In some corners of the cryptocurrency world, airdrop season is back. Developers of LayerZero confirmed long-running speculations on Friday morning, announcing their intention to launch a token sometime in the first half of 2024. This news immediately led to an increase in the metrics of certain projects based on the network.
The network is an interoperability protocol that makes it simpler for various blockchain networks to connect by employing a novel technique. In April, its creator, LayerZero Labs, raised $120 million at a $3 billion valuation.
“LayerZero has always been built with the ability to have a native token within the protocol, as seen in the immutable code launched on day 1,” developers said in an X post. “We’ve heard the community discussion over the last few months and the lack of clear communication around this.”
“We’ll state now in no uncertain terms that there will be a LayerZero token. We’re committed to getting its distribution right and expect it to happen within the first half of 2024,” they added.
The term “airdrop” describes the uninvited transfer of tokens associated with a project to its users, typically in exchange for tasks or liquidity.
These are frequently extremely valuable. Jito, a Solana ecosystem project, debuted its JTO token on Thursday. Its value increased based on the amount of users’ usage of its “liquid staking token,” or jitoSOL, which started at 4,941 tokens.
Up to $200,000 worth of JTO tokens, according to some users, were received. But not everyone is selling; some users are giving their holdings back to other Solana projects in the hopes of future airdrops. However, following the announcement on Friday, token prices and locked value increased for certain LayerZero ecosystem projects.
The value of the LayerZero-using projects’ tokens, Radiant Capital and Stargate, spiked up to 10% before sharply declining.
LayerZero hasn’t explicitly stated how it plans to compensate users for using its network as of Friday. Nonetheless, common tactics involve simply utilising LayerZero-based platforms’ services—such as lending, trading, and borrowing—to interact with them.