January 23, 2026 hits as a key date for Plasma XPL—the Binance Square CreatorPad leaderboard officially launches today for the ongoing campaign (runs through Feb 12), with 3.5 million XPL token vouchers up for grabs. Rewards are split between global and Chinese-language creators (top 500 each), based on real engagement like views, likes, comments, and shares rather than spam volume. It’s a big push to get more people talking about the chain, and with the activity already live since Jan 16, participation is ramping up right now.
At the same time, the chain is heading into a small unlock on Jan 25 (~89 million XPL, about 4.33% of circulating supply, valued roughly $11–13 million at current prices). It’s not a massive flood, but in a cautious market it adds some selling pressure—price has been hovering around zero point one two to zero point one three lately, market cap in the $225–$300 million range. The bigger unlocks come later (monthly after, major cliff in July), so this week feels like a mini stress test.
But the on-chain side isn’t showing cracks. Stablecoin deposits remain strong (mentions in the $7 billion range), TVL steady around five point three billion despite earlier incentive cuts. SyrupUSDT pool still over $1.1 billion, daily transactions from centralized sources have grown significantly since launch, and wallets are slowly increasing. The core tech holds: PlasmaBFT for one-second finality, protocol-sponsored gas for basic USDT transfers (no XPL needed), pay gas in USDT or Bitcoin for extras, full EVM compatibility via Reth, and that trust-minimized Bitcoin bridge for security.
The campaign timing feels smart—boost visibility and engagement exactly when unlock noise could otherwise dominate chatter. If creators start posting quality content and driving real interest (especially in payments/remittances use cases), it could help offset short-term dip pressure and highlight the actual utility. For 2026, this week is a snapshot: small unlock risk vs. community momentum building. If stablecoins keep their trajectory, Plasma’s narrow focus on settlement could turn heads again. Quietly interesting time to watch.