An airdrop is a popular method for web3 projects to distribute tokens and build momentum for their platform, especially for start-ups. Airdrops are also one of the most popular marketing strategies among users. Through careful research and smart participation, users can get to know the latest and best projects through airdrops, and also gain decent economic benefits. In this article, veDAO will take a deep dive into airdrops, including their definition, history, process, and classification, and provide tips and precautions for safely participating in airdrops. Finally, veDAO recommends the 6 most worthwhile airdrop opportunities in the near future.
1. Airdrop Definition
An airdrop is an act of sending free cryptocurrency tokens to a specific digital wallet address in the blockchain field. In other words, an airdrop is a way for the project party to give away cryptocurrency assets to users. For project parties, airdrops are a marketing strategy aimed at promoting new projects and their cryptocurrency tokens, raising awareness of the project, and promoting adoption. For users, airdrop tokens are sent for free, but sometimes they may be required to complete specific tasks. Users can earn decent economic benefits by participating in airdrops. Airdrops are not limited to new cryptocurrency projects, mature web3 projects can also use this strategy to refine token distribution and reward loyal community members.
2. Airdrop History
Airdrops have been a culture in the currency circle for many years. The earliest cryptocurrency airdrop occurred in June 2010, when Gavin Andresen, a software engineer who co-developed the Bitcoin system with Satoshi Nakamoto, set up a website called Free Bitcoins. Users only needed to paste their Bitcoin receiving address on the website to receive 5 Bitcoins. At that time, it was worth only 1 cent (about 0.3 Taiwan dollars). Airdrops became an important operational method for project parties, generally considered to have started in 2014. To understand the essence of airdrops, you must have a clear understanding of their evolutionary history.
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2014: The first airdrop was initiated by a project called “Auroracoin”. It distributed free tokens to all citizens of Iceland as a strategy to promote the adoption of new cryptocurrency tokens. However, the project and the tokens both ended in failure. At that time, there were no interactions or other requirements for airdrops, just confirming that you were a member of the community.
2017: With the rise of the ICO boom, airdrops became increasingly popular, with many new web3 projects using them as a way to attract potential investors and users. Electroneum was one of the successful projects of this period that used an airdrop strategy, giving away over 5,000 tokens for free to users. The campaign was very successful, with over 120,000 users downloading the app and creating an account in the first two weeks.
2018-2019: Crypto airdrops began to become more complex and targeted, with projects using them to reward early adopters, community members, and loyal users. Steemit is one of the big projects that built a strong community through airdrops, distributing tokens called “Steem” to users based on their participation on the platform.
2020: The rise of DeFi brought a new form of airdrop, with web3 projects distributing tokens to liquidity providers or users participating in liquidity mining activities. The famous Dex project Uniswap had a UNI airdrop in September 2020. This was one of the largest and most well-known airdrops in crypto history, and spawned countless imitators.
In 2020, crypto airdrops also began to be used as a way of fairly and transparently distributing tokens, with mechanisms like “snapshot” airdrops rewarding users based on their previous interactions or other levels of participation. DeFi project 1INCH was one of the earliest projects to attempt to fairly distribute tokens through snapshot airdrops.
2021: Regulatory policies around airdrops began to become clearer, with some jurisdictions requiring airdrops to be registered as securities issuances.
2022: More and more projects are choosing to use airdrops. Apecoin airdrop to its NFT holders by BAYC, OP token airdrop by the Optimism project, and the airdrop to early adopters by Apto are all influential airdrop events of this year. The requirements for airdrops are becoming higher in 2022, with witch hunts and multi-dimensional airdrop requirements becoming more common.
2023: Airdrops have become one of the most important components of the crypto market and have seen huge growth in both the number of projects and the frequency of airdrops this year. The Arbitrum airdrop, which distributed over 42 million ARB in the first hour, was the most sensational airdrop of the year.
Summary: Crypto airdrops have been continuously evolving and have become an important part of the crypto market. Based on the level of difficulty in participating in the airdrops, airdrops in history can be divided into the following stages: confirmation as a community member, simple registration or 0 transfer, simple interaction, witch hunts and heavy participation by users, with multi-dimensional requirements as airdrop conditions.
III. Airdrop Process
As a marketing tool, each specific project will choose different encrypted airdrop types according to its specific needs, and each type of airdrop has a different working mode. The general airdrop process can be divided into:
The team behind the project decides the amount of tokens to be airdropped to users. The next step is to choose the target audience and platform they will use to distribute tokens, while setting qualification requirements for users to receive airdrop tokens.
Users select a high-quality web3 project that they are interested in from the ongoing airdrop projects.
