Starknet, Ethereum’s layer-2 network, initiates a groundbreaking airdrop, delivering 728 million tokens to 1.3 million addresses. The airdrop, famed as the largest this year till now, saw Starknet’s STRK tokens trade at $1.80 pre-launch on Aevo.
Despite a surge to $5 on Kucoin post-release, the price settled at $3.50. With a total supply of 10 billion tokens, STRK boasts a fully diluted value of $35 billion. However, based on circulating supply and price, the current market cap is $2.32 billion.
Of the token allocation, 50.1% goes to the Starknet Foundation, 24.68% to early contributors, and 32% to StarkWare employees and partners. The tokens unlock monthly over 31 months, starting in April. Launched in November 2021, Starknet has accrued nearly $55 million in total value locked, as reported by DefiLlama.
Major Industry Players Join Starknet
Amber Group, a major player, acquires 1 million $STRK tokens, depositing 200,000 on Bitfinex. This acquisition signifies confidence in Starknet’s ecosystem. Wintermute and Flow Traders follow suit, injecting liquidity with investments of 2 million and 2.5 million $STRK tokens, respectively. The participation of major firms like Amber Group, Wintermute, and Flow Traders adds credibility and liquidity to the $STRK market.
Starknet Faces User Drop Amid Airdrop Controversies
Starknet’s active users witnessed a significant decline in the past week, fueled by grievances over the Starknet Provisions Program airdrop. Initially surging from under 20,000 to over 220,500 on Feb. 14, active users dropped to around 84,000 on Feb. 19. The controversy centres around airdrop criteria, excluding users with less than 0.005 Ether in their accounts on Nov. 15, 2023.
Starknet acknowledges the concerns and pledges to address them. Another point of contention is the token unlock schedule, rewarding investors and contributors with 1.3 billion STRK in April, just two months after the launch. Despite the user drop, Starknet’s total value locked remains at $54.18 million, indicating ongoing market activity and interest.
All in all …
The STRK tokens airdrop used contracts on Starknet, Ethereum, GitHub, and StarkEx. As $STRK gains momentum, market analysts evaluate its trajectory in comparison to tokens like $TIA and $ARB. The participation of major market makers fuels discussions on potential impacts on $STRK’s momentum and future performance.