Ethereum Layer-2 Network Blast Achieves $2.1 Billion TVL Amid Launch Controversies
Summary:
Ethereum layer-2 network Blast has achieved a total value locked (TVL) of $2.1 billion ahead of its mainnet launch, a value inflated predominantly by airdrop hunters. However, this launch has been marked by controversy, with users unable to access their locked funds and accusations of a rug pull from a gambling protocol. Despite these controversies, Blast's founder Tieshun Roquerre rejects criticisms, claiming that Blast's yield is generated by Lido and MakerDAO. Before the launch, Blast secured a $20 million investment in a seed round spearheaded by Paradigm and Standard Crypto.
Just a few days before its mainnet launch at the end of the month, Blast, an Ethereum layer-2 network, has reached a staggering total value locked (TVL) of $2.1 billion. DefiLlama data reveals that Blast's TVL currently stands at this impressive figure, marking an increase exceeding 2,200% since its bridging protocol initially went live on November 22. The bulk of the locked value is attributed to airdrop hunters eagerly locking their Ethereum in the protocol, in anticipation of a future airdrop of the Blast token. The protocol's team has indicated that this airdrop is scheduled for May.
However, the Blast protocol's launch was marred by controversy. Once funds were secured in the platform, users found that they couldn't access them until the mainnet's launch. Back in November, Paradigm crypto venture capital firm’s research lead, Dan Robinson, criticized Blast's launch, describing it as overstepping boundaries in terms of communication and execution.
The Blast protocol was again the center of controversy on February 26 when a gambling protocol named "Risk on Blast" was accused of a rug pull. The GambleFi project had gathered 420 Ether (ETH), equivalent to $1.35 million at current values, for a presale token named RISK, which kicked off on February 22 and concluded the next day. The team has now transferred funds in segments of the algorithmic stablecoin Dai (DAI) to the noncustodial crypto exchange ChangeNOW and subsequently deleted their associated social media accounts.
Debuted in mid-November, the Blast protocol is a scalability solution for the Ethereum network and provides native yields in Ether (ETH) and stablecoins to users who stake their funds on the protocol. Blast's founder Tieshun Roquerre, also known as "PacMan" and the founder of the NFT platform Blur, came to the defense of Blast in response to criticism of the yields being "too good to be true," explaining that that Blast's yield is generated by Lido and MakerDAO.
Preceding its launch, Blast secured $20 million in a seed round led by both Paradigm and Standard Crypto. Contemplating the best NFT collection globally, NFT Collector engages in a discussion with DCinvestor.
Published At
2/27/2024 5:36:48 AM
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