[GUEST ACCESS MODE: Data is scrambled or limited to provide examples. Make requests using your API key to unlock full data. Check https://lunarcrush.ai/auth for authentication information.]  TestnetExplorer.eth [@ExplorerTestnet](/creator/twitter/ExplorerTestnet) on x XXX followers Created: 2025-07-18 02:05:00 UTC 4/8 page The History of Airdrops You Must Know When cryptocurrencies first emerged, the term “airdrop” was virtually unknown. In the early days, projects distributed free tokens primarily to promote their coins. Some websites offered small amounts of Bitcoin or tokens through faucets or PTC (Pay-To-Click) systems, which users participated in mostly for fun. These were simple giveaways, often requiring minimal effort, like visiting a site or completing basic tasks. As the crypto market evolved and new coins started flooding in, projects began leveraging social media platforms like Twitter to spread awareness. They encouraged engagement by offering rewards for actions like liking, retweeting, or commenting wallet addresses. For example, a project might say, “Comment your wallet address, and we’ll randomly select ten people to receive $XXX each.” These Twitter-based reward campaigns laid the groundwork for what we now call airdrops. The concept of airdrops as we know it today began to take shape around 2020, marking a significant shift in scale and strategy. Projects started distributing massive rewards—sometimes worth billions of dollars—through airdrops. Early on, joining an airdrop was as simple as submitting an email to get on a whitelist, and in return for this minimal support, projects offered substantial rewards. Notable examples include Internet Computer (ICP), Aptos (APT), and Arkham Intelligence, which distributed significant airdrops to whitelist participants. Many early airdrops also involved Telegram bots, where users were required to follow a project’s Twitter, like and retweet posts, and submit wallet addresses to participate. The airdrop landscape reached new heights in 2021, often referred to as the “DeFi and DEX era”. This was when decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols took center stage. One of the most iconic airdrops came from Uniswap, which announced that anyone who had used their platform before September 2020 was eligible for XXX UNI tokens—worth approximately $XXXXX at the time. Similarly, projects like dYdX, 1inch, JulSwap, PancakeSwap, and Beam launched their own tokens and rewarded early users with massive airdrops, collectively distributing billions of dollars in free tokens. This era showcased the power of airdrops to incentivize user adoption and reward community loyalty. In 2022, the focus shifted to the “NFT era”, where non-fungible tokens (NFTs) became the centerpiece of airdrop campaigns. Projects like ENS (Ethereum Name Service) distributed significant airdrops to its domain holders, while Bored Ape Yacht Club rewarded its NFT holders with ApeCoin. Similarly, Axie Infinity holders received AXS tokens, and other projects followed suit. At the time, few could have imagined that owning a seemingly simple NFT could lead to airdrops worth thousands of dollars. During this period, many projects had their own Discord servers, where top role holders or active community members earned whitelist (WL) spots for NFT mints. These NFTs often sold for significant sums, and holders later received airdrops as rewards. For instance, Pudgy Penguins launched PENGU tokens, Azuki introduced Anime tokens, Space and Time distributed SXT, and Doodles rewarded holders with DOOD tokens. (Note: While some of these tokens launched in 2024 or 2025, the NFTs were minted as early as 2022 or before.) This era solidified NFTs as a key driver of airdrop rewards. XXX engagements  **Related Topics** [coins](/topic/coins) [cryptocurrencies](/topic/cryptocurrencies) [airdrops](/topic/airdrops) [bitcoin](/topic/bitcoin) [coins layer 1](/topic/coins-layer-1) [coins bitcoin ecosystem](/topic/coins-bitcoin-ecosystem) [coins pow](/topic/coins-pow) [Post Link](https://x.com/ExplorerTestnet/status/1946028398792556809)
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TestnetExplorer.eth @ExplorerTestnet on x XXX followers
Created: 2025-07-18 02:05:00 UTC
4/8 page
The History of Airdrops You Must Know
When cryptocurrencies first emerged, the term “airdrop” was virtually unknown. In the early days, projects distributed free tokens primarily to promote their coins. Some websites offered small amounts of Bitcoin or tokens through faucets or PTC (Pay-To-Click) systems, which users participated in mostly for fun. These were simple giveaways, often requiring minimal effort, like visiting a site or completing basic tasks. As the crypto market evolved and new coins started flooding in, projects began leveraging social media platforms like Twitter to spread awareness. They encouraged engagement by offering rewards for actions like liking, retweeting, or commenting wallet addresses. For example, a project might say, “Comment your wallet address, and we’ll randomly select ten people to receive $XXX each.” These Twitter-based reward campaigns laid the groundwork for what we now call airdrops.
The concept of airdrops as we know it today began to take shape around 2020, marking a significant shift in scale and strategy. Projects started distributing massive rewards—sometimes worth billions of dollars—through airdrops. Early on, joining an airdrop was as simple as submitting an email to get on a whitelist, and in return for this minimal support, projects offered substantial rewards. Notable examples include Internet Computer (ICP), Aptos (APT), and Arkham Intelligence, which distributed significant airdrops to whitelist participants. Many early airdrops also involved Telegram bots, where users were required to follow a project’s Twitter, like and retweet posts, and submit wallet addresses to participate.
The airdrop landscape reached new heights in 2021, often referred to as the “DeFi and DEX era”. This was when decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols took center stage. One of the most iconic airdrops came from Uniswap, which announced that anyone who had used their platform before September 2020 was eligible for XXX UNI tokens—worth approximately $XXXXX at the time. Similarly, projects like dYdX, 1inch, JulSwap, PancakeSwap, and Beam launched their own tokens and rewarded early users with massive airdrops, collectively distributing billions of dollars in free tokens. This era showcased the power of airdrops to incentivize user adoption and reward community loyalty.
In 2022, the focus shifted to the “NFT era”, where non-fungible tokens (NFTs) became the centerpiece of airdrop campaigns. Projects like ENS (Ethereum Name Service) distributed significant airdrops to its domain holders, while Bored Ape Yacht Club rewarded its NFT holders with ApeCoin. Similarly, Axie Infinity holders received AXS tokens, and other projects followed suit. At the time, few could have imagined that owning a seemingly simple NFT could lead to airdrops worth thousands of dollars. During this period, many projects had their own Discord servers, where top role holders or active community members earned whitelist (WL) spots for NFT mints. These NFTs often sold for significant sums, and holders later received airdrops as rewards. For instance, Pudgy Penguins launched PENGU tokens, Azuki introduced Anime tokens, Space and Time distributed SXT, and Doodles rewarded holders with DOOD tokens. (Note: While some of these tokens launched in 2024 or 2025, the NFTs were minted as early as 2022 or before.) This era solidified NFTs as a key driver of airdrop rewards.
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