A New IP Era Emerges as Crypto's Hidden Winners Defy the Market

The cryptocurrency market saw mixed performance on Sept. 9, with major coins such as Bitcoin, Solana, Ethereum, and XRP declining while certain altcoins experienced significant gains. MYX Finance (MYX), Story (IP), and Worldcoin (WLD) each rose by 100%, 31%, and 15%, respectively, despite the broader market capitalization of all crypto assets falling by 1% to $3.94 trillion. This divergence highlights the growing trend of selective optimism within the broader crypto sector.

MYX Finance’s price surged after being listed on Gate.io, one of the top cryptocurrency exchanges. Its value climbed from $0.177 in August to a record high of $18, with a 24-hour trading volume reaching nearly $1 billion. While some traders speculate that the move was driven by market manipulation, the listing itself is a well-documented catalyst for price increases in the crypto space. However, analysts note that the asset is now highly overbought, with its RSI reaching 97, forming a potential double-top pattern, and trading significantly above its moving averages. These indicators suggest that a mean reversion could be imminent.

Story’s price also climbed sharply, reaching $12 after previously bottoming at $2.46 in June. The token broke through a critical resistance level at $8, which was its February high. The rally coincided with Heritage Distilling’s launch of an IP treasury fund, which aims to invest in the Story token. This followed a $200 million PIPE financing round that attracted participation from a16z, Selini Capital, Stix, and Hashed. PIP Labs CEO Seung Yoon emphasized the strategic alignment of the IP token with AI and data trends, stating that anchoring reserves in $IP positions investors to benefit from the intersection of AI and intellectual property.

Worldcoin (WLD) experienced a notable price increase after Eightco, a firm backed by Bitmine Immersion, launched a $250 million WLD treasury investment. This move aligns with broader strategies among treasury companies to accumulate tokens with long-term growth potential. However, the model is showing signs of strain, as many Bitcoin-focused treasury companies such as MicroStrategy (MSTR), Metaplanet, and Trump Media remain in a deep bear market.

Heritage Distilling’s IP strategy represents a broader shift in how traditional financial institutions are engaging with the crypto space. As the first Nasdaq-listed company to adopt a treasury reserve strategy centered on $IP, the company aims to provide public market investors with exposure to the programmable IP infrastructure underpinning AI growth. The advisory team includes leaders from Google, CoinMarketCap, AQRU, and PIP Labs, offering expertise in capital markets, technology, and crypto execution. The company’s new website, ipstrategy.co, will feature a Treasury Dashboard with transparent metrics for tracking token holdings and equity value.

The Story network, underpinning the $IP token, is designed to tokenize intellectual property, enabling real-time monetization, automated licensing, and traceable provenance across industries. With backing from major investors like a16z and Samsung Ventures, Story’s mainnet launched in February 2025 and has quickly become a key infrastructure for AI-era IP management. This development positions $IP as a potential blockchain primitive for intellectual property in the digital age, similar to how Bitcoin and Ethereum have become foundational in digital finance.