Demex Daily #184: Blast Layer 2 Token Launch Amid Controversy

What’s Interesting Today:

The Ethereum Layer 2 (L2) network, Blast, is set to launch its native token with 17% of its supply being airdropped to early adopters through a multi-faceted points program involving Blast and affiliated NFT marketplace Blur. Despite having a significant Total Value Locked (TVL) of $1.65 billion and strong on-chain metrics, Blast remains controversial, with many skeptical about its valuation, especially following less successful airdrops from other projects. Blast operates as an optimistic rollup and offers native yields on ETH and its stablecoin USDB, which is unique among L2s. Additionally, the affiliated NFT platform Blur, also controversial, has faced criticism for its incentive strategies and is now allocating a small portion of the new Blast supply to its users, further stirring discontent among its community.

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Shardeum, an EVM-compatible layer-1 blockchain utilizing dynamic state sharding, has launched the first stage of its incentivized testnet, Atomium, on June 26. The testnet aims to encourage community involvement in identifying bugs, vulnerabilities, and performance issues to strengthen the network before its mainnet launch. Participants will be rewarded with 0.65% of the total token supply, amounting to 3.3 million SHM. The testing campaign will progress through multiple stages, moving forward as network stability is confirmed.