance (MUTM) stands out due to its steady and transparent progression. Unlike many projects that flash and fade, MUTM has maintained consistent growth since early Q1 2025. The project has successfully raised over $20.1 million, a figure that reflects deep community trust. This capital comes from a diverse base of more than 18,900 holders.

Currently, the presale has entered Phase 7, where MUTM is priced at $0.04. This price point represents a significant journey from the Phase 1 entry of $0.01, marking a 300% increase for the earliest participants. The project has a fixed total supply of 4 billion tokens, with 45.5% (1.82 billion tokens) specifically allocated for the presale. 

To date, over 835 million tokens have already been claimed by the community. With a confirmed launch price of $0.06, the current phase remains the final opportunity for participants to secure a 50% discount position.

Building the Future of DeFi 

Mutuum Finance (MUTM) is a non-custodial lending protocol. The platform is designed around a dual-market system that caters to different financial needs. The Peer-to-Contract (P2C) model allows users to supply assets like ETH or USDT into large liquidity pools to earn yield. In exchange, they receive mtTokens. These are unique yield-bearing receipts that grow in value automatically as borrowers pay interest back into the system.

The Peer-to-Peer (P2P) side offers a more flexible marketplace for direct lending agreements. To tie the entire ecosystem together, Mutuum Finance’s design uses a buy-and-distribute model. A portion of the fees generated by the protocol is used to buy MUTM tokens on the open market. These tokens are then redistributed to stakers, creating a cycle of organic demand that is fueled by actual platform usage rather than simple hype. Analysts looking at these mechanics suggest that as long as the protocol captures even a small fraction of the lending market, the $1 target becomes a realistic milestone as utility drives the price upward, this would translate into over 900% upside for MUTM.

V1 Launch and Technical Security

The biggest catalyst for the current market attention is the official activation of the V1 protocol on the Sepolia testnet. This launch confirms that the technology is functional and ready for public interaction. Users can now test the core features, including liquidity pools, mtToken accounting, and debt logic. This version also features an automated liquidator bot that monitors collateral health in real time to ensure the protocol remains solvent during price swings.

The live testnet environment allows for a complete simulation of the lending cycle using established digital assets like ETH, USDT, LINK, and WBTC. Participants can supply these tokens to the shared pools to observe how the mtToken system automatically tracks and grows their share of the interest as simulated borrowing takes place.

At the same time, borrowers can interact with over-collateralized loan functions where debt tokens provide full on-chain transparency for outstanding balances and repayment status. This phase is crucial for fine-tuning the dynamic interest rate model and stress-testing the liquidation thresholds before the final move to the mainnet. 

Security has been the cornerstone of this development. Mutuum Finance has successfully completed a full independent audit by Halborn Security, one of the most respected firms in the blockchain space. Furthermore, the project maintains a high CertiK score of 90/100 and has an active $50,000 bug bounty program. By finalizing these security checks before moving to the mainnet, the team has removed the major technical risks that often haunt new DeFi launches.

The Phase 7 Opportunity 

As Phase 7 advances, the pace of the presale is accelerating. The current price of $0.04 is essentially a 50% discount compared to the expected post-launch growth targets. This narrow window has caught the attention of “whales” or large-scale investors who are moving significant capital into the protocol. These large allocations are crucial because they provide the deep liquidity needed for a healthy launch on major exchanges.

Whales are accumulating MUTM now because they recognize the value of a project that has already delivered its V1 product during the presale. They are looking for “blue chip” potential in the making. 

With the 24-hour leaderboard rewarding top daily contributors with $500 in MUTM, the competitive spirit within the community is at an all-time high. As the remaining tokens in this phase disappear, the transition from a $0.04 presale asset to a leading DeFi utility appears to be the most significant story of Q1 2026.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website:https://www.mutuum.com

Linktree:https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance