What Is Band (BAND)?

Band is the data layer that trains AI engines and powers blockchain applications. By empowering DeFi, GameFi, and AI agents, it enables developers, institutions, and users to access real-time data with zero counterparty risk. With Band’s open, battle-tested data infrastructure built for blockchains and LLMs, it ensures that real-time information is always accessible—fueling everything from financial protocols to autonomous AI systems.

Band was launched in 2019 on the Ethereum blockchain as a decentralized oracle network, designed to bring real-world data into smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps). Initially, it addressed a core Web3 challenge: enabling blockchains to access external information securely and reliably.

In June 2020, the team released Bandv2, migrating the network from Ethereum to the Cosmos ecosystem. This decision was driven by Ethereum’s scalability limitations at the time and the unique advantages of Cosmos’ Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) protocol. With IBC, Band became one of the earliest oracle projects to enable fast, cross-chain, and scalable data transfers—strengthening its position as a foundational layer for decentralized applications across multiple chains.

Over the following years, Band expanded its integrations and established itself as a critical data provider for Web3 applications, from decentralized finance (DeFi) to gaming and prediction markets. Its native token, $BAND, has remained central to the ecosystem, powering transaction fees, data requests, validator staking, and governance, while also being actively traded on major exchanges.

In 2025, the project underwent a major rebrand, evolving from Band Protocol to simply Band. This transformation came with a bold new vision: to become “The Unified Data Layer for AI & Web3.” Alongside this rebrand, Band introduced two flagship product offerings: Band v3: the next evolution of its decentralized data network, featuring broader data coverage, reduced latency, and expanded developer tools to accelerate dApp innovation. Membit: a new product line that delivers real-time, verifiable context to large language models (LLMs), bridging the worlds of AI and Web3 by fueling the next wave of intelligent applications. This evolution positions Band not only as a cornerstone of decentralized data infrastructure but also as a key enabler of AI-driven advancements, unifying Web3 and AI through trusted, real-time data delivery.

Who Are the Founders of Band?

Band was founded in 2017 by Soravis Srinawakoon, Paul Chonpimai and Sorawit Suriyakarn.

Soravis Srinawakoon, the current CEO of Band, is a former software engineer at Ericsson and management consultant at The Boston Consulting Group. Paul Chonpimai, on the other hand, is Bandl's CPO, and a former web developer at Turfmapp and engineer at Tripadvisor. Lastly, former software engineer at Dropbox and Quora Sorawit Suriyakarn is Band's current CTO and a gold medalist competitive programmer.

In addition to the founding team, the Band LinkedIn page currently lists a total of 20 additional employees, most of which are scattered throughout Asia, and include designers, developers and engineers. The platform is also supported by major global investors, including Sequoia Capital, Dunamu & Partners, Spartan Group and Binance.

What Makes Band Unique?

Band goes beyond being just another oracle. It is cross-chain by design, powered by Cosmos IBC for fast and secure data transfers across multiple blockchains. With Band v3, it offers broader data coverage, lower latency, and better developer tools. In 2025, Band rebranded with a bold vision to be the Unified Data Layer for AI & Web3. Its new product Membit brings real-time context to AI models, making Band the first oracle project bridging decentralized data and artificial intelligence.

How Many Band (BAND) Coins Are There in Circulation?

Band first launched the BAND token through an Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) on Binance Launchpad in September 2019. In total, 27.37% of the tokens were distributed across three fundraising rounds: seed, private, and public sale.

For allocation, 20% of the supply was designated for the Band team, 5% for advisors, and 25.63% for the broader ecosystem. Token distribution has been released progressively, following the project’s emission schedule.

Because Band operates on a Cosmos SDK–based chain with an inflationary mechanism, the overall supply has gradually increased over time in line with inflation.

How Is the Band Network Secured?

Though BAND tokens were previously based on the ERC-20 standard, they were recently relaunched as native BAND tokens on the Band mainnet (known as BandChain).

Holders of the older tokens are able to complete a 1:1 swap by depositing their ERC-20 BAND tokens to Binance, and then withdrawing them as native tokens. This will be necessary to participate in BAND staking — which is only available for mainnet tokens.

Based on the Cosmos' SDK, BandChain is secured by a Byzantine fault Tolerance (BFT) consensus algorithm, which protects it against attacks. This works in combination with a delegated proof of stake (dPOS) setup, which secures the network’s oracles and allows BAND holders to earn staking rewards for delegating their stake to nodes.

Where Can You Buy Band (BAND)?

BAND was first tracked on public exchanges by CoinMarketCap in September 2019. Since then, it has been listed on a wide range of platforms, including several tier 1 exchanges — like Binance, Coinbase Pro and OKX.

The vast majority of BAND trading pairs are against Tether (USDT) and Bitcoin (BTC), but BAND can also be traded against several fiat currencies, including GBP, USD and EUR on Coinbase Pro. For more information about buying cryptocurrency as a beginner, read our comprehensive guide.