Boxmining v2

Author: ronalthapa

  • Shardeum ($SHM) Token Airdrop Guide: Earn $1500 for Free

    Shardeum ($SHM) Token Airdrop Guide: Earn $1500 for Free

    Shardeum is an upcoming linearly scalable layer-1 blockchain using dynamic state sharding similar to NEAR Protocol. The project is still in its early phase, which means early users can potentially secure massive Shardeum $SHM token airdrop rewards.

    Check out our Sui Airdrop Guide and Scroll Airdrop Guide for another highly anticipated token airdrop.

    Shardeum ($SHM) Airdrop Step-by-Step Guide

    Here’s how to get a potential Shardeum ($SHM) airdrop:

    1. Add Shardeum Network on MetaMask.
    2. Go to the Shardeum betanet and claim testnet SHM.
    3. Interact with projects on the Shardeum ecosystem.
    4. Become a Shardeum YouTube creator.

    See below for more details.

    What is Shardeum?

    Shardeum is a smart contract platform built on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) that uses dynamic state sharding to scale efficiently. Although it shares similarities with other state sharding platforms like Harmony, Elrond and NEAR Protocol, it distinguishes itself by having a unique approach to consensus.

    What is Sharding?

    Unlike most platforms that group transactions into blocks and perform consensus at the block level, Shardeum performs consensus on each transaction individually. This enables simultaneous processing of transactions that affect multiple shards, instead of consecutive processing as with block level consensus. This speeds up the processing time and removes the need for complex atomic processing as required by block level consensus platforms.

    Dynamic State Sharding

    Shardeum has a unique feature in its use of dynamic state sharding. In dynamic state sharding, each node has a different set of addresses to manage. But, there is a significant overlap between the different nodes. This is contrasted with static state sharding, where all nodes in a shard are responsible for the same set of addresses.

    While dynamic state sharding is more challenging to implement compared to static state sharding, it offers a more efficient solution for scaling the network. With dynamic state sharding, every new node added to the network instantly increases the transaction per second (TPS) rate. In contrast, static state sharding requires a minimum number of nodes to join the network before creating a new shard, and gradually increases the TPS rate.

    Who is the Team behind Shardeum?

    Nischal Shetty and Omar Syed co-founded Shardeum. Shetty is the founder and CEO of WazirX, the largest crypto exchange in India with over 10 million active users. Syed is a blockchain architect who has helped large organizations build scalable, fault-tolerant distributed systems such as NASA, Yahoo, Zynga, and Shardus.

    In October 2022, Shardeum successfully raised $18.2 million in seed funding from more than 50 investors worldwide. These investors include Jane Street, Struck Crypto and the Spartan Group.

    Does Shardeum have a Token?

    Validators and standby nodes will generate $SHM, Shardeum’s native coin, through mining – see their litepaper. This acts as a reward for their contribution to the network. Users will use the $SHM token to pay gas fees for transferring assets and executing smart contracts on the network

    Shardeum reserves 51% of its maximum supply of 508 million tokens for the community.

    How to Receive Potential Shardeum ($SHM) Token Airdrop?

    Shardeum have not confirmed an airdrop, yet. However, the best chance to receive $SHM airdrop is to interact with their testnet. Shardeum recently launched their betanet, and protocols on there also have incentives for early users. This puts you in a great position to earn more rewards! Here’s how to do this:

    1. Add Shardeum Network on MetaMask.
    2. Go to the Shardeum betanet and claim testnet SHM.
    3. Interact with projects on the Shardeum ecosystem.
    4. Become a Shardeum YouTube creator.

    Add Shardeum Network on MetaMask

    Shardeum created a list of all their network endpoints on their user document. You can choose to connect them automatically or add them manually to your MetaMask RPC. Their latest one is Sphinx 1.X, which is their betanet and the final step before the mainnet launch. We recommend adding this to your MetaMask. To do this, go to Shardeum’s developer docs, go to Network and Endpoints, then click “Click to Connect to Sphinx 1.x”.

    Claim Faucet Tokens

    After adding Shardeum to MetaMask, you will need testnet tokens to interact with their platform. There are 2 ways to do this, either on their website or to the Shardeum Liberty Network faucet.

    On the Shardeum website, click “Claim Testnet SHM”. You will then need to join their Discord and claim tokens using their Discord faucet text channels.

    Alternatively, you can claim Shardeum testnet tokens using the Shardeum Liberty Network faucet. But first, you will have to click “Tweet Now” for them to send you tokens. This is to prevent faucet bot abuse from using up all available $SHM. Remember to add your wallet address before you Tweet out the message. Finally, copy your Tweet link and paste it into the request box.

    Interact with projects on the Shardeum ecosystem

    Shardeum has nearly 60 projects in its ecosystem, ranging from DeFi protocols to decentralized exchanges (DEXs). Interacting with these ecosystem projects will likely put you in a good position to receive any potential Shardeum airdrop. However, here are some projects which we think may have a higher chance of receiving an airdrop if you interact with them.

    Shardeum Swap

    Shardeum Swap is one of the first decentralized exchanges (DEX) built on the network. Therefore, it is very likely that users interacting with the protocol are included in the snapshot. Here you can (1) swap SHM to SSWAP tokens, (2) wrap SHM to WSHM, and (3) provide liquidity to pools. Remember that these are testnet tokens, so feel free to play around with the DEX.

    Swapped Finance

    Swapped Finance is an automated market maker (AMM) DEX built on the network. But it has more features to offer such as yield farming, staking, limit orders, margin orders, launchpad, and lending/borrowing. As long as you use your testnet tokens for swapping or liquidity provision, there is a high chance you will be included in the snapshot.

    DAOStarter

    Shardeum is working with DAOStarter on a test party campaign, which will run until 31st March 2023 at 9:00 am UTC. Users can join the DAOStarter betanet on Shardeum Sphinx and mint an exclusive NFT. To do this, you will need to complete all 6 tasks listed on Galxe. Remember, you will need to switch to BSC network to do this. Complete the tasks and click “Claim”, note this will require you to pay gas fees in BNB.

    Become a Shardeum YouTube Creator

    As an additional task, you can also apply to become a Shardeum YouTube Creator, which the team promises will offer you performance-based rewards. To become a Shardeum YouTube Creator you will need to complete the following steps:

    1. Complete their application form.
    2. Create a content calendar for Shardeum’s YouTube channel.
    3. With the help of Committers, create and edit videos on Shardeum-related topics, EVM-related topics, and developer tutorials.
    4. Host Live videos on topics relating to current web3 trends, project updates and AMAs.

    Airdrop Review

    When reviewing an airdrop, there are several factors to consider. First, the likelihood the project will even do an airdrop in the first place. Then, to look at how many tokens the project intends to allocate towards airdrop campaigns, as well as the difficulty in participating in their airdrop. It is also important to look at the utility of the token so that there will be an actual use and purpose in participating in the airdrop in the first place. Finally, a factor to consider when reviewing an airdrop is whether the airdropped tokens are subject to any lockup period.

    Likelihood of Airdrop: No airdrop has been announced yet. But Shardeum recently launched their betanet, and protocols on there have incentives for early users.

    Airdropped Token Allocation: The team expects to give 51% of its token supply to the community but did not specify how much of this would be allocated towards airdrops.

    Airdrop Difficulty: Shardeum has not yet released details about its airdrop rules. There may be a chance of being eligible for $SHM airdrops by interacting with their testnet. This is relatively simple since you can use testnet tokens, which are free.

    Token Utility: $SHM will be used to pay gas fees for transfers and smart contract execution on the network.

    Token Lockup: There is no announcement on when the $SHM token would be launched.

  • SharDex ($SDT) Token Airdrop Guide: LIVE NOW!

    SharDex ($SDT) Token Airdrop Guide: LIVE NOW!

    SharDex is now live on Shardeum Liberty 2.X, and they have launched a million-point airdrop plan. Users can earn Share Points by inviting friends and completing simple tasks on their Crew3 page. These points will be translated to token rewards in the future. In this article, we will explain what SharDex is and what you can do to position yourself for the airdrop.

    Use our invite link to sign up with their testnet (we each get Share Points)!

    SharDex ($SDT) Airdrop Step-by-Step Guide

    SharDex hinted at several ways you could get a token airdrop. Here’s how to get a potential $SDT airdrop:

    1. Enter SharDex Waitlist with Our Referral Link
    2. Claim SBT and Complete Crew3 Tasks
    3. Swap Tokens
    4. Stake $SDT in Pools
    5. Provide Liquidity and Stake LP Tokens
    6. Bridge Assets to Shardeum (For SBT Holders Only)

    See below for more details.

    What is SharDex?

    SharDex is a new trading platform that has been launched on the Shardeum blockchain. It leverages Shardeum’s dynamic state sharding to provide users with the best possible on-chain trading experience for assets. The platform includes a range of asset management solutions, such as Bridge, Swap, NFT Marketplace, Launchpad, and DAO.

