Crypto Companies Spent $26B on Airdrops in 4 Years- Report

Recent studies of CoinGecko reveal that over $26 Billion has been distributed in airdrops in the past four years. Some major leading companies involved are Uniswap, Apecoin, and dYdX.

In terms of amount, UniSwap has set a record with a historic airdrop of $6.43 Billion on September 16, 2020. As per available data, the first airdrop in cryptocurrency was started in 2014 by Aurocoin.

The distribution of crypto through airdrops has regenerated the user’s interest in decentralized crypto exchanges and decentralized products. The second position of distributing the biggest airdrop is held by Apecoin (APE), which occurred on March 17, 2022

Closely after September 8, 2021, dYdX dropped its airdrop, the third biggest airdrop in crypto that amounts to $2.00 billion.       

Despite this, airdrops at their ATH increased in value from $7.28 Billion in 2020 to $7.46 Billion in 2022, with more recent entries like Bonk (BONK) quickly breaking into the top 10.

Major firms such as Arbitrum  (ARB) led the $4.56 Billion airdrop market in 2023, distributing tokens valued at $1.97 Billion.

Conversely, Blur’s two 2023 airdrops, the second for $0.19 Billion, showed how successive airdrops may maintain platform interest. Cryptocurrency projects involve airdrops as a way to give out tokens to a large number of individuals at no cost.

Airdrop Explained…

Airdrops are a joint strategy cryptocurrency projects use to broaden their audience, boost engagement, and grow their community of token holders.

The first step in the crypto airdrop process is the project or firm that decides that an airdrop is necessary. This might be done to reward current investors in reaction to market tactics or the event of a network hard fork. 

The first stage is choosing who is eligible and how the airdrop will be carried out.

Airdrop scams are phishing attempts that employ bogus websites, emails, and social media profiles to deceive people into claiming a bogus airdrop. 

This generally involves tricking users into linking their wallets to malicious smart contracts or giving their private keys to claim the ‘airdrop,’ following which the wallet is emptied of all its contents.

Arbitrum, Celestia, and Blur’s initial airdrops accounted for 69.9% of all crypto airdrops issued in 2023, totaling $4.56 Billion in tokens. The remaining largest crypto airdrops in 2023 vary in value from $16 Million to $372 Million.

To guard against scammers, it’s crucial to exercise caution and conduct due diligence before accepting any cryptocurrency offer, including airdrops.

Never transmit Bitcoin to an unreliable source or divulge personal information to them; instead, be sure the airdrop and the organization or project behind it are legitimate.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions stated by the author or any people named in this article are for informational ideas only and do not establish financial, investment, or other advice. Investing in or trading crypto or stock comes with a risk of financial loss. 

With a background in journalism, Ritika Sharma has worked with many reputed media firms focusing on general news such as politics and crime. She joined The Coin Republic as a reporter for crypto, and found a great passion for cryptocurrency, Web3, NFTs and other digital assets. She spends a lot of time researching and delving deeper into these concepts around the clock, and is a strong advocate for women in STEM.