Jito, a Solana-based liquid staking protocol, has launched its long-awaited airdrop event distributing 90 million JTO governance tokens to users.
The Jito (JTO) airdrop, worth approximately $165 million at the time, rewards users for staking and lending JitoSOL, the protocol’s liquid SOL token.
analyst Guess The wealth effect could drive broader Solana adoption.
Jito allows users to stake Solana in exchange for JitoSOL, a liquid token that can be freely traded or used as collateral on DeFi protocols.
Along with competitor Marinade, Jito is one of Solana’s largest liquid staking platforms, each boasting a total value locked (TVL) of approximately $425 million, according to DefiLlama data. For context, Lido, the dominant liquid staking protocol, has accumulated $21.45 billion TVL in Ethereum (ETH).
The airdropped JTO tokens will allow Jito to manage the newly formed DAO and manage a significant $490 million in funds. Token allocation was based on a points system linked to JitoSOL balance and lending activity. According to Dan Smith of Blockworks Research, cited in a recent article, users could earn up to $10,000 on JTO by moving just $40 on JitoSOL.
The move mirrors other notable airdrops, such as Uniswap’s $900 million UNI token drop in 2020. dubbing According to analyst Ryan Watkins’ “stimulus check,” UNI’s wealth effect may have boosted the development of DeFi. Likewise, some believe that Jito’s airdrop could reignite interest in Solana as it recovers from FTX’s decline.
There are signs of renewal throughout the Solana ecosystem. NFT trading volumes are improving, with DEXes like Solanart and Raydium handling a record $7.3 billion in trading volume last month. Meanwhile, new projects like Jupiter Protocol are planning additional token distributions to further fuel growth.
Airdrop recipients will have an 18-month claiming period, allowing them to defer their taxes until 2024, according to Blockworks’ Ryan West. Nonetheless, more than half of the supply was claimed just hours after it was distributed. Additionally, top token holders appear to be maintaining their holdings, showing confidence in Jito’s future.
With Solana rebounding and activity heating up across exchanges, NFTs, and DeFi, the JTO airdrop could provide additional momentum for Solana. The wealth effect could spur broader adoption and development, like Uniswap’s UNI token did for DeFi. This event therefore marks an important milestone on the path to mainstream use for Jito and Solana.