    These features allow users to easily transfer assets from other chains to Shardeum, and exchange them for other assets in a secure, affordable, and user-friendly way. With SharDex, users can manage their assets more efficiently and take advantage of the benefits of decentralized trading.

    Does SharDex have a Token?

    Yes, SharDex’s ticker symbol is $SDT, as confirmed on their testnet. Please note that this is not to be confused with the Soul Bound Token (SBT), which is obtained by successfully referring 3 friends and serves as an admission ticket for their future Initial DEX Offering (IDO).

    SharDex has also confirmed in its roadmap that there will be an $SDT airdrop in the future.

    How to Receive $SDT Airdrop?

    The best way to get the $SDT airdrop is to earn Share Points on the testnet and claim the Soul Bound Token (SBT). You can also use the testnet products (i.e. swaps, liquidity pool, bridge) to qualify for a potential snapshot. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

    1. Enter SharDex Waitlist with Our Referral Link

      Use our invite link to enter the SharDex Waitlist (we each get Share Points)! Connect your MetaMask wallet and switch the network to Shardeum Liberty 2.X.

      Afterwards, bind your Twitter and Discord accounts, and you will have your own referral link to invite friends for more Share Points.

    2. Claim SBT and Complete Crew3 Tasks

      After successfully referring 3 friends, you can claim your SBT and join the SharDex NFT Waitlist for the Genesis Airdrop. Additionally, you can complete their Crew3 tasks to earn more Share Points. They are very easy to complete.

    3. Swap Tokens

      From this point on, it’s optional, but participating may increase your chances of being included in an airdrop if there are snapshot criteria for using the protocol.

      Get some $SHM at faucet.liberty20.shardeum.org, and then you can swap tokens at testnet.shardex.org/swap.

    4. Stake $SDT in Pools

      Stake some testnet $SDT at testnet.shardex.org/pools. You can choose to stake manual SDT or Auto SDT, similar to the compounding features of PancakeSwap.

    5. Provide Liquidity and Stake LP Tokens

      If you have at least 2 tokens, you can provide liquidity for certain trading pairs by depositing them at testnet.shardex.org/pool. After getting the LP tokens, you can stake them at testnet.shardex.org/farm to earn more $SDT.

    6. Bridge Assets to Shardeum (For SBT Holders Only)

      Once you have your SBT, you can use their Bridge feature. You will need some $SHM to cover gas fees. As of now, there are five test coins to bridge between seven different testnets.

    Airdrop Review

    When reviewing an airdrop, there are several factors to consider. First, the likelihood the project will even do an airdrop in the first place. Then, to look at how many tokens the project intends to allocate towards airdrop campaigns, as well as the difficulty in participating in their airdrop. It is also important to look at the utility of the token so that there will be an actual use and purpose in participating in the airdrop in the first place. Finally, a factor to consider when reviewing an airdrop is whether the airdropped tokens are subject to any lockup period.

    Likelihood of Airdrop: There will be an airdrop in the future, according to SharDex’s roadmap.

    Airdropped Token Allocation: Token distribution information will be released soon.

    Airdrop Difficulty: The tasks are straightforward and easy to complete. Simply connect your wallet to Shardeum Liberty 2.X, bind your Twitter and Discord accounts, and refer your friends using the invite link. You will earn Share Points for completing these tasks, which can be redeemed for token rewards in the future. Additionally, after successfully referring three friends, SharDex will automatically send an SBT to your wallet, which can be used as a ticket for future IDOs and airdrops.

    Token Utility: SharDex has not yet published details of the utilities of $SDT, but it is likely that they will follow a similar model to other DEX protocols, including governance rights, fee discounts, yield farming, and listing fees.

    Token Lockup: Tokenomics has not yet been published.

  • Vertex Protocol ($VRTX) Token Airdrop Guide: LIVE NOW!

    Vertex Protocol ($VRTX) Token Airdrop Guide: LIVE NOW!

    Vertex Protocol’s testnet is currently live, and they are planning to launch their $VRTX token. This means that an airdrop is very likely. In this article, we will explain what Vertex Protocol is and what you can do to position for the airdrop.

    Vertex Protocol ($VRTX)Airdrop Step-by-Step Guide

    Here’s how to get a potential Vertex Protocol ($VRTX) airdrop:

    1. Connect Arbitrum Goerli to your Wallet
    2. Claim Testnet Faucet ETH
    3. Claim Extra Testnet Funds on Vertex Protocol
    4. Deposit Funds to Start Trading
    5. Trade on Vertex Protocol

    See below for more details.

    What is Vertex Protocol?

    Vertex Protocol is a decentralized exchange (DEX) that offers fast and efficient cross-margined spot and derivatives trading, lending and borrowing for yield or leverage, and a robust risk engine for capital efficiency and risk management. It features an easy-to-use UI/UX for both Web3 and Web2 preferences, industry-leading fees, and complete self-custody of funds.

    Built on Arbitrum, Vertex leverages smart contracts for optimal liquidity and trading opportunities, multiple UIs catering to traders of different levels and goals, a high-quality software development kit, future tokenomics for strong alignment of incentives and governance rights, and seamless bridging and on/off ramp experiences directly in the dApp. With Vertex, users can enjoy a frictionless decentralized trading experience while having full custody of their own funds.

    Does Vertex Protocol have a Token?

    Yes, Vertex Protocol confirmed in their litepaper that they are planning to launch their $VRTX token. It is a governance token that allows users to participate in the protocol in a decentralized manner. Additionally, Vertex will create two other tokens: xVRTX, a liquid staking token, and voVRTX, a voting token that cannot be transferred. Both tokens are crucial in rewarding stakeholders at different levels of governance and participation based on their level of commitment to the protocol.

    How to Receive Potential $VRTX Airdrop?

    Time needed: 15 minutes

    The best chance to receive a potential $VRTX airdrop is to interact with the Vertex Protocol testnet. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to position yourself for the airdrop:

    1. Connect Arbitrum Goerli to your Wallet

      Go to app.vertexprotocol.com/portfolio/overview, connect your MetaMask and switch to the Arbitrum Goerli network. It will automatically connect for you.

    2. Claim Testnet Faucet ETH

      Copy and paste your wallet address at faucet.triangleplatform.com/arbitrum/goerli to claim 0.01 testnet ETH on Arbitrum Goerli. You will need this for gas fee in the next step.

    3. Claim Extra Testnet Funds on Vertex Protocol

      After you have some testnet ETH on your Arbitrum Goerli, go to app.vertexprotocol.com/portfolio/faucet. You can mint testnet wBTC, wETH, and USDC here. You can mint as many times as you like, but keep in mind they have no monetary value.

    4. Deposit Funds to Start Trading

      Go to app.vertexprotocol.com/portfolio/overview and click “Deposit”, and then approve and confirm the transaction. Keep in mind your deposits may take a few minutes to be reflected in balances.

    5. Trade on Vertex Protocol

      Once your funds are deposited, you can start trading on the spot market or perpetuals. Since these are testnet tokens, feel free to go crazy on those trades! We recommend making at least 10 trades per day to secure a position for the airdrop snapshot.

      You can check your open orders at app.vertexprotocol.com/portfolio/orders, your perpetual positions at app.vertexprotocol.com/portfolio/positions, and your account balance at app.vertexprotocol.com/portfolio/balances.

    Airdrop Review

    When reviewing an airdrop, there are several factors to consider. First, the likelihood the project will even do an airdrop in the first place. Then, to look at how many tokens the project intends to allocate towards airdrop campaigns, as well as the difficulty in participating in their airdrop. It is also important to look at the utility of the token so that there will be an actual use and purpose in participating in the airdrop in the first place. (perfumesample.com) Finally, a factor to consider when reviewing an airdrop is whether the airdropped tokens are subject to any lockup period.

    Likelihood of Airdrop: Vertex Protocol has not officially announced an airdrop. However, their testnet is currently live and they are planning to launch the $VRTX token, which means an airdrop is very likely.

    Airdropped Token Allocation: Their tokenomics is not yet available, so this information is unknown for now.

    Airdrop Difficulty: It is very simple to qualify for the airdrop. All you have to do is connect to the Arbitrum Goerli network in your MetaMask, claim testnet tokens, and start trading.

    Token Utility: The $VRTX token is a governance token that enables users to participate in Vertex Protocol in a decentralized manner. The protocol will also introduce two other tokens: xVRTX, a liquid staking token, and voVRTX, a voting token that cannot be transferred. These tokens will be used to reward stakeholders at different levels of governance and participation based on their level of commitment to the protocol.

    Token Lockup: The $VRTX token lockup period is unknown for now.

  • Crypto Airdrops Tier List 2023: Discover Rare, Thrilling, and High-Yield Gems to Skyrocket Your Earnings!

