Blast L2 Network witnesses approximately $400 million in Ether (ETH) withdrawals post its mainnet launch on February 29 at 9:00 pm UTC. This event has resulted in the unlocking of nearly $2.3 billion in staked crypto that was previously tied up in the network. Blast, an optimistic rollup blockchain scaler, offers users an annual return of up to 4% on deposited Ethereum (ETH) and 5% on stablecoins held on the network.
The total value locked (TVL) in Blast peaked at $2.27 billion on Feb. 29 but has since decreased by 17.5% to $1.87 billion, with almost $400 million withdrawn, as reported by DeFiLlama data. Notable assets on the platform include approximately 469,000 ETH, 77.3 million USDC, 67.1 million USDT, 148,000 stETH, and 24.7 million DAI.
Blast, claiming to be the “only Ethereum L2 with native yield,” gained attention with its deposit-only bridge and accumulated over $2 billion in deposits. The deposited funds earned depositors Blast “points,” which are anticipated to be redeemable for a token airdrop in May 2024.
Despite initial criticism and concerns, Blast became one of the most active layer-2 networks even before the mainnet launch, attracting $2.3 billion in deposits from 181,000 users. Backed by Paradigm, Blast faced scrutiny over its one-way bridge and ongoing development but surpassed its $2 billion TVL milestone on Feb. 27.
The network also encountered an alleged exit scam on February 26, involving a gambling protocol called “Risk on Blast,” which disappeared with 420 ETH, approximately $1.25 million at the time. Blast’s founder, Pacman, acknowledged criticism but emphasized that the launch plan changes were ultimately Blast’s decision.
Despite early challenges, Blast gained support from projects like Zora and Pyth and announced a 50% airdrop allocation for developers creating decentralized apps on the platform, enhancing its ecosystem’s appeal.