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Saga, a new layer-1 blockchain network designed to let creators launch their own layer-1 chains, launched its mainnet early Tuesday, alongside its SAGA token that was first listed on major cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
The rollout comes following a record-breaking Binance Launchpool campaign for SAGA, which saw more than 500,000 total Binance customers stake some $13.4 billion worth of crypto—across Binance Coin (BNB) and the FDUSD stablecoin—to earn a share of 45 million SAGA tokens, or half of the initial circulating supply.
Saga co-founder and CEO Rebecca Liao told Decrypt’s GG that the mainnet launch is happening in six stages, with the Saga “security chain” that holds the SAGA tokens and the “protocol chain” that app creators use to launch their own layer-1 chains rolling out today.
The network is built so that developers can deploy one or more chains and utilize them in unison, with the ability to fire up more supporting chains as needed—akin to adding more cloud servers to power a Web2 app. But it can also support games and apps built on other chains. Scalability is the key focus, and they’re taking a gradual approach to the launch too.
“Because we are building a system that is arguably infinitely scalable, we want to make sure that we don't just explode it out there all at once,” said Liao. “We want to make sure that every single time we deploy a release that it is stable, and that the system continues to be able to handle load in the way that our developers need it to.”
Saga is not exclusively a gaming chain, but that’s been its early focus. The chain utilized play-to-airdrop events to get the word out in late 2023 and early this year, holding video game competitions and giving SAGA token allocations to the top finishers. Some 80% of testnet projects are gaming-related, plus Saga is launching its own in-house game publisher.
The network held an airdrop claim in March that included the play-to-airdrop qualifiers, but also DeFi stakers on various chains (like Cosmos and Avalanche), as well as holders of major NFT projects like CryptoPunks and the Bored Ape Yacht Club. More than 200,000 unique wallets were eligible, but not every wallet claimed in time—and they’re out of luck now.
But those unclaimed SAGA tokens will be rolled into additional airdrop opportunities in the near future, Liao explained, as the network aims to bring more people into the ecosystem. Like the first airdrop round, the theme of the next wave will again be “loyalty,” Liao said, rewarding users for contributing to the Saga ecosystem and engaging with apps.
She added that plans surrounding partners will be unveiled shortly after launch, and the press release around the mainnet debut notes that SAGA tokens will be airdropped to “various stakeholders” in the months ahead. Furthermore, people who stake the SAGA token can expect rewards, as the release notes that, “Simultaneously, Saga will airdrop confirmed loot boxes of over 100 of their partner’s tokens to Saga stakers on a regular cadence.”
While Saga led with the gaming angle, it has increasingly shifted its messaging focus to scalability and how the chain can be used to power in-demand apps, as well as to support apps and games initially built on other chains.
As we’ve seen networks like Solana and Base struggle with meme coin-driven demand in recent weeks, Liao thinks the moment is right for that framing.
“It's really just the product hitting the market at the right time,” she said of Saga mainnet.
Edited by Stacy Elliott.