    Crypto Airdrops Tier List 2023: Discover Rare, Thrilling, and High-Yield Gems to Skyrocket Your Earnings!

    Welcome to the most comprehensive and up-to-date Crypto Airdrops Tier List for 2023! As the world of cryptocurrencies continues to evolve at a rapid pace, airdrops have become a go-to strategy for both new and established projects to gain traction and reward their communities. In this insightful guide, we’ve meticulously ranked the top airdrops of the year based on their potential rewards, project credibility, and overall excitement. Get ready to uncover hidden gems, maximize your earnings, and be a part of the most lucrative crypto airdrops of 2023!

    Crypto Airdrops Tier List 2023

    Crypto Airdrops Tier List 2023

    We have compiled the top trending airdrops this year into a tier list based on four criteria:

    • Project Credibility — Is the project backed by reputable investors or partnered with well-established, legitimate projects? Is there any public information available about the project team, and do they have prior experience in the blockchain industry?
    • Security — Is it safe to connect my MetaMask or other crypto wallets to the project’s website? Has the project been audited by a third-party security firm?
    • Cost — Does participating in the airdrop require any form of spending or investment, or is it entirely free?
    • Effort — How much time and effort do I need to invest in completing the tasks that qualify me for the airdrop? Are these tasks simple or challenging? Does it require me to be a developer, validator, or just a regular user?

    S Tier Airdrops

    zkSync

    • Project Credibility — zkSync is developed by Matter Labs, a well-known engineering team based in Europe. They have raised $458 million in financing across all rounds, backed by the likes of the Ethereum Foundation.
    • Security — The project has been audited by several top smart contract security firms including OpenZeppelin, Halborn, and Code4rena.
    • Cost — You will need to bridge ETH to the zkSync Era Mainnet via ZigZag Exchange or Orbiter Finance. Swap stablecoin pairs to minimize cost risk. You can also interact with the zkSync Era Testnet using free testnet tokens.
    • Effort — The steps are easy to follow, but it’s recommended to perform them frequently and consistently to be included in the snapshot. Actions involve bridging your funds, swapping and trading tokens, or providing liquidity. The higher the aggregate value, the more $ZKS tokens you can potentially earn.

    Grading Insight: zkSync is the most anticipated airdrop after Arbitrum. Over the past week, crypto users have bridged over $8 million in funds to the network in hopes of qualifying for the airdrop. Moreover, protocols on zkSync will also conduct their own retroactive airdrop, allowing you to earn additional rewards.

    Sui

    • Project Credibility — Sui is developed by Mysten Labs, comprising former Meta (formerly Facebook) executives and engineers. The company has raised $300 million, resulting in a valuation of over $2 billion, with backing from major investors like Coinbase and Binance.
    • Security — Sui’s security architecture is secured by Move, a Rust-based programming language independently developed by Meta. The smart contract code for Sui is publicly available for review and auditing.
    • Cost — Similar to Aptos, you can interact with protocols on Sui with free devnet tokens.
    • Effort — Building protocols on Sui requires coding experience. As a regular user, you can perform simple tasks like staking devnet tokens or minting NFTs until the mainnet launch in Q2.

    Grading Insight: Aptos, also an L1 built by former Meta developers, conducted one of the largest airdrops last year. It is very likely Sui will also follow suit.

    A Tier Airdrops

    StarkNet

    • Project Credibility — StarkNet is developed by StarkWare Industries, an Israeli software company that specializes in cryptography. They have raised $100 million that puts the company’s estimated value at $8 billion. They are partners with some of the biggest names in crypto including ConsenSys and Chainlink.
    • Security — StarkNet is audited by numerous leading security firms like Consensys Diligence and OpenZeppelin.
    • Cost — You will need to bridge ETH to the Starknet Alpha Mainnet via StarkGate. Swap stablecoin pairs to minimize cost risk.
    • Effort — Argent X wallet is required. Bridge and swap assets frequently and consistently to be included in the snapshot. The higher the aggregate value, the more tokens you can potentially earn.

    Grading Insight: StarkNet is one of the highest valued L2 project in the crypto market. More than half of its total token supply will be allocated to community incentives and ecosystem funds.

    Shardeum

    • Project Credibility — Shardeum is co-founded by Nischal Shetty and Omar Syed. Shetty is the founder and CEO of WazirX and Syed is a blockchain architect who previously worked for NASA and Shardus. The project has raised $18.2 million, backed by Jane Street and The Spartan Group.
    • Security — Shardeum ensures security through dynamic state sharding, which makes it challenging to attack due to the random assignment of nodes to shards in the network.
    • Cost — You can interact with the Shardeum betanet with free testnet tokens.
    • Effort — Mint NFTs or swap assets frequently on different Shardeum protocols.

    Grading Insight: Shardeum is developing an innovative sharding technology, and has a very large user base. They confirmed airdropping 25.4 million $SHM tokens to ecosystem users.

    Scroll

    • Project Credibility — Scroll is a globally distributed team filled with experts in zero-knowledge cryptography and distributed systems on blockchain technology. Backed by Polychain Capital, the project has raised a total of $83 million in funding rounds, bringing its valuation to $1.8 billion.
    • Security — Scroll is a hierarchical zero-knowledge proof system, inheriting security from the Ethereum mainnet. The smart contract code for Scroll is publicly available for review and auditing.
    • Cost — Scroll is currently in its Alpha Testnet phase, which means you can use free testnet tokens to interact with the protocol.
    • Effort — Bridge testnet tokens between Goerli Testnet (L1) and Scroll Alpha Testnet (L2) frequently.

    Grading Insight: Scroll is another highly popular Ethereum L2 scaling solution. The team has confirmed creating an incentive mechanism to encourage participation in the network. Start using the testnet now for free!

    MetaMask

    • Project Credibility — MetaMask is the most used Ethereum wallet in the world.
    • Security — All user wallets are secured with client-side encryption. With proper user practice, MetaMask is a reliable and secure option for managing and interacting with Ethereum-based cryptocurrencies and decentralized applications. Their recent audit was conducted in March 2023.
    • Cost — You will need ERC-20 tokens. You can also buy ETH directly on MetaMask using credit cards, Apple Pay or bank transfers.
    • Effort — Bridge and swap ERC-20 tokens regularly with the built-in features in MetaMask.

    Grading Insight: MetaMask is one of the foundations of the Web3 world, which is why its token can be very valuable.

    B Tier Airdrops

    LayerZero

    • Project Credibility — LayerZero Labs is founded by a team of computer scientists from the University of New Hampshire. The project has raised $135 million from the likes of Coinbase and PayPal. LayerZero has a large ecosystem of DeFi protocols including Uniswap and Stargate Finance.
    • Security — LayerZero has commissioned over 35 audits with the most recent audits on Github.
    • Cost — You will need real funds to interact with the protocols on LayerZero. But you can also bridge Goerli testnet USDC between EVM chains using the USDC LayerZero Bridge.
    • Effort — Make small transactions, deposit funds, provide liquidity, swap assets as frequently as you can.

    Grading Insight: LayerZero has a large user base, and is backed by PayPal. It has the potential to be a core infrastructure of Web3 interoperability, which is why its token can be valuable in the future.

    ZetaChain

    • Project Credibility — ZetaChain is built by former Coinbase and Basic Attention Token (BAT) developers. It is backed by Coinbase, Binance, Polygon, and more.
    • Security — ZetaChain employs a novel omnichain approach to mitigate the risks of asset fragmentation and reduce the chances of 51% attacks. The project has been audited by PeckShield, Veridise, and QuantumBrief, and offers a bug bounty of up to $100,000.
    • Cost — The incentivized testnet currently involves testnet tokens.
    • Effort — Request ZETA tokens and swap assets between different chains frequently.

    Grading Insight: ZetaChain is featured on CoinGecko’s list of top airdrops to look out for in 2023. Its points-based system makes it easy for users to track their contribution to the network.

    Mantle Network

    • Project Credibility — Mantle Network is incubated by BitDAO, one of the largest DAOs and partner of Bybit.
    • Security — Its architecture adopts a modular approach to create a seperate, decetralized data availability layer in collaboration with EigenLayer. Smart contract code is regularly audited by the BitDAO community.
    • Cost — The incentivized testnet currently involves testnet tokens.
    • Effort — Bridge Goerli ETH to Mantle Testnet frequently. You can also complete Mantle Quests on Crew3 and Guild for a Discord role.

    Grading Insight: Developed by BitDAO, Mantle is a fully community-driven project. As such, value to the project is rewarded back to loyal supporters and users.

    Polyhedra Network

    • Project Credibility — Polyhedra Network is built by leading engineers, developers, and researchers from UC Berkeley, Tsinghua University, and Stanford University. The project recently raised $10 million in funding, backed by Binance, Animoca Brands, and Polychain Capital.
    • Security — Its infrastructure uses zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) to provide privacy extensions for Web3 with stealth address models.
    • Cost — Only testnet tokens are needed to cover gas fees.
    • Effort — Use Polyhedra CreatorTool to mint your own NFT and bridge them to other testnet blockchains. Repeat the process on different chains to enhance visibility of your on-chain activities.

