What happened

Surprisingly, the past few weeks have been relatively calm in the world of cryptocurrencies. Today is no exception, with the overall market flat at the time of this writing. That said, one crypto project is driving signifiant buzz, with its 7.5% move higher over the past 24 hours as of noon ET Thursday.

This project is Chain (XCN 4.80%), among the lesser-known top-50 crypto projects in the world. It's focused on cloud blockchain infrastructure, allowing institutions to use the blockchain to move assets around the world. As such, Chain has seen significant interest amid a rush toward central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) globally.

So what

One of the reasons Chain is relatively unknown is its recent launch in the first quarter of this year. That said, this is one of the few projects that is actually still higher than when it launched. Given the impressive decline we've seen across the sector this year, that's something crypto investors will want to pay attention to.

Chain's status as an integral piece of the plumbing (or financial rails) needed to make institutional adoption of crypto a reality provides a key growth thesis investors can jump on. Various announcements in recent months from central banks all over the globe exploring CBDCs could further improve Chain's value over time. And demand for institutional-grade blockchain solutions is expected to grow over time. Chain could play an essential role in making this transition possible.

Now what

Over the long term, skating to where the puck is headed is what most crypto investors (and all investors, for that matter) are interested in. Chain's cloud-based infrastructure solutions certainly pose a compelling thesis for long-term growth investors looking for niche projects to bet on. 

This project isn't exempt from the multitude of macro and sector-specific risks facing crypto projects overall. That said, as far as a high-upside growth project is concerned, this is one that I've recently put on my radar.