Flow (FLOW) is a Layer 1 blockchain built by Dapper Labs, the team behind CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot, designed specifically for consumer apps, NFTs and mainstream brands. Its whole pitch is being easy and cheap for millions of everyday users — not just crypto natives — with a design meant to handle big consumer moments without congestion. It powered some of the biggest brand NFT projects (NBA Top Shot, NFL, Disney, Ticketmaster). FLOW is the token for fees, staking and securing the network. Its identity is 'the consumer/brand blockchain', tied closely to the NFT and mainstream-adoption narrative — which means it soared in the NFT boom and fell hard when that cooled.
Where it stands today: Flow has real reach — 40+ million accounts, nearly a billion lifetime transactions, and major brands (Disney, NBA, NFL, Ticketmaster) distributing over 100 million NFTs to millions of fans. But activity has been declining: daily transactions and active users fell sharply, its DeFi value locked collapsed over 80%, and FLOW trades far below past highs. It's trying to broaden beyond NFTs — it added EVM compatibility (so Ethereum developers can build on it) and tools for on-chain automation and AI-agent payments to push into 'consumer DeFi'. It also had a setback when some Korean exchanges moved to delist FLOW (which the foundation contested in court). So today it's a consumer-focused chain with genuine brand distribution but fading on-chain activity, trying to reinvent itself beyond the NFT wave that defined it.