    Grading Insight: Polyhedra just recently launched its testnet, which means early users are in a good position for a potential airdrop.

    C Tier Airdrops

    Fuel Network

    • Project Credibility — Fuel Network raised $80 million in funding, backed by Blockchain Capital and Stratos Technologies.
    • Security — The system is based on a fraud- or validity-provable computation system that leverages a modular blockchain for data accessibility.
    • Cost — Their Beta-2 Testnet is live. No real funds are used.
    • Effort — Fuel Wallet is required. Swap and trade tokens on SwaySwap frequently. You can also interact with other ecosystem DApps.

    Grading Insight: Fuel has not confirmed a token launch yet. But it is likely it needs a token to support its ecosystem and facilitate the functioning of the platform.

    Celestia

    • Project Credibility — Co-founder of Fuel Network, John Adler, also co-founded Celestia. The project has raised $55 million in funding, backed by Coinbase and Polychain Capital. Its total valuation is over $1 billion.
    • Security — Modular architecture is similar to Fuel Network. Celestia offers shared security to blockchains deployed on it by providing consensus and data availability inherited by all utilizing chains.
    • Cost — Its incentivized testnets require a node with decent internet connection. You will need to set up a development environment to run the Celestia node.
    • Effort — This is more suitable for developers or validators rather than users.

    Grading Insight: Limited access to general users.

    D Tier Airdrops

    Blur

    • Project Credibility — Blur is the fastest growing NFT marketplace on Ethereum, backed by Paradigm. Many Bored Ape holders and NFT whales have moved from OpenSea to Blur.
    • Security — Blur is audited by Code4rena and Dedaub. It uses multi-signature contracts for token transfers. However, Blur has a smart contract risk in its execution module, which only checks if the caller can transfer tokens. Contract owners may add addresses as callers for token transfers, so users must trust Blur before trading NFTs on it.
    • Cost — You will need ETH to bid or list on Blur. The more the better.
    • Effort — The difficulty for the Season 2 airdrop may increase due to heightened competition.

    Grading Insight: Since Blur tends to favor NFT and ETH whales, it might not be the most suitable choice for those looking for cost-free airdrops.

    Key Takeaway

    It is important to note that lower tier rankings does not mean that the airdrop is not good. It is simply because they are not as accessible as the higher tiered ones to everyday users. All of these crypto airdrops are the most trending this year, offering high value to early users.

  • Alchemy Pay ($ACH) 2023 Guide: Strongest Performing China Coin Narrative

    Alchemy Pay ($ACH) 2023 Guide: Strongest Performing China Coin Narrative

    Alchemy Pay ($ACH) is leading the Chinese coin rally. And data suggests Alchemy Pay prices can go much higher throughout 2023. They are collaborating with the likes of Binance, Visa, MasterCard, and PayPal to provide crypto and fiat payment services. In this article, we will explain what Alchemy Pay is, and why $ACH should be on your 2023 watch list.

    What is Alchemy Pay?

    Alchemy Pay provides real-world crypto payment solutions and fiat on/off ramps for global businesses, developers, and consumers. One key problem in the current blockchain payment landscape is the lack of integration between traditional financial systems and cryptocurrencies. The project aims to address this by incorporating a hybrid solution. The solution is to (1) simplify the use of crypto to access traditional financial services; and (2) have fiat currency access blockchain services and value.

    This will be huge for driving crypto adoption, as it is essentially a network system that allows cross-platform payments. For example, users can use their credit cards to make payments in fiat currencies. Their payment gateway converts this into crypto. This allows users to make credit card purchases while benefiting from the advantages of cryptocurrency. Such as faster and more secure transactions.

    Payment Channels and Strategic Partners

    Alchemy Pay already has a global reach of 173 countries and over 300 fiat payment channels. These include Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, regional mobile wallets, and domestic bank transfers. They also have a massive network of strategic partnerships with many major blockchain networks and services. For example Polygon, Chainlink, Arbitrum, Coinbase, and Bybit.

    Who is the Team behind Alchemy Pay?

    In 2018, Molly Zheng and Shawn Shi established Alchemy Pay in Singapore. Both founders have extensive backgrounds in the financial sector. Zheng previously held the position of senior consultant at PayPal China, and also worked for HSBC China and Mastercard China. In 2021, Zheng was appointed Chairwoman of Alchemy Pay’s Board and was succeeded as CEO by John Tan, the then-COO. Tan was responsible for driving the growth of the project’s payment business. He did this by securing the company’s initial base of merchant networks across Asia. Their team now boasts over 80 members who have deep experience across the blockchain and payments industries.

    The “China Coin” Narrative in 2023

    A growing number of Twitter crypto experts predict a surge in the value of “Chinese coins” in the near future. The easing of regulations in Hong Kong and the potential for quantitative easing in China largely attribute to this. We also see a correlation between massive liquidity injections by the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) and an increase in the overall market cap of crypto.

    https://twitter.com/NoodleofBinance/status/1626839763155324929

    Furthermore, the announcement of a new licensing regime for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) in Hong Kong has generated public interest in Chinese cryptocurrencies. Even though this licensing regime will not have a direct impact on retail buyers. However, both these catalysts may not have as significant of an impact as anticipated. The uncertainty of the actual size of the monetary easing and the lack of a well-defined concept of a “Chinese coin” remain.

    People are still interested in taking advantage of any potential mini-rally despite these uncertainties. And are actively searching for investment opportunities. Whilst $ACH still has a small market cap, but with strong connections and established infrastructure, it could become a leading contender in China this year.

    Alchemy Pay news

    On 23rd February 2023, Alchemy Pay announced its partnership with Conflux Network. Conflux Network is a permissionless Layer 1 blockchain which connects decentralized economies across borders and protocols. Through this partnership, Alchemy Pay would be able to have an easy fiat on-ramp onto its ecosystem. This on-ramp payment solution will allow people to buy crypto using their local currency, which will give Conflux’s system a higher level of convenience for both beginners and experienced users. By working together, Alchemy Pay will help Conflux expand its reach around the world. Now with 2 of China’s hottest projects joining forces, we will hopefully see a massive boost for both Alchemy Pay and Conflux’s tokens.

    Alchemy Pay $ACH Token and Price Prediction for 2023

    $ACH is the utility token of Alchemy Pay, issued on the Ethereum blockchain as an ERC-20 token. There is a total circulating supply of 4 billion $ACH. Its primary use is for its partners to pledge their $ACH as an intermediate settlement currency between token payment networks. Also, as a medium for transaction fees. Alchemy Pay coin is required for every transaction. But, businesses and merchants within the network receive $ACH incentives for accepting crypto as payment at their point of sale.

    As of 20th February 2023, we can see from the price chart that $ACH price is gaining a momentum. There has been a 142.1% increase over the past seven days. Technical indicators do show that $ACH is overbought. But its long-term 50 & 200 daily moving average crossover indicates a bullish trend. This suggests that $ACH is likely to continue its uptrend. The pump to $0.041 at the time of writing is partly attributed to news of them partnering with Google Pay. Provided they expand their infrastructure and build more connections, $ACH could deliver strong returns in 2023.

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    What is Alchemy Pay?

    Alchemy Pay is a blockchain and cryptocurrency project which aims to provide real-world crypto payment solutions and a fiat on/off ramp for global businesses, developers, and consumers.

    Is Alchemy Pay a good coin?

    Alchemy Pay is a good coin with potential. $ACH is currently at US$0.050599 and its all-time high price was $0.198666. It is currently ranked number 177 amongst all cryptocurrencies in terms of market capitalization.

    Is Alchemy Pay a good investment?

    Alchemy Pay’s $ACH token is also very popular among Chinese cryptocurrency investors. As with any investment, it is important to do your own research and consider the potential risks before investing in Alchemy.

    Does Alchemy Pay have potential?

    Alchemy Pay does have potential since the Chinese cryptocurrency community views the project so favourably. Also, the Chinese crypto narrative is seen as a huge trend this year, which will certainly give Alchemy Pay a boost.

    Who invested in Alchemy Pay?

    Alchemy Pay completed its Series A funding round in 2022. They raised US$15 million from several investors including Charles Schwab and Jay Z.

  • Hong Kong Receives China’s Blessings to Set Up Asia’s Biggest Crypto Hub

    Hong Kong Receives China’s Blessings to Set Up Asia’s Biggest Crypto Hub

    In what might be considered a contrast to mainland China’s strict anti-crypto stance, Hong Kong’s goal of becoming a cryptocurrency hub is reportedly seeing subtle support from the Chinese government. This could be the beginning of a massive crypto expansion in the Asian market, as the “Chinese coin” narrative is increasingly gaining much traction.

