APTOS Season 2 Largest Airdrop: Pontem Network (Complete Tutorial)
2024 is undoubtedly a big year for airdrops, with various airdrop activities being released intensively. In our airdrop circle, there is another saying: "Low-cost farming big rewards still relies on public chains." However, due to the long-term PUA (pick-up artist) tactics of public chain projects like Layerzero and zkSync, many studios, professional farmers, and airdrop enthusiasts have started to feel confused, and even many airdrop hunters have lost confidence in the industry.
The market seems to have forgotten that, as the last big reward project Aptos, the first round only airdropped 3% of the tokens. Even with this 3% token distribution, individual wallets could receive airdrops worth 1000-3000 USD, considering these wallets only completed a few tasks on Galxe, voted a few times on Gitcoin, and traded a few NFTs.
Aptos has prepared a 51% token distribution for the community, with 48% yet to be distributed. Therefore, there is a wealth of over 4 billion USD available for us to mine. With such a large total wealth, why should we be PUA'd by those projects with no vision? What reason do we have not to farm these projects that already have methods and results?
1. Which direction should we strive for on Aptos
Aptos will definitely have several rounds of airdrops. As professional farmers, we need to know which direction to strive for and how to do so. Let's take a look at the official token distribution:
In the 51% community token distribution, the community portion of 410,217,359.767 APT is held by the Aptos Foundation, and 100,000,000 is held by Aptos Labs. The official statement indicates that these tokens will be used to promote the growth of Aptos ecosystem projects, so many people refer to the "community distribution" as the "ecosystem fund."
Aptos Token Economics: https://aptosfoundation.org/currents/aptos-tokenomics-overview
From these statements, we can roughly infer that a significant portion of the remaining 48% of tokens will be distributed to ecosystem users based on Aptos. Only users who actively participate in ecosystem projects will receive airdrops, so our next effort should be directed towards the Aptos ecosystem.
This is somewhat reassuring, as most Web3 development teams now issue their own tokens, allowing users to gain multiple benefits. If it’s a DeFi project, they can gain even more.
So in today’s article, let’s take a look at what we should focus on farming?
First, let's see if Aptos is preparing to issue a second round of airdrops.
2. Is Aptos really preparing to issue a second round of airdrops?
Aptos technology surpasses Solana, but both in terms of tokens and community, Aptos has not developed as vigorously as Solana. Not only Solana, but Aptos's valuation is almost the same as Celestia (3 billion USD), which has about 400,000 active stakers, nearly 4 times that of Aptos.
Aptos's largest staking platform, Amnis, has fewer than 100,000 users, with a TVL of only 45 million USD, accounting for over 25% of Aptos's total locked value.
These figures are quite detrimental for an L1 and a public chain; the lack of active users can easily lead the system into a vicious cycle. Can you say the project teams are not anxious?
So what’s the use of all this talk? What is the market's reaction? What actions are the project teams taking?
Inference 1: Aries Incentive Program, Rewards in APT
In mid-January, Aries launched an incentive program to distribute APT rewards.
https://x.com/AriesMarkets/status/1745668145015410850
When this project was launched, its TVL was about 29 million USD. By the end of March, Aries introduced the ARIES points system to incentivize borrowing/lending activities and referrals. When this news was announced, Aries's TVL was 155 million USD. 
Multiple benefits: https://x.com/AriesMarkets/status/1770753114800284005
Inference 2: Aptos Released Four Tasks on Galxe
Additionally, Aptos released four tasks on Galxe in the first and second quarters (ending in April). The tasks are simple; just obtain OAT. This might be a market test.
However, this indicates that the second round of airdrops will arrive soon, especially targeting active contributors and investors in the Aptos DeFi and NFT ecosystems.
https://x.com/Aptos/status/1767594987594944587
At this point, it is clear that Aptos's data is not very good and has been surpassed too much. The Aptos Foundation is also starting to feel anxious, having tested the waters a few times, possibly in preparation for a comprehensive bloom later.
Next, let’s see if Aptos is worth farming?
