The Stellar Development Foundation, the nonprofit organization behind Stellar (XLM), announced on Tuesday that they will be doing the largest airdrop in cryptocurrency history.
The airdrop will consist of $125 million worth of Stellar Lumens (XLM) to be distributed to users of the popular Blockchain Wallet.
Details of the XLM Airdrop
The first batch of the airdrop distribution will start this week, with every new user who signs up for a Blockchain wallet receiving $25 worth of XLM. The remainder of XLM tokens in the airdrop will be awarded to both new and old Blockchain wallets.
In order to be eligible for the airdrop, users must adhere to the clauses presented by Blockchain:
- “Offer available until XLM giveaway supply is depleted. Limit of one XLM airdrop per person, unless participating in any bonus activities.”
- “A person can receive the XLM airdrop in only 1 Blockchain Wallet. XLM is provided on a first come first rewarded basis, with priority for those with the oldest, completed (i.e., accounts with a verified email address) Blockchain Wallets.”
- “Participants must have an eligible account, be willing to verify their identity, and reside in an eligible market or jurisdiction.”
Airdrops have become an increasingly popular method to spurring the adoption and development of cryptocurrencies. Which is why Stellar is hoping this massive $125 million airdrop will be successful in helping to spread the adoption of Stellar Lumens.
Co-founder of Stellar, Jed McCaleb, said:
We believe that airdrops are central to creating a more inclusive digital economy. Giving away lumens for free is an invitation to communities to design the services they need. By working with Blockchain to increase the availability and active use of lumens on the network, we will increase the network’s utility by many orders of magnitude.
Blockchain Wallet
Though this airdrop is initiated by Stellar, it is made possible due to a partnership between the Stellar Development Foundation and Blockchain.
Blockchain is the creator of one of the most popular web-based cryptocurrency wallets, with over 30 million user wallets and more than $200 billion transacted with their wallets.
Blockchain is a well-established and reputable company, and describes itself as the “most trusted cryptocurrency wallet” that offers the “lowest fees in the industry.”
Together with the Stellar Lumens airdrop, Blockchain has partnered with a number of initiatives such as charity:water, code.org (Stanford school’s emerging tech initiative), and Network for Good. Blockchain has said they will reveal more information about these initiatives in the coming weeks.
Stellar Lumens Distribution
While $125 million worth of Stellar Lumens (about 500 million XLM tokens at today’s price of $0.25) may seem like a lot to be given away, in the big scheme of things, it’s not.
Stellar had 100 billion lumens created at the genesis of the project. Now, it is the duty of the Stellar Development Foundation to oversee the distribution of 95 billion of these lumens.
While Blockchain’s Stellar airdrop is big, it’s still just a small phase of the distribution.
According to the Stellar Development Foundation, they will be distributing the 95 billion lumens in the following ways:
- 50% for distribution via the Direct Sign-up Program
- 25% for distribution via the Partnership Program
- 20% for distribution via the Bitcoin Program
- 5% held by SDF to support operational costs
At the time of writing, there are nearly 19 billion lumens in circulation and a supply of more than 104 billion lumens due to a built-in inflation of 1% per year.
As Blockchain’s Stellar Lumens airdrop will distribute nearly 500 million lumens representing 2.6% of the total supply, we’ll have to wait and see if this airdrop will have an effect on the price and adoption of Stellar.
Regardless, this XLM airdrop is welcome news for both the Stellar community and Blockchain wallet users.
Do you think this airdrop will increase Stellar’s adoption? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.