    Hong Kong SFC Proposes Crypto Regulations that Benefits Retail Investors

    According to Bloomberg, Hong Kong is gearing up for a consultation process that could potentially legalize retail cryptocurrency trading in the region. The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC) proposed new regulations on 20th February that require all centralized crypto exchanges operating in the region to obtain licenses from the regulator.

    The proposal also suggested allowing retail traders to use licensed cryptocurrency trading platforms, citing public input that restricting access to crypto markets could drive Hong Kong residents to trade on unregulated foreign platforms.

    Major Crypto Businesses Looking to Expand into Hong Kong

    The recent regulatory changes have encouraged crypto businesses to look for opportunities to expand into Hong Kong. Huobi Global has declared its intention to acquire a local license and open a new exchange that caters to institutional and high-net-worth investors.

    Justin Sun, the founder of Tron and adviser to Huobi, mentioned to Bloomberg that the company is planning to apply for a crypto trading license from the SFC. He stated that the new license would allow Huobi to offer a wider range of crypto trading and investment options to customers in Hong Kong. (Tramadol) The new exchange, Huobi Hong Kong, will be specifically tailored to institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals.

    China Gives Green Light to Hong Kong’s Crypto Expansion?

    Representatives from China’s Liaison Office have been attending Hong Kong’s crypto events, and their encounters with the local crypto businesses were reportedly positive. This is perceived by some as support for Hong Kong’s ambition to become a crypto hub, using its separate legal system and markets as a testbed.

    Nick Chan, a National People’s Congress member and crypto lawyer, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that Hong Kong is free to pursue its own interests as long as it does not cross the line and endanger financial stability in China under the “One Country, Two Systems” framework.

  • Conflux Network ($CFX) 2023: China’s Blockchain Project Set to Soar

    Conflux Network ($CFX) 2023: China’s Blockchain Project Set to Soar

    News of potential quantitative easing in China has led crypto experts to believe that there will be a surge in the value of Chinese blockchain projects. As such, Conflux Network ($CFX), one of China’s public blockchain, has seen a whopping 1600% price increase in 2023. In this article, we will explain what Conflux is, and why $CFX should be on your watch list this year.

    If you are interested in another Chinese crypto project, Alchemy Pay ($ACH) is also a top Chinese project this year.

    What is Conflux?

    Conflux Network is a public blockchain platform designed to support high-performance decentralized applications (dApps). It aims to address some of the limitations of existing blockchain networks such as slow transaction processing times, limited scalability, and high fees. It uses a novel consensus algorithm called Shanghai Tree-Graph that enables high throughput while maintaining decentralization and security. The algorithm allows multiple blocks to be generated in parallel and then merged into a single chain.

    Conflux Network also supports a range of smart contract languages, including Solidity, the most widely used language for Ethereum smart contracts. This means that developers can easily port their existing dApps from Ethereum to Conflux Network and take advantage of its faster transaction processing times and lower fees.

    Who is the Team behind Conflux?

    Conflux Network was founded by a team of researchers and developers from Tsinghua University in China and the University of Toronto in Canada. The co-founders of Conflux Network are Fan Long (CEO) and Xiaolong Wang (Chief Scientist). The team also includes a number of other experienced researchers, developers, and advisors from various fields, such as computer science, blockchain, and finance.

    Why is $CFX Pumping?

    The current price surge of $CFX seems to have strong support from retail investors, as indicated by social media metrics and fundamentals. This came as a result of two significant developments made by Conflux:

    On 15th February 2023, Conflux announced that they are developing blockchain-based SIM cards in partnership with China Telecom, one of the largest wireless carrier in China (390+ million movile subscribers). The trial program will first launch in Hong Kong later this year, followed by key mainland China locations such as Shanghai.

    Earlier in late January, Conflux partnered with Little Red Book, the Chinese equivalent of Instagram, to provide NFT services for the social media platform’s 200 million users. The news prompted a 90% increase in CFX’s price.

    $CFX Price Prediction 2023

    Looking at the technical aspects, CFX has experienced a significant increase in price which has caused it to become very overbought. This can be seen in both the daily and weekly charts where CFX’s relative strength index has risen above 70, indicating that the uptrend is close to its limit.

    Additionally, the Conflux Network token is currently testing the $0.28-$0.41 range as a resistance level, which was previously a support level between May and November 2021. If CFX falls back from this resistance area, its price could drop to the range of $0.097-$0.141, which is its main downside target.

    This range also coincides with the token’s 50-week exponential moving average (50-week EMA) at around $0.108, which is approximately 65% lower than the current price levels. On the other hand, if CFX manages to break above the $0.28-$0.41 range decisively, its price could rise to $0.84, which was the resistance level during the May-September 2021 period.

    Will $CFX Continue Its Momentum Throughout 2023?

    From a fundamental standpoint, $CFX is part of the “Chinese coins” narrative that is trending in 2023. With the potential of quantitative easing in China and crypto expansion in Hong Kong, people on the Crypto Twitter space are actively searching for investment opportunities in the Chinese market, taking advantage of any potential rally. $CFX still has a relatively small market cap, but has the potential to deliver strong returns for its investors if its momentum continues. And its momentum will likely continue if continuous development is seen in the Asian market.

  • Aptos vs Sui Blockchain: Similarities and Differences

    Aptos vs Sui Blockchain: Similarities and Differences

    Which Layer 1 Blockchain is “Better”?

    In the past year, layer 1 (L1) blockchains have exploded, facilitating ecosystem pumps throughout the market. L1s have become a viable alternative blockchain to Ethereum, the OG. They offer better scalability, lower fees, native DApps, risky meme tokens, massive APYs and more.

    As smart investors, we know that when an ecosystem is performing well, its underlying token is a great opportunity to make substantial profits. And with the Solana and Nomad hack happening recently, other L1s have become increasingly popular as investors are looking for a more secure and innovative blockchain.

    Aptos and Sui are among the most discussed L1s recently, with many venture capitals (VC) expressing investment interest in them.

    Both show a lot of promise to blockchain veterans as these web3 startups are formed by ex-Meta (formerly Facebook) blockchain developers as well as their infrastructure being based on Meta’s abandoned blockchain intiative, Diem.

    However, both teams have vastly different approaches to tackling the issue of blockchain scalability. In this article, we will compare and contrast Aptos and Sui, and consider which L1 blockchain you should be more bullish on.

    What is Aptos?

    Aptos is co-founded by Mo Shaikh (CEO) and Avery Ching (CTO), both former Meta employees who have years of experience as a senior developer and engineer in the blockchain industry.

    The team behind Aptos, also known as Aptos Labs, consists of an impressive group of PhDs, researchers, engineers, designers and strategists. Moreover, the team at Aptos has been aggresively expanding. They recently acquired several former Solana staff, most notably Austin Virts, former Head of Marketing at Solana.

    Aptos utilizes key elements of the former Diem blockchain as well as Move, a Rust-based programming language independently developed by Meta. Aptos claims the network will be able to process over 130k transactions per second using its parallel execution engine (Block-STM), which will mean lower transaction costs for users.

    See also: Aptos Blockchain Guide: the Next Big Innovation in Blockchain Scaling (Layer 1)?

    What is Sui?

    Sui is co-founded by Evan Cheng (CEO), Sam Blackshear (CTO), Adeniyi Abiodun (CPO), and George Danezis (Chief Scientist). They were former senior leaders of Meta’s advanced blockchain research and development organization.

    They were responsible for creating some of the most advanced open source components such as the programming language, execution engine and cryptography of the Diem blockchain.

    Sui is a decentralized, permissionless L1 blockchain designed to allow creators and developers to build experiences for web3 users. Similar to Aptos, its proof-of-stake network will scale horizontally and organise data such that transactions are executed in parallel. This greatly reduces computational power and transaction costs.

    Although both Aptos and Sui use Move as their programming language, their versions differ from each other, as such that their infrastructure operates distinctively on a fundamental level.

    See also: Sui Blockchain Guide: Revolutionary Scalability Solution?

    Aptos vs Sui Comparison

    Programming Language

    Both Aptos and Sui use Move, a Rust-based programming language, for parallel execution, but Sui uses has a different version of it.

    In short, Move is an executable bytecode language used to create smart contracts as well as custom transactions on the blockchain. According to Diem’s whitepaper on Move, it focuses on two major digital assets: scarcity and access control. Scarcity imposes limitations on asset creations, preventing any double-spending, while access control manages ownership and privileges.

    It differs from other programming language like Solidity because of its use of resources, which is drawn from the mathematical concept of linear logic. In linear logic, formulas are treated as fundamental resources that can only be used once. In the case of Move, “a resource can never be copied or implicitly discarded, only moved between program storage locations“, hence their name “Move”. This mechanism was designed to maximize security without adding complications to transactions, reducing gas fees.

