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The cryptocurrency market is known for its “rags to riches” stories. But those big returns all have a high risk of losing a large part of one’s capital. Airdrops beg to differ.

What if we told you there’s a way to earn high-potential rewards without taking large risks?

Airdrops are the answer, protocols, and companies willing to reward early users. This concept became popular when Uniswap gave 400 UNI to all users – at the time, they equated to about $2,000.

This edition focuses on Layer-2s, and the total yield has ranged from $2,700 to $27,000.

Layer 2 Airdrops

Layer 2 blockchains are blockchains that are built on top of Ethereum. Several have already been launched, and many have been doing airdrops. Instead of purchasing all of these tokens, we will be able to gain exposure to the Layer 2 ecosystem via airdrops.

Watch below, including video tutorials on how to qualify for these airdrops!

Chain 1: Optimism | Status: Complete

During the Optimism airdrop this year, our members received between $1000 and $10,000 in each wallet.

Fortunately, this is not the last airdrop on Optimism, and we have mentioned several others below.

Chain 2: Arbitrum | Status: Complete

1. Go to https://bridge.arbitrum.io/
2. Deposit ETH from Ethereum mainnet to Arbitrium mainnet.
3. Once your deposit has been confirmed, add the Arbitrium network to your Web3 Wallet by selecting add L2 network on the top right of the page.
4. Go to https://www.sushi.com/ and ensure you’re connected to the Arbitrium network and not the Ethereum mainnet, and swap some ETH for another token of your choice

Chain 3: zkSync | Status: Pending

1. Go to https://wallet.zksync.io/
2. Deposit ETH from L1 to L2.
3. Once your deposit has been confirmed on the L2. Head over to https://trade.zigzag.exchange/?market=ETH-USDC&network=zksync and execute a trade.

Chain 4: StarkNet | Status: Pending

      dYdX (for StarkWare airdrop)

Note: While dYdX is now on Starkware, it intends to migrate to the Cosmos ecosystem and become an app-specific blockchain.

1. Go to https://dydx.exchange/
2. Connect your Web3 Wallet and deposit ETH from the Ethereum mainnet to dYdX.
3. Once your ETH has been deposited to dYdX after 10 confirmations, exIt would be best if you traded
4. You need at least 0.01 ETH to trade ETH. Therefore you can deposit USDC instead and make sure you have enough ETH in your Web3 Wallet to pay for gas fees (dYdX is the most expensive, $20-$40 per deposit).

      Immutable X (for StarkWare airdrop)

1. Go to https://www.immutable.com/ and deposit ETH from L1 to L2.
2. Funds can take up to an hour to appear on Immutable X. Click Marketplace and buy whatever NFT you like (NFTs can take up to 30 mins to appear in your inventory).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAt8kD8je70

 

Optimism ecosystem

Optimism is a Layer 2 scaling solution for Ethereum. It helps reduce the transaction fee and transaction time on the Ethereum blockchain. Transactions get posted to the Ethereum mainnet.  It is the second largest Ethereum layer 2 with $1.2B in TVL.

Users had the opportunity to receive between $1000 and $10,000 during the initial Optimism airdrop, which we announced to our community. Fortunately, if you missed it, you can still get the second one!

Here is a list of airdrop opportunities in the Optimism ecosystem. Make sure to check them all out!

Optimism Quests | Status: Pending

There is still time for you to participate in the second Optimism airdrop round if you missed the first one. To receive the airdrop, you must complete a set of tasks, each rewarding you with an NFT. The deadline is January 18, 2023.

Check out our report, which walks you through the tasks & the process

Protocol 1: Hop Protocol | Status: Complete**

Hop Protocol is a cross-chain bridge for sending tokens across rollups. With Hop, you can easily send tokens across, for example, Optimism and Ethereum, but it also allows you to move your tokens to another L2 ecosystem like Arbitrum.

Depending on their volume, users received between $100 and up $5000 from this airdrop!

Protocol 2: Orbiter Finance | Status: Pending

Orbiter Finance makes it possible to transfer tokens between layer 2s. ETH and stablecoin transfers between various ecosystems, including Optimism, Arbitrum, Polygon, and Zksync, are currently supported.

It is speculated that users who bridge between different chains using Orbiter will receive an airdrop.

Protocol 3: Polynomial Protocol | Status: Pending

Polynomial automates financial derivative strategies to create products that deliver passive yield on various assets.

It is speculated that users who interact with Polynomial, its derivative strategies & trade on the platform could receive an airdrop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnzEM2AJjGM

Arbitrum ecosystem

Arbitrum is a Layer 2 solution that enhances the capabilities of Ethereum’s smart contracts. It helps increase transaction speed and overall scalability. It is the largest layer 2 solution with $2.4B in TVL.

Here is a list of airdrop opportunities in the Arbitrum ecosystem. Make sure to check them all out!

Arbitrum Odessey | Status: Pending

Arbitrum Odyssey is a multi-week initiative exploring the Arbitrum ecosystem with exclusive NFTs as rewards. Partaking in the event could make you eligible for the $ARBI airdrop.

The Arbitrum Odyssey had been paused on week 2 due to congestion issues. Once we know how you can participate in the event, we'll share an update. Check out our report to learn more about the event.

Protocol 1: Across Protocol | Status: Complete

Across Protocol is an optimistic cross-chain bridge that allows users to execute transactions between Layer 2 chains and the Ethereum mainnet.

Before the airdrop, users who used Across Protocol received airdrops worth between $200 and $2000!

Protocol 2: Rage Trade | Status: Pending

Rage Trade is a perpetual protocol built on Uniswap v3. The protocol aims to become the most liquid and composable ETH perpetual on the market.

Trading on Rage Trade could make you eligible for an airdrop.

Protocol 3: Sentiment | Status: Pending

Sentiment is a lending protocol on Arbitrum that enables users to borrow up to 5x their collateral and deploy assets across various DeFi protocols.

Lending or borrowing on Sentiment could make you eligible for an airdrop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3Z62oUYnWY&feature=youtu.be