Generally, specific requirements need to be met by users to be eligible for free tokens. These requirements may include following the project on social media, sharing posts, joining Discord/Telegram groups, filling out surveys, and interacting with the project’s tasks, etc. Some projects require users to complete Know Your Customer (KYC) verification to participate, while others only require user registration. The requirements for encrypted airdrops vary according to the preferences of the project, with the main goal being to gain as much publicity and adoption as possible for the project or new tokens.
After meeting the requirements, users submit detailed information to register for the airdrop.
After registration is complete, users need to wait for token distribution.
Projects generally execute airdrops through smart contracts, and tokens are automatically allocated to user wallets.
After the tokens are distributed, users will receive them in their wallets. After receiving the tokens, users can choose to continue holding them or trade them on a cryptocurrency exchange.
IV. Airdrop Types
Each type of airdrop has unique characteristics and objectives, and we need to understand different types of encrypted airdrops. The following are popular cryptocurrency airdrop types.
Holder Airdrop
Holder airdrop gives tokens for free to people who hold a certain amount of digital currency in their wallets. The project team usually takes a snapshot of the user’s cryptocurrency holdings at a specific date and time. If the wallet balance meets the minimum requirement, the recipient will receive the tokens for free based on the holdings at the time of the snapshot.
Many new projects airdrop tokens to wallets holding Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), or other successful tokens because they have the largest communities in the field.
Standard Airdrop
The most primitive way of airdrops, users only need to register the relevant wallet or contract to receive free airdrops. No other information is required. Airdrops are quick and easy, but the project developers set limits on the amount of tokens each user can receive. They follow the first-come, first-served principle.
Bounty Airdrops
Bounty airdrops typically require users to participate in promotional activities that are announced in advance. Users must complete certain tasks, such as sharing relevant posts about the project on Twitter, joining the project’s official Telegram, or creating posts on Instagram and tagging several friends. To claim the bounty airdrop, users need to fill out a form that includes wallet address information and provide proof of completing the tasks.
Exclusive Airdrops
Exclusive airdrops are limited to sending cryptocurrency to a specified wallet. Typically, the airdropped tokens are sent to users who have interacted with the project before, either as active community members or early supporters of the project. These airdrops are often used as a way to reward loyal users and build a strong community around the project. In September 2020, decentralized exchange (DEX) Uniswap airdropped 400 UNI to all wallets that had interacted with the platform protocol before a specific date. Holders of governance tokens will have the right to vote on future decisions related to the project’s development.
Faucet Airdrops
Faucet airdrops are the periodic (usually daily or weekly) distribution of small amounts of tokens to participants. These airdrops are typically of low value and are intended to encourage users to interact with the project regularly.
Hard Fork Airdrops
This one is a bit different. When a coin hard forks from its original blockchain, a new coin is created and holders of the original coin will receive an equal amount of the new coin in their wallets. The most famous example is the 2017 Bitcoin Cash (BCH) hard fork: Bitcoin holders automatically received an equal amount of BCH in their wallets.
Summary
Crypto airdrops can be broadly classified into two categories based on the timing of eligibility: pre-announcement and post-confirmation. Bounty and faucet airdrops are mostly pre-announcement, while other types of airdrops are mostly post-confirmation but can also be pre-announcement. Project teams will choose which type of crypto airdrop to execute based on their motives and customer acquisition planning.
V. Experience and Precautions
When participating in crypto airdrop activities, the following are some experiences and precautions summarized by veDAO that users can refer to:
Do research: Before choosing to participate in an airdrop activity, do thorough research on the chosen project and its team.
Do not consider airdrops as investments: it is recommended to view airdrops as bonuses rather than the primary investment strategy.
Use a separate email address and wallet address: it can help protect your personal information from being shared.
Pay close attention to the project: airdrops often have a time limit, and users need to complete tasks or submit wallet addresses within the specified time. If you miss the time, you will not be able to get the tokens. Keeping up-to-date with the latest developments and information about the project can also help users avoid all possible scams.
Please be patient: Airdrop distribution may take time and may be delayed due to various factors.
Beware of fraud: Airdrop fraud is not uncommon, and users should not participate in airdrop activities of unreliable projects, and should not disclose your private key or personal information. The recent myEtherWallet phishing scam is a major scam where scammers created a fake website and promoted a fake airdrop, requiring users to enter their private keys to receive tokens.
Special Airdrop Tools:
https://airdrops.io/
https://dropsearn.com/airdrops/
https://defillama.com/airdrops
https://99airdrops.com/
https://www.alphadrops.net/alpha
Six, recommended opportunities to take advantage of emptying machines
After a lot of screening and research, below veDAO help you sort out the recent 6 potential projects that are worth participating in or will be airdropped.