    Aptos generally follows the textbook design of Diem’s whitepaper. On the other hand, Sui has a slightly different object model from Aptos. Its storage system is object-centric, which means that you can see most things on the blockchain, including addresses and transactions. These are represented as “objects.”

    Sui’s version of Move makes it clear when an object is owned, shared, mutable or immutable, whereas Aptos does not. Moreover, Sui’s ownership API is cleaner than that of Aptos, as it shows the blockchain design more clearly.

    Architecture

    Though both Aptos and Sui use proof-of-stake as their consensus mechanism, the consensus algorithm behind it is different.

    Aptos employs parallelization by dynamically detecting dependencies and scheduling execution tasks using BlockSTM, which is a derivative of the HotStuff consensus protocol.

    Sui implements Narwhal and Tusk as their consensus algorithm, which is a DAG-based (directed acyclic graph) mempool used for parallelization at the execution layer. The protocol is asynchronous which means it can withstand DoS (denial of service) attacks.

    In terms of security, Sui has a slight edge over Aptos.

    Scalability

    Instead of home validator case or large-scale decentralization, both Aptos and Sui aim to optimize scalability by maximizing network capacity, similar to Solana. However, the bottleneck would most likely be state growth in the ecosystem.

    To address the state growth bottleneck, Aptos prioritizes heterogeneous validators (constrained CPU and storage), whereas Sui plans to shard data storage efficiently, and scale its resources horizontally.

    Tokenomics

    There are five major components of the Sui economic model:

    Sui blockchain’s economic model (Source: Medium)

    SUI token: SUI is the native coin of Sui.
    Gas fees: all network operations on the platform require gas fees. Gas fees are rewarded to participants in the proof-of-stake mechanism. It can also be used to prevent spam and denial-of-service attacks.
    Storage fund: In order to compensate future validators for the storage expenses of previously stored on-chain data, Sui’s storage fund is used to distribute stake rewards over time.
    Proof-of-stake mechanism: Used to select, incentivize and reward platform operators i.e. the validators and SUI delegators.
    On-chain voting: for voting and deciding on governance and protocol upgrades.

    On the other hand, Aptos has no coin yet and its whitepaper has yet to be published. However, Aptos has launched their testnet in March and its developer community has been very active. For more information on their testnet development, you can read our previous article here.

    Funding

    Aptos Labs has raised $350 million in total from FTX Ventures, Jump Crypto, a16z, Tiger Global, Multicoin Capital, among many other capital ventures. Currently, Aptos Labs has 28 investors.

    Sui is fast catching up after its latest Series B funding round in September 2022. Mysten Labs, the company behind Sui closed a US$300 million fundraise in this round. This brings Sui to a combined raise of US$36 million so far, after adding up the $36 million from Series A. Sui also states that they are currently valued at over US$2 billion.

    Development Status

    Aptos launched its Mainnet in October 2022 and developers can now build on Aptos. They are also currently working on improving the gas schedule in 3 parts. In the short term, to have dynamic NFT gas reduction. Then, in the medium term, to have gas-efficient data structures. Finally, the long-term plan is to adopt demand-driven gas costs.

    Sui has recently finished their Sui Testnet Wave 2. Their Sui wallet is also up and running, albeit in the Devenet stage. Nevertheless, you can install the Sui wallet and request Devnet SUI tokens to try out the wallet. The Sui wallet currently has features such as sending, staking, and minting their Capy NFTs. Users can also register their domain name on Sui Name Service. (https://casadelninobilingual.com/)

    Conclusion

    It is still too early to say which one you should be more bullish on. Both projects have been developing rapidly and have done an excellent job of optimizing its current design. But whatever the case is, Move technology is most likely here to stay as it shows a lot of promise in blockchain scalability and security.

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    Is Aptos blockchain the same or related to Sui blockchain?

    No, Aptos and Sui and completely different and unrelated projects. The only connection between the two projects is that both teams have previously worked in blockchain development at Meta (formerly Facebook).

    Is Aptos blockchain better than Sui blockchain?

    It is still too early to say which one you should be more bullish on. Both projects have been developing rapidly and have done an excellent job of optimizing its current design. But whatever the case is, Move technology is most likely here to stay as it shows a lot of promise in blockchain scalability and security.

    Is Sui blockchain better than Aptos blockchain?

    It is still too early to say which one you should be more bullish on. Both projects have been developing rapidly and have done an excellent job of optimizing its current design. But whatever the case is, Move technology is most likely here to stay as it shows a lot of promise in blockchain scalability and security.

    What are the similarities between Aptos and Sui blockchain?

    Both Aptos and Sui use Move, a Rust-based programming language, for parallel execution on the blockchain, but Sui has a slightly version of it than Aptos.

    What are the differences between Aptos and Sui blockchain?

    Sui’s version of Move programming language makes it clear when an object is owned, shared, mutable or immutable, whereas Aptos does not. And although both blockchains use proof-of-stake as their consensus mechanism, the consensus algorithm behind it is different. Aptos uses BlockSTM for parallel executions, which is a derivative of HotStuff protocol, whereas Sui uses Narwhal and Tusk, a DAG-based mempool used for parallelization at the execution layer.

  • Aptos Blockchain Guide: the Next Big Innovation in Blockchain Scaling (Layer 1)?

    Aptos Blockchain Guide: the Next Big Innovation in Blockchain Scaling (Layer 1)?

    Aptos, a repurposed blockchain initiative of Meta’s abandoned web3 project (formerly Facebook). Its mainnet and token launch were hugely anticipated owing to its revolutionary infrastructure that might just surpass all other layer-one protocols. All you need to know about Aptos is in this article, made simple to understand and updated in real time.

    What is Aptos?

    Origin of Aptos

    Aptos also known as Aptos Labs is a web3 startup focused on building a scalable layer-1 blockchain. I know what you’re thinking, not another new smart-contract layer claiming to be more scalable than the others.

    But Aptos is not a new entity of its own, in fact, the company was founded by developers who formerly worked on Diem, Meta’s blockchain initiative that was abandoned in January. This means that the project already has a solid foundation to build its products off of.

    Key Features of Aptos Blockchain

    Aptos utilizes key elements of the former Diem blockchain and Move, a Rust-based programming language independently developed by Meta. The company also claims the network will be able to process over 130k transactions per second using its parallel execution engine (Block-STM), which results in low transaction costs for users.

    For context, most blockchains either execute smart contracts sequentially or require a massive parallel workload for improved performance, which requires a lot of power. Aptos differs from other blockchains because a single failed transaction will not hold up the entire chain. Instead, all transactions are processed simultaneously and validated afterwards. The ones that failed are aborted and re-executed, thanks to their STM (software transactional memory) libraries which detect and manage conflicts.

    As a result, the combination of these technologies streamlines the entire network’s throughput capacity, which has been a major bottleneck for other layer-1 blockchains. This is a short summary of Aptos’ smart contract execution according to their white paper published in August 2022. Their model is based on cloud infrastructure as a scalable and cost-efficient platform for building widely-used applications.

    Aptos enables DeFi projects to be built on its blockchain. So far, there are over 30 DeFi projects on the ecosystem. These projects include decentralized exchanges, lending protocols, and liquid staking. An example of this is Aries Markets– a margin trading protocol.

    Who is the Team behind Aptos?

    Aptos is co-founded by Mo Shaikh (CEO) and Avery Ching (CTO), both former Meta employees who have years of experience as a senior developer and engineer in the blockchain industry.

    The team consists of a battle-hardened group of PhDs, researchers, engineers, designers and strategists. They are the original creators, designers and builders of Diem.

    What’s Happening with Aptos?

    Aptos Funding

    Aptos has been securing a sizeable amount of funding from numerous crypto heavyweights despite the bear market. In March 2022, the company received $200 million in funding from a16z, Tiger Global, and Multicoin Capital, among many other venture capitalists.

    In July, the company raised $150 million in a Series A financing round led by Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX Ventures and Jump Crypto.

    Moreover, during the Venture Round on 15th September, Binance Labs doubled down on Aptos, bringing up the blockchain startup’s valuation to a massive $4 billion according to Bloomberg. With the new funding from Binance, Aptos quadrupled its valuation in six months as per Crunchbase’s report.

    A few days later on 28th September, an undisclosed amount was also raised during the Venture Round by Dragonfly Capital.

    Being backed by Binance Labs is a good sign that the project shows promise. In fact, Yi He, co-founder of Binance and the head of Binance Labs, chose to invest in Aptos in part because of the Move programming language the company is using to build its blockchain.

    Aptos Team and Ecosystem Expansion

    Moreover, the team at Aptos has been actively hiring, most notably they have acquired several former Solana staff such as Austin Virts, former Head of Marketing at Solana.

