Ethereum L2 Blast Entices Developers With Airdrop After Users Lock Up $1.3 Billion
The introduction of Ethereum layer-2 scaling network Blast has not been free of controversy, but regardless, users have invested over $1.3 billion in the project in the hopes of earning yield and airdrop rewards. Blast has now launched its test network and is seeking to attract app developers with the promise of airdropped tokens.
Blast recently announced the launch of its testnet and the initiation of a “Big Bang” competition to encourage developers to build on the platform. According to Blast’s Twitter account, developers who enter their Blast apps into the competition will have the opportunity to earn token rewards in the upcoming airdrop. The winning apps will also be promoted to the mainnet when it goes live in late February. The contest will be judged by Blast founder Tieshun “Pacman” Roquerre and representatives from investors Paradigm and Standard Crypto, among others. Pacman and the Blast team will provide guidance and mentorship to developers throughout the process.
Pacman, also the founder of Blur, a leading NFT marketplace, seems to be employing a similar strategy with Blast’s launch, using substantial token incentives to surpass existing Ethereum layer-2 networks. Blur distributed over $800 million worth of BLUR tokens in 2023 to NFT traders, with the initial airdrop coinciding with the platform’s surpassing of OpenSea as the most-used marketplace in terms of trading volume.
According to Blast’s tweet thread, half of the total airdrop will be distributed to users who have locked up over $1.3 billion worth of cryptocurrency in more than 100,000 wallets to earn “Blast points.” These points will convert to airdropped tokens once the Blast mainnet is live. The other half of the airdrop aims to incentivize decentralized app (dapp) creators to start building on the platform.
Blast’s significant deposits and growing user base follow criticism of the platform’s November launch. Some crypto users and developers were unhappy with Blast’s approach of accepting deposits before the network was fully ready and live, as well as the restriction on fund withdrawals until the mainnet debuts in February. Paradigm, a prominent backer of Blast and Blur, expressed dissatisfaction with the team’s actions following the initial launch, commenting on the messaging and execution.
With its enticing rewards and incentives, Blast aims to build a strong developer community and position itself as a leading Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution, overcoming the challenges it has faced in its early stages.