Blockchain.com, the popular bitcoin and crypto wallet company has announced the launch of a new airdrop program for token-based network creators to distribute their tokens directly to Blockchain.com users through their (almost 30 million) wallets. The Blockchain.com team has set forth a set of guiding principles and criteria that will guide them in selecting which tokens they will airdrop to users, the details can be found in a newly published document.
Airdrops help drive exposure for new assets and create a testing ground for network participants. They also encourage new and existing users to experiment with new crypto assets and build publicity and awareness regarding the power of decentralized networks.
The new Blockchain.com Airdrop program is set up for network creators whether they’re looking to drive decentralization for new networks or magnify the reach of current networks. More importantly, an airdrop directly to addresses control by users can ensure the power of a network rests in the hands of many, rather than just a few. This is particularly important as “protocols increasingly shift to proof-of-stake security models. A properly targeted airdrop can even achieve regulatory goals: a decentralized network is less likely to make its issuer a money transmitter, and less likely to create risks under the securities laws.”
Airdrops are attractive for users too, who get crypto without having to buy it, mine it, or work for it. Buying crypto on an exchange can be difficult, time-consuming, and expensive. Mining, even more so. Since Blockchain.com users self-custody, they have immediate control, ownership, and use of their newly-airdropped cryptocurrency. They can participate directly in the network without going through a 3rd party.
“We know that crypto tokens thrive on decentralization and network effects: the more individual users of a network, the more useful and valuable the network’s token becomes. To bootstrap these networks, creators have increasingly turned to airdrops as a simple, transparent method of distributing free crypto assets to a wide audience. We think that airdrops, when executed properly, have the potential to meaningfully drive decentralization and supercharge network effects.”