Following a lengthy delay, the Blur NFT marketplace has finally gone live with its native $BLUR token. Dropping its latest tantalizing offering amid a wave of controversy and dubious decision making.
February 14 saw the token arrive alongside the last installation of Blur airdrops, a mechanism that aimed to draw regular NFT traders to the platform. The NFT marketplace has managed to become the main competitor to OpenSea despite only launching last October. Part of its growth has been fueled by its promise to reward loyal users of its platform in the form of airdrops and tokens.
The promise was made at launch, with the airdrops scheduled in three phases, each bigger than the previous one. The first airdrop, dubbed “Care Package,” sought to reward users who traded NFTs on competing marketplaces for six months before Blur opened shop.
The second airdrop sought to reward users who listed an NFT on its marketplace throughout November 2022. The reward was 10x what was on offer for the first airdrop, and the third, which took place on February 14, was the biggest. In total, over 360 million $BLUR tokens were awarded to traders that placed bids on Blur with Care Packages containing BLUR tokens.
$BLUR is now LIVE
All traders across all marketplaces in the last 3 months, Care Package holders, and Creators are eligible for the airdrop.
You have 60 days to claim your BLUR ⏰ pic.twitter.com/AZynnHeIhz
— Blur (@blur_io) February 14, 2023
The anticipation of the final installment of the Blur airdrop significantly fueled trading on Blur. At times, the self-proclaimed “marketplace for pro traders” topped OpenSea with regards to NFT trading volume. This is despite having fewer active traders and transactions than OpenSea, which has raised some eyebrows.
Traders Engage in Wash Trading to Take Advantage of the Airdrop By Blur
Some have suspected “wash trading,” in which traders on the platform manipulate trades to boost their potential rewards. This suspicion is confirmed by data from Dune Analytics that suggests 13% of Blur trades were based on wash trading, compared to only 2% from OpenSea.
Now that the final airdrop has taken place, several top traders that have benefited from the airdrops appear to be the result of wash trading. For example, the top trader won 3.2 million BLUR tokens, currently valued at around $1.9 million. The second earned 2.97 million BLUR, or $1.8 million, and the third earned 2.5 million BLUR, or $1.5 million.
It’s not clear who owns the Ethereum wallet that took home the top prize; however, it’s a relatively new address created only three months ago. A little digging reveals that the owner has been very active the past few days, trading huge sums of Mutant Ape Yacht Club and Otherside NFTs. Interestingly, this user has been buying and selling many of the same NFTs over and over again in a bid to boost his trading volumes. The wallet also engaged in many trades, with the second and third-place wallets signifying individuals that were in cahoots to manipulate volumes.
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*All investment/financial opinions expressed by NFT Plazas are from the personal research and experience of our site moderators and are intended as educational material only. Individuals are required to fully research any product prior to making any kind of investment.
Basil is an avid fan of blockchain technology and all its innovations, and he is passionate about sharing this narrative with his audience. He has spent over five years in the crypto space, specializing in research and creating Web3 content for various media outlets around the globe.