LayerZero
LayerZero (ZRO) is an interoperability protocol that is able to provide real and guaranteed message passing through configurable trust-free. It is currently running on most major blockchains, including Ethereum, Avalanche, Polygon, BNB Chain, Aptos, Fantom, Arbitrum and Optimism. LayerZero has not yet launched its tokens, but the team mentions ZRO tokens in its documentation. However, the project is expected to airdrop tokens to their dApp users.
Here are some suggestions for participating in any potential airdrops:
Stake STG and vote on Stargate Finance
Use the Stargate, USDC, Aptos and LiquidSwap bridges
Use SushiSwap cross-chain exchange
Use the Bitcoin bridge
Interact with other dApps on LayerZero
Get roles in Stargate Guild
Note that the LayerZero team has no official announcement about airdrops. So any suggested participation methods are only speculation.
zkSync
zkSync is a ZK Rollup that provides scalable and low-cost transactions on the Ethereum blockchain. This is achieved by submitting validity proofs along with bundled transactions to the Ethereum smart contract. The zkSync Era Mainnet Alpha is now open to the public. The team has stated that they will introduce a native token in the future, which has people hoping for an airdrop. To be eligible for the zkSync airdrop, users should:
- Add zkSync Era Alpha Mainnet on MetaMask
- Interact with zkSync Lite and zkSync Era Mainnet Alpha
- Complete tasks on zkSync’s Crew3
- Interact with the zkSync ecosystem, such as Orbiter Finance or ZigZag.
Note that some zkSync dApps may not yet have launched their tokens. This gives you the chance to receive a double airdrop.
StarkNet
StarkNet is a decentralized Validity-Rollup (or “ZK-Rollup”) running on top of Ethereum that provides unlimited computational capacity to decentralized applications without sacrificing security or compatibility. It utilizes the secure and scalable cryptographic proof system STARK to ensure transaction security and reliability. StarkNet is permissionless, meaning anyone can use it without the need for third-party approval. StarkNet’s alpha v0.11.0 has just launched on Testnet, with a mainnet upgrade expected to follow soon.
The best way to get the potential StarkNet STRK token airdrop is to interact with their testnet. Additionally, there are some protocols on StarkNet that do not have tokens yet. So, using their DApps can also get you their airdrop, giving you double rewards.
Polygon zkEVM
Polygon zkEVM (MATIC) is Ethereum’s Layer 2 scaling solution that leverages zero-knowledge proofs for scalability while maintaining Ethereum compatibility. Polygon’s co-founder Sandeep Nailwal strongly hinted on Twitter that huge MATIC airdrops will be given to zkEVM users. The best way to get the potential airdrop is to interact with the Polygon zkEVM mainnet. To do this, add Polygon zkEVM to MetaMask. Then, connect to Polygon zkEVM via a local bridge or third-party bridge like Orbiter Finance. Finally, interact with QuickSwap, the only active dApp currently deployed on Polygon zkEVM.
Vela Exchange Airdrop
Vela Exchange is a decentralized perpetual contract platform aimed at improving the transaction speed and security of DeFi derivatives by using a hybrid model of off-chain order book and on-chain settlement. According to official documents, Vela users can build positions based on the performance of synthetic assets, with leverage of up to 100 times. Vela will conduct an airdrop and mainnet launch on June 26, 2023. The official Twitter account of the project has hinted that maximizing trading volume is the key to getting the largest airdrop. In addition, participating in their lightning trading competition can not only give you a chance to win their prizes, but also provide you with more airdropped tokens. The first competition ended with a prize pool of $10,000 USDC and $2,000 eVELA rewards. Vela will hold a second flash competition, which will be adjusted to support traders of various scales. However, the main event will be their Grand Beta Trading Competition, in which Vela promises to provide a huge prize.
Blur NFT Marketplace
Blur (BLUR) Season 1 airdrop ended on February 14, 2023. Blur announced that they will airdrop more than 300 million BLUR in Season 2, which was originally scheduled to take place in April 2023, but has now been postponed.
To participate in Blur’s Season 2 airdrop, users can connect their wallet to Blur’s platform and bid on NFP. Blur has confirmed that it will distribute more than $300 million worth of tokens in the second quarter. The airdrop is conducted on a point-based system. The system rewards NFT collections based on 24-hour trading volume bids. Participants can also earn more points through loyalty to maximize their BLUR token airdrop. For Season 2, Blur also launched Blend (short for Blur Lending), a peer-to-peer permanent lending protocol for NFTs that allows NFT holders to borrow ETH against their NFTs without having to sell them. With the launch of Blend, the Blur team also introduced lending points, which double the lending points of certain NFT collections. The delay of Blur has caused the depreciation of points, which has led to widespread dissatisfaction in the community, and with the decline in token prices, the profits of participating in the second season interaction may not meet expectations.
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