In the second half of 2024, after a series of disappointing airdrops, the high-profile hype has weakened and the competition for token distribution has eased. The returns from airdrops may be good now.
Written by Stacy Muur, Web3 Researcher
Compiled by: xiaozou, Golden Finance
In the second half of 2024, after a series of disappointing airdrops, the high-profile hype has weakened and the competition for token distribution has eased. The returns from airdrops may be good now.
Here are 6 airdrop projects I’ve compiled that are worth joining.
1. Morpho (Mainnet)
Morpho is a trustless, efficient lending platform that enables the creation of permissionless markets. It has quickly become the sixth largest lending market by TVL on DefiLlama, with a current TVL of $1.4 billion.
(1) Obtain airdrop
Morpho’s airdrop campaign is not based on points, but users can specify the expected FDV to observe the change in asset supply and borrow APY. For example, the example below uses $1 billion FDV.
Visit the Morpho app (supports Ethereum and Base).
Browse the various pools and assets available for lending and choose the best pool for you.
Keep track of your rewards in the Rewards tab.
Pro Tip: The rewards on Base are usually higher and you can also get OP rewards since Base is an OP Stack chain. This is why I personally play Morpho on Base.
(2) FDV expectations
As mentioned earlier, Morpho is currently the sixth largest lending market across all chains. Its fiercest competitors are Compound ($444 million FDMC), Venus ($210 million FDMC), and Kamino Lend ($660 million FDMC).
On August 1, Morpho raised $50 million in a strategic funding round (FDV not disclosed). Assuming 10-15% of tokens were sold in this round, that would imply a FDV of $330-500 million. Considering all VC rounds are typically discounted, Morpho could go public with a FDV close to $1 billion.
2. Sunrise (testnet)
Sunrise is a data availability (DA) layer designed for Proof of Liquidity (PoL) and fee abstraction. It recently launched an incentivized public testnet, a major milestone towards mainnet launch.
The testnet rewards active users, and early participants will receive the largest share of the upcoming RISE token airdrop. To access the testnet and faucet, users must link an EVM wallet (with at least 0.001 ETH and transaction history on the Ethereum mainnet) and a Cosmos wallet.
(1) Obtain airdrop
Participants can earn points on the testnet by completing daily tasks such as claiming, exchanging, providing liquidity, and participating in governance. Referrals to friends will also increase the referrer's points.
7% of the token supply was initially distributed during the first airdrop at the TGE, with an additional 5% reserved for future incentives.
Sunrise is considering combining these two waves of distribution (a total of 12%) into one distribution in the Genesis airdrop.
Here are some statistics:
More than 200,000 users have joined the testnet.
The number of daily active users has grown to around 50,000 and is still growing.
New testnet activities are being launched continuously.
Join the community, follow Sunrise on social media and join their Discord.
Use the testnet by trading or providing liquidity.
Complete daily tasks.
Refer a friend using your referral link.
(2) FDV expectations
Sunrise Layer seamlessly integrates on-chain and off-chain data, combining the security and transparency of on-chain solutions with enhanced scalability and lower costs. This hybrid approach makes it ideal for decentralized applications that require high throughput and strong data integrity.
Its fiercest competitors are Celestia ($4.7 billion FDV), Avail ($1.2 billion FDV), and KYVE ($24 million FDV). I expect the FDV to be between $300 million and $500 million.
3. Mantle COOK (Mainnet)
Ethereum L2 platform Mantle is currently undergoing a Metamorphosis event, after which it will distribute new COOK tokens to the community. COOK will serve as the future governance token for Mantle LST (mETH, one of the largest LSTs by TVL) and LRT (cmETH, an emerging liquidity re-staking primitive).
(1) Obtain airdrop
The process for participating in the upcoming COOK airdrop is simple and there are multiple options. The key is to get some mETH (preferably on Mantle as it earns more Powder per day) and then increase your rewards by participating in various DeFi activities.
Visit the website to link your wallet.
Stake ETH to get mETH tokens.
Add mETH tokens to your wallet and bridge it to the Mantle network.
You can earn 10 Powders per day just by holding 1 mETH. You can also earn more Powders by providing mETH liquidity on one of the protocols listed in this article.
You can also lock up your MNT to earn additional rewards.
(2) FDV expectations
mETH is currently the fifth largest LST, behind Jito ($2.1 billion FDMC) and Marinade Finance ($100 million FDMC).
Since COOK is the governance token for mETH and the upcoming cmETH (a new re-staking token), the FDV at listing could be between $150 million and $300 million. Hopefully, Mantle will not adopt the low circulation, high FDV approach.
(To keep this article simple and easy to read, the other airdrops will not be described in detail compared to the three mentioned above.)
4. Story Protocol (Testnet)
Story is the IP blockchain, enabling programmable IP to power the next generation of AI, DeFi, and consumer applications.
Visit the website to link your wallet.
Exchange IP, WETH, USDC, WBTC, USDT, FATE.
5. Soneium (testnet)
Soneium is an L2 blockchain developed by the Sony Blockchain Solutions Lab team to arouse market sentiment and foster creativity. It aims to build a bridge between Web3 and everyday Internet services, making blockchain technology more accessible globally.
Get Sepolia ETH from the faucet.
Visit the website and link your wallet.
Bridging test ETH between Sepolia and Minato.
6. Hyperlane (Mainnet)
Hyperlane is an interoperability layer designed for modular blockchain ecosystems. It enables seamless communication across different blockchain environments, including L1, rollup, and appchain, through permissionless deployment.
（1）Hyperlane x Injective
Visit the website and link your EVM/Solana and Cosmos wallets.
Send your INJ tokens to the inEVM network. Enter the transfer amount, select your wallet, then click "Continue" to proceed and finally confirm the transaction.
（2）hNFT Mint & Bridge
Visit the website and link your wallet.
On the left side of the screen, select the network where you want to mint your NFT. On the right side of the screen, select the network where you want to send your NFT after it is minted. Then click “Mint”.
Click “Bridge” to transfer the NFT to another network. Confirm the transaction.
Verify successful transaction on Hyperlane's browser.