    Not only Solana staff but a lot of hardcore Solana proponents have jumped ship for Aptos as well. With the narrative of Aptos being the next Solana, people are speculating whether investors actually believe in their tech long-term, or it is simply a pump and dump for venture capital firms (VC) and whales to make back their money due to the series of liquidation across the market. VC-heavy projects should be considered a red flag, but in the case of Aptos, there is more than meets the eye.

    Aptos Testnet

    Aptos has been focusing on driving the growth of their ecosystem. Since May, Aptos has launched their testnet campaign named “Aptos Incentivized Testnet” (AIT) and is divided into four stages according to their roadmap: AIT1, AIT2, AIT3 and AIT4. The goal is to invite and reward node operators, developers, ecosystem builders, and auditors alike to deploy applications and stress-test the decentralized network, ensuring the community is ready to launch a production-grade Aptos mainnet. Each stage focuses on executing different deliverables that contribute to the overall function of the blockchain.

    AIT3 concluded on 9th September 2022, preparing for the final testnet which will lead to the mainnet launch if successful. Throughout the series of testnets, millions of transactions have been carried out, tens of thousands of nodes have been put up, and more than 1,500 have forked the Aptos-core repository. The codebase is open-source and the project has onboarded well over 100 projects. Teams such as Pontem Network, Protagonist, PayMagic, MartianDAO, Solrise Finance and more have already been building and testing on the network.

    Furthermore, Aptos also has a grant program to offer project teams and individuals non-dilutive funding in order to further develop the ecosystem. One thing is certain that the earliest projects to develop on a blockchain are the ones that tend to moon if the blockchain is successful.

    Aptos Mainnet Launch

    Aptos Labs officially launched its mainnet “Aptos Autumn” on 12th October 2022, making it the first blockchain to debut Move technology. The mainnet is currently using the latest version of AptosBFT (version 4), which leverages a Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) consensus protocol with responsive production optimization. To put it simply, this mechanism quickly minimizes the impact of failed validators on throughput and latency, significantly improving the blockchain’s performance. Aptos team has announced that they are developing AptosBFT (version 5) and will release it in a future upgrade.

    The Aptos Bridge

    The Aptos Bridge went live on 19th October 2022, powered by LayerZero, a trustless omnichain interoperability protocol. With this deployment, users will be able to move USDC, USDT, and ETH into Aptos from Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Avalanche, Polygon, and Binance Smart Chain. Users can also withdraw their funds out of the Aptos ecosystem, but as of now, there will be a 3-day transfer window to keep the network stable. According to LayerZero Labs, this will decrease as stability and time in production increase.

    Another thing to note is that there is a rate limit to the bridge, starting at an outbound value cap of $1 million every 24 hours. As stability and time in production increase, this will also increase. Finally, since Aptos is an entirely new ecosystem, native assets outside of the APT token do not exist. This means that the only way to get other assets into the ecosystem is via “wrapped assets” from other chains.

    Aptos Goes into Web3 Gaming

    Aptos has recently announced its partnership with NPIXEL, a Korean Triple-A gaming studio. NIPXEL have been behind popular massively multiplayer online role-playing games such as Gran Saga, which boasts 4 million downloads since its launch in Korea and Japan.

    Aptos and NPIXEL are joining forces to create METAPIXEL, a Web3 gaming ecosystem. This partnership sees NPIXEL creating games on the Aptos network. The goal of their partnership is to create a triple-A game that boasts true ownership of game assets.

    Partnership with Google Cloud

    Google Cloud and Aptos Labs have announced an expansion of their partnership, which now includes Google Cloud running a validator for Aptos. Additionally, Aptos has selected Google Cloud as the preferred infrastructure provider for its ecosystem, and the two companies will collaborate on an accelerator program through the Aptos Foundation that supports Web3 startups and developers working on Aptos.

    Moreover, Aptos and Google Cloud will collaborate in hosting global hackathons and other events. The purpose of these hackathons is to bring decentralized developer communities together to collaborate and address common challenges. They will also invite both the Google developer community and the Aptos community to participate and work alongside engineers from both companies to deploy projects that can be quickly scaled globally. In line with their joint events at Bitcoin, Consensus, and Converge last year, they also plan to continue engaging their communities through happy hours and panels in 2023.

    MoonPay Fiat On-Ramp Integration into Petra Wallet

    Aptos Labs and MoonPay have teamed up to make it easier for billions of people to join the web3 space. This means that users can now purchase APT using Apple Pay. Aptos Labs’ wallet, Petra, now features an easy-to-use interface for exchanging value within the Aptos ecosystem. The partnership began in November 2022 when APT became available on MoonPay.

    The integration of the MoonPay fiat on-ramp into Petra was a crucial step in enhancing the web3 user experience. The fiat on-ramp makes it easy for both new users and early adopters to get started on the Aptos network, as they can purchase APT using a variety of payment methods, including Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, and Google Pay.

    Securing Move as the Underlying Programming Model

    To ensure that Aptos is secure, their team has been developing bug-free code through a combination of disciplined software engineering practices and the right tools. This includes mandatory code review, continuous testing and integration, and best practices in the Rust ecosystem.

    Moreover, Aptos has contracted auditing companies (Certik, Holburn), conducted community auditing, and worked closely with OtterSec. They also run a bug bounty program that offers rewards of up to $1,000,000 for critical bugs and $100,000 for crash bugs. Aptos has invested in fuzzing and added redundancy through a paranoid mode in the Move Virtual Machine.

    Lowering Gas Fees with Community-Driven Feedback

    Aptos is engaging with community builders to improve its ecosystem, with a focus on reducing gas fees. The team has analyzed on-chain data and interviewed builders to gather insights. Their three-stage plan includes reducing costs for dynamic NFTs, developing gas-efficient data structures, and creating a demand-driven gas model.

    The current gas framework combines execution and storage fees, leading to an unbalanced gas price. The team will separate storage and execution fees and provide storage refunds to solve these issues. The team is committed to delivering these improvements in the coming months to better serve the network’s demand.

    What is the APT token?

    APT is the native token of the Aptos platform. The APT token is used to pay for transaction and network fees on Aptos.

    Fees will be charged on all transactions on the network and are specified in Aptos tokens. Validators will have the opportunity to prioitise the highest-value transactions on the Aptos network, and to discard transactions of lower value. The result is that the blockchain would still be able to operate efficiently when the system is at capacity. Eventually, network fees will also be deployed so that the cost of using Aptos would be proportionate to the costs of deploying hardware, maintenance, and node operation.

    In addition, APT can be used for governance voting on upgrades to the protocol and on/off-chain processes, and to secure the blockchain by way of a proof-of-stake model.

    Validators holding a minimum number of staked APT tokens can participate in transaction validation on the Aptos blockchain. The benefit of being a validator is that they can decide on the division of rewards between themselves and their respective stakers. On the other hand, stakers can select any number of validators to stake their tokens with in order to receive a pre-agreed split of the rewards. Rewards will be distributed to validators and stakers at the end of every epoch.

    At present, the maximum reward rate for stakers starts at 7% per annum and this amount is evaluated at every epoch. The maximum staking reward however will decrease by 1.5% per year until it reaches 3.25% per year. However, all reward amounts and mechanisms can be changed by governance voting.

    Aptos Token Listing

    Binance announced the listing of Aptos (APT) on their exchange and trading of the APT token commenced on 19th October 2022, 01:00 UTC. The spot trading pairs include APT/BTC, APT/BUSD, and APT/USDT, and withdrawals for APT will open on 20th October 2022, 01:00 UTC. Moreover, the listing fee for APT is at 0 BNB and users can now start depositing APT in preparation for trading.

    In addition, Binance will add APT as a new borrowable asset on cross margin and isolated margin within 48 hours from 19th October 2022, 01:00 UTC. Both margin pairs include APT/BUSD and APT/USDT.

    Where can I buy the Aptos ($APT) token?

    Aptos and MoonPay have recently partnered up to allow Petra wallet fiat on-ramps. So users can now buy APT using Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay and Google Pay.

    The APT token can also be purchased and traded on the following exchanges: Binance, Coinbase Exchange, OKX, and Digifinex.

    Start trading $APT on Binance and enjoy 20% off trading fees by signing up here.

    Is Aptos Worth Investing?

    Aptos offers unique and promising features that cannot be found in other layer-1 protocols (except for Sui which is also a Diem-based blockchain). As such, Aptos has the potential to compete with Ethereum and Solana in terms of scalability and overall network capacity.

    However, Aptos is heavily backed by venture capitals (VC), and in light of the VC bankruptcy domino effect toppling across the industry, investors should be cautious when dealing with VC-heavy projects. In fact, according to Aptos Explorer, its total supply is over 1 billion and more than 800 million of the tokens are actively staked, suggesting that early investors, private buyers, and the Aptos team collectively control 80% of the token supply.

