Ethereum Layer 2 (L2) network Blast is set to launch its native token today, with 17% of its total supply airdropped to early adopters. Despite its $1.65 billion in Total Value Locked (TVL), Blast is one of the most debated products in decentralized finance (DeFi).
Token Airdrop Details
The airdrop will be distributed across Blast and its affiliated NFT marketplace Blur’s points program. Specifically, 7% will go to Blast points, another 7% to Blast gold, and 3% will be shared among the Blur ecosystem.
On-Chain Metrics and Native Yield
Blast boasts impressive on-chain metrics compared to other blockchains, driven by its token incentives. According to DeFiLlama, Blast is the second largest Ethereum scaling solution by TVL and has the highest user fees among Layer 2 networks. As an optimistic rollup like Arbitrum and Optimism, Blast was the first to introduce native yield.
On Blast, all ETH yields 4%, while its native stablecoin, USDB, yields 5%. This allows users to earn yield simply by holding assets on the chain, without engaging directly with DeFi protocols. This native yield is generated through ETH staking and Real-World Asset (RWA) protocols via an automatic rebasing system.
Controversial Aspects of Blast
Blast is developed by the team behind the leading NFT platform Blur, which has also faced its share of controversies. Blur overtook OpenSea as the dominant NFT trading platform after its token launch in 2023, but its incentives for buying, selling, and lending have drawn criticism from many NFT collectors. Some even claim that “Blur killed NFTs.”
The latest season of Blur farming featured previously undisclosed Blast incentives. Recently, Blast announced that Season 3 will allocate 0.5% of its supply to Blur traders and 1.5% to BLUR stakers. The remaining Blur token allocation will be reserved for future uses.
This relatively small allocation to Blur is likely to result in significant losses for many of the largest Blur liquidity providers, as the $BLUR token has dropped nearly 70% from its all-time high in February. Notably, the top 0.1% of eligible wallets must vest their airdrop linearly over six months.
One prominent farmer, Cbb0Fe, who amassed 25% of all points from Blur Season 3, expressed frustration on social media, saying, “Made $15m profit from Blur Season 1 and Season 2 but definitely never ever again touching anything related to Blur/Blast team.”
