Blast TVL crosses $2B as it targets mainnet launch on Feb. 29

More than $2.1 billion has been locked on the Blast protocol as users eagerly await an airdrop slated for May.

Ethereum layer-2 network Blast has crossed $2.1 billion in total value locked (TVL) just days ahead of its newly announced mainnet launch — slated for the end of this month.

According to data from DefiLlama, Blast’s TVL currently stands at $2.1 billion, up more than 2,200% from when its bridging protocol first went live on Nov. 22.

The vast majority of the locked value comes from hopeful airdrop hunters, who have locked their Ethereum in the protocol to farm a future airdrop of the Blast token, which the protocol’s team says is coming sometime in May.

IT’S TIME TO BLAST OFF

Mainnet. February 29.
–
是时候发射了！
主网。2月29日。
–
BLAST 여정의 시작.
메인넷. 2월 29일. pic.twitter.com/9jaBnFF6gw

— Blast (@Blast_L2) February 26, 2024

The launch of the Blast protocol wasn’t without controversy, as once funds were locked in the platform, users could not withdraw them until the launch of its mainnet.

In November, Dan Robinson, the head of research at crypto venture capital firm Paradigm said that Blast’s launch had “crossed lines in both messaging and execution,” as the delayed launch could set a poor precedent for future developers.

There are a lot of components of Blast that I’m excited about and would be interested in engaging with people on. That said, we at Paradigm think the announcement this week crossed lines in both messaging and execution. For example, we don’t agree with the decision to launch the…

— Dan Robinson (@danrobinson) November 26, 2023

The Blast protocol once again courted controversy on Feb. 26 when a gambling protocol called “Risk on Blast” allegedly executed a rug pull. The GambleFi project had raised 420 Ether (ETH) — worth $1.35 million at current prices — for a presale token called RISK, which began on Feb. 22 and ended the following day.

The team has since moved funds in chunks of the algorithmic stablecoin Dai (DAI) to the noncustodial crypto exchange ChangeNOW, and proceeded to delete their related social media accounts.

Related: Web3 protocol Blast reaches $823M TVL despite bugs and controversy

Launched in mid-November, The Blast protocol is a scaling solution for the Ethereum network and offers native yields in Ether (ETH) and stablecoins to users who stake their funds on the protocol.

Notably, Blast’s founder Tieshun Roquerre — who goes by the pseudonym “PacMan” — is also the founder of the NFT platform Blur.

In a Nov. 23 post to X, Roquerre defended Blast against criticisms of “too good to be true” yields, claiming that Blast yield was generated by Lido and MakerDAO.

1/ There's a meme going around that Blast is a ponzi. The yield that Blast provides users can feel too good to be true, so this meme is understandable. But to put it simply, the yield Blast provides comes (initially) from Lido and MakerDAO.

Lido yield comes from ETH staking…

— Pacman | Blur + Blast (@PacmanBlur) November 24, 2023

Blast closed a $20 million seed round led by Paradigm and Standard Crypto in the days before its launch.

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