    Nevertheless, at the end of the day, Move technology is most likely here to stay as it is a revolutionary programming foundation for blockchain scalability and security. And with decades of experience in the blockchain industry as well as Meta, Aptos Labs stakes its reputation on the long-term success of the blockchain.

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    What is Aptos?

    Aptos is a layer-1 blockchain that uses key elements of the former Diem blockchain and Move, a Rust-based programming language independently developed by Meta.

    How to buy Aptos?

    Binance announced the listing of Aptos (APT) on their exchange, and will be available for spot trading at 19th October 2022, 01:00 UTC.

    Does Aptos have a coin?

    Binance announced the listing of Aptos (APT) on their exchange, and will be available for spot trading at 19th October 2022, 01:00 UTC.

    When is Aptos ICO?

    Binance announced the listing of Aptos (APT) on their exchange, and will be available for spot trading at 19th October 2022, 01:00 UTC.

    Who is the Aptos team?

    The Aptos team consists of researchers, designers and engineers of Diem, Meta’s blockchain initiative that was abandoned in January 2022. Aptos currently has 60 employees on their team.

    Who is the founder of Aptos?

    Aptos Labs is co-founded by Mo Shaikh and Avery Ching, both former Meta employees who have years of experience in the blockchain industry.

    Is Aptos funded?

    Aptos Labs has raised $350 million in total from FTX Ventures, Jump Crypto, a16z, Tiger Global, Multicoin Capital, among many other capital ventures. Currently, Aptos Labs has 28 investors. Aptos Labs also received an undisclosed amount in strategic investment from Binance Labs, bringing its valuation to $4 billion.

    What is the Aptos testnet?

    Aptos has an incentivized testnet program where the Aptos team welcomes community members to help with testing. The first testnet was Aptos Incentivized Testnet 1 (AIT1) where the community and the Aptos team created and deployed a decentralized network for over a week. Those who met a 95% participation rate were rewarded. Eligible individuals who were unable to meet the original expectation, but still participated in at least 5% of the testing rounds were also offered 50% of the rewards.

    Aptos Incentivized Testnet 2 (AIT2) was concluded in late July 2022.

    The latest Aptos Incentivized Testnet 3 (AIT3) opened for registration on 19th August 2022 and will launch on 30th August 2022. Participants that meet the team’s success criteria will receive 800 Aptos tokens. For more details and signup, check out the Aptos blog.

    Is Aptos Labs listed on any stock exchange?

    Aptos Labs is a private company and is not listed on any stock exchange.

    What is the price of Aptos Labs (APTOS) cryptocurrency?

    Aptos Labs (APTOS) does not currently have a cryptocurrency token. Binance announced the listing of Aptos (APT) on their exchange, and will be available for spot trading at 19th October 2022, 01:00 UTC.

    Is Aptos the same or related to Sui?

    No, Aptos and Sui and completely different and unrelated projects. The only connection between the two projects is that both teams have previously worked in blockchain development at Meta (formerly Facebook).

    Is Aptos worth investing?

    Aptos shows a lot of promise but investors should be cautious as the project is heavily funded by venture capitals. But at its core, Aptos’ programming language, Move, is most likely here to stay as it offers better scalability and security compared to other layer-1 blockchains.

    Is Aptos backed by Binance?

    Aptos Labs received an undisclosed amount in strategic investment from Binance Labs, bringing its valuation to $4 billion. In fact, Yi He, co-founder of Binance and the head of Binance Labs, chose to invest in Aptos in part because of the Move programming language Aptos is using to build its blockchain.

    Is there any Aptos $APT token airdrop?

    Early Aptos network participants were given an airdrop of APT tokens. A total of 20,067,150 APT tokens were airdropped to 110,235 participants.

    How do I participate or be eligible for an Aptos APT airdrop?

    Previous Aptos users who had completed an application to join the Aptos Incentivized Testnet or minted an APTOS:ZERO testnet NFT were eligible to claim APT tokens. Those who were eligible to receive APT tokens were notified by the Aptos team via email. There are no plans for further airdrops for the time being.

    Which wallet support Aptos?

    Petra Wallet and Pontem Wallet are native non-custodial wallets for the Aptos ecosystem, and can integrate with many Aptos DApps.

    Why is Aptos dumping?

    Aptos’ price usually comes under pressure whenever there is a token unlock event. This is because early investors will typically sell those unlocked tokens to take profit. The next one will unlock on February 12, 2023.

    What is the price prediction for Aptos in 2023?

    Aptos will most likely increase in value, as the narrative for layer-1 blockchain scaling solution is trending in 2023.

  • Visa Auto-Payment on Ethereum: The Complete guide

    Visa Auto-Payment on Ethereum: The Complete guide

    Visa on Ethereum Blockchain

    Visa payment is proposing to use Ethereum and Smart Contracts as an Auto-payments platform in order to increase efficiency and speed. The company published a technical paper detailing its plan to develop an automatic payment system for self-custodial wallets on the Ethereum network. This would enable Ethereum users to schedule auto-payments from their own self-custodial wallets, making online bill payments possible via blockchains. This comes at a very critical time as Ethereum is currently in a series of network upgrades, dubbed “Ethereum 2.0“, that will drastically increase its network efficiency and capacity.

    Visa is also innovating using Ethereum’s account abstraction — combining Ethereum’s user accounts and smart contracts into one account type which allows smart contract functions including pre-scheduled executions for recurring payments. This not only progresses blockchain technology but also brings real-world applications for the general public.

    Limited Payment Options on Blockchain Networks

    Existing blockchain infrastructures do not have the core functionality for auto-payments. In order to send funds to another address, all crypto users must generate a cryptographic signature via their private key. This is an example of push payments, where a payment transaction is manually triggered by the payer. It requires time and attention from the payer.

    On the other hand, there is pull payments, where a payment transaction is triggered by the payee. Automatic online bill payments are an example of this. Most of our recurring payments today are done directly on mobile banking applications or charged on our credit/debit cards. It is very convenient as users do not have to manually settle bills every month.

    Large blockchain networks such as Bitcoin and Ethereum support push payments but do not natively support pull payments. Additionally, users might be unwilling to hand over their private keys to a third-party custodian for monthly bill payments. Therefore, Visa has found a solution to enable pull payments on Ethereum, giving users full control over their scheduled payments.

    Smart Contract Auto-Payments

    Visa leverages the concept of Ethereum’s account abstraction to provide self-custodial wallets with automatic recurring payment capability. Instead of hard-coding validity conditions into the Ethereum protocol that applies to all transactions, validity conditions can be programmed in a customizable way into a smart contract on a per-account basis. This means that users would be able to create a whitelist of pre-approved auto-payments on a “delegable account.” This would not require the owner’s signature every time a payment is made.

    Furthermore, Visa also believes account abstraction has other real-world applications beyond just recurring payment such as account recovery services, multi-owner accounts or even public accounts where anyone could make a transaction. But the technology is still nascent and a lot of research needs to be done around fundamental aspects important for digital payments such as security and scalability, which are crucial for crypto adoption.

    Other payment competitors

    As one of the world’s largest payment networks, Visa is actively getting involved in the crypto ecosystem, looking for ways to expand their capabilities within blockchain payments. This could be a huge step towards mass adoption as traditional financial leaders are seeing the potential of crypto in the long-term future of digital payments.

    In fact, more and more global financial services are getting involved in the crypto ecosystem. Last week, PayPal is partnering with MetaMask to allow users to purchase ETH directly in their wallet via PayPal. On another note, Cash App, the number one finance app in the App Store, has also added support for transactions via the Bitcoin Lightning Network.

    FAQ

    What is Visa proposing?

    Visa is proposing a technical paper detailing their plan to develop an automatic payment system for self-custodial wallets on the Ethereum network. This would enable Ethereum users to schedule auto-payments from their own self-custodial wallets, making online bill payments possible via blockchains.

    How does Visa’s solution work?

    Visa leverages the concept of Ethereum’s account abstraction to provide self-custodial wallets with automatic recurring payment capability. Instead of hard-coding validity conditions into the Ethereum protocol that applies to all transactions, validity conditions can be programmed in a customizable way into a smart contract on a per-account basis. This means that users would be able to create a whitelist of pre-approved auto-payments on a “delegable account.”

    What are the benefits of Visa’s solution?

    Visa’s solution would enable pull payments on Ethereum, giving users full control over their scheduled payments. It also has other real-world applications beyond just recurring payment such as account recovery services, multi-owner accounts or even public accounts where anyone could make a transaction.

    What other companies are getting involved in the crypto ecosystem?

    PayPal is partnering with MetaMask to allow users to purchase ETH directly in their wallet via PayPal. Cash App, the number one finance app in the App Store, has also added support for transactions via the Bitcoin Lightning Network.

    What is the potential impact of Visa’s solution?

    Visa’s solution could be a huge step towards mass adoption as traditional financial leaders are seeing the potential of crypto in the long-term future of digital payments. It could also open up more real-world applications for the general public.