Airdrop buzz triggers $47m of flows into zkSync
Investor activity on zkSync is buzzing once again amid speculation that the blockchain’s much-anticipated airdrop is imminent.
DeFi users have deposited about $47 million into zkSync since Tuesday, DefiLlama data shows.
By comparison, Polygon drew $8 million in flows during the same period, the second highest among all blockchains.
ZkSync, an Ethereum layer 2 blockchain, hasn’t seen this level of inflows since March when memecoin speculation reached a fever pitch.
Speculation of a zkSync airdrop kicked into gear last week when Matter Labs, developers of the blockchain, announced the final network upgrade before it will hand the project’s governance to the community by the end of June.
DeFi-inclined users deduced that announcement to mean the release of zkSync’s native token that will be used to govern the blockchain.
Part of this token release event could also include an airdrop for early adopters ― DeFi users who have conducted a transaction on zkSync.
ZkSync competitors Optimism and Arbitrum also used a token launch and airdrop to begin their decentralised governance process.
Matter Labs hasn’t published any official literature on the airdrop, but reports emerged this week that it could happen on June 13.
That would make June a big month for airdrops with investors also expecting airdrops from DeFi protocol LayerZero and blockchain network Blast.
The Block reported that zkSync’s token generation will happen this month with a supply count of 21 billion tokens.
Splitting a project’s token generation event and the actual airdrop is uncommon in crypto. But Ether restaking protocol EigenLayer chose that method with the tokens locked to prevent a price dump that often happens immediately after airdrops.
ZkSync, along with LayerZero, has been among the most anticipated crypto airdrops, and both have attracted significant farming activity and fears of possible sybil activity.
Farming means completing transactions on DeFi protocols or blockchains to become eligible for possible airdrops.
Sybil farming takes that up several notches by deploying a cluster of wallet addresses to game the process and ensure a greater-than-average share of the token distribution.
LayerZero has already advised mercenary airdrop hunters to self-report or lose their token allocation.
Matter Labs hasn’t publicly stated its anti-sybil protocols, if any.
The developers didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Osato Avan-Nomayo is our Nigeria-based DeFi correspondent. He covers DeFi and tech. To share tips or information about stories, please contact him at [email protected].