3. About Aptos --- High-Performance Public Chain
Many people may have entered the market in 2024 because of $STRK, so many are unaware of Aptos's strengths. Let's first introduce Aptos's background and see if the project is worth farming based on these objective facts.
About Aptos
According to Messari research reports, Aptos is a new independent public chain project established in 2021, focusing on security and scalability as a Layer 1 public chain. Its consensus mechanism adopts Proof of Stake, relying on the Meta background, Move language, and high TPS features, which have attracted much attention. The core developer Aptos Labs raised about 400 million USD in two rounds of private investment in 2022.
The founder of Aptos worked at Novi (Facebook) for two years, responsible for the Diem (formerly known as Libra) project. Libra was a digital currency scheme for payment transactions that started in 2019. Due to regulatory issues, Libra was retracted and transformed into a stablecoin, renamed Diem.
After several twists and turns, Diem was not successfully launched. Thus, a team of 17 former Novi/Diem engineers and researchers established Aptos, aiming to build the safest and most scalable Layer 1 blockchain.
For Aptos, having the Diem team background is one of the reasons it has garnered attention.
Technology
Aptos's technology stack has many novel aspects, including the AptosBFTv4 consensus mechanism, Quorum Store mempool protocol, Block-STM parallel execution engine, and Move programming language. Move on Aptos is built on the original Move language created by the Diem and Novi teams, offering enhanced flexibility and security compared to other Web3 programming languages. Move on Aptos is developed collaboratively by multiple protocols.
Other key features aim to improve user experience and security, including decoupled private and public key accounts, transaction pre-execution to explain transaction results before user signatures, and transaction expiration times and sequence numbers. The development of the Aptos network and the growth of the Aptos ecosystem are primarily led by Aptos Labs and the Aptos Foundation.
Aptos's architecture makes it very suitable for supporting the next generation of high-performance dApps, surpassing the existing EVM product derivative circles on other chains. Compared to other networks, this architecture provides Aptos with three main advantages:
- High throughput
- Low transaction fees
- Security
Background
Since its official exposure in February 2022, Aptos has continuously attracted market attention due to its background from the Facebook team. With the "star team background halo," capital has thrown high olive branches, completing a 200 million USD seed round in March 2022 and securing 150 million USD in Series A funding in July of the same year, with most well-known investment institutions in the industry, including a16z, Coinbase Ventures, Paypal, and Binance Labs, participating in the investment.
MOVE Language
Move is a bytecode language inspired by Rust, created by the Diem and Novi teams, aimed at providing a more flexible and secure solution than Solidity and other Web3 programming languages. It eliminates attack vectors present in Solidity and EVM, such as reentrancy attacks and asset duplication issues, by enforcing data abstraction and built-in protection features.
Market Performance
The first quarter brought new momentum to the Aptos ecosystem, with TVL increasing from 130 million USD to 493 million USD in just four months, a growth of nearly 500%, and daily active addresses (DAA) stabilizing at around 120,000. Although Solana leads in both TVL and DAA in the Alt L1 space, interestingly, Aptos has the second-highest DAA in the Alt L1 space.
APTOS's Ecological Turning Point
- For every L1 public chain, a complete DeFi ecosystem is crucial for sustainable development. Currently, APTOS has preliminarily established quality projects in various sectors that can proceed to the next stage.
- Network data indicates that Aptos is at a turning point, with a thriving dApp ecosystem ready to welcome a new wave of users. Aptos Ascend positions the network as a competitive TradFi entity and RWA from day one through built-in compliance and customizability.
- DeFi on Aptos has seen significant growth in the past quarter.
So what should we farm?
When farming public chains, we must focus on leading projects, such as Aries Finance, Aptin Finance, Liquidswap, and NFT markets like Wapal, Mercato, and Topaz.
The more you participate, the more likely you are to earn APT tokens and gain other new tokens. However, participation comes at a cost. Watching the crypto dog tutorials is not about farming one by one but finding ways to maximize benefits and reduce costs.
Therefore, this tutorial starts with the largest application on APTOS, Pontem Network, to see how to implement strategies for maximizing benefits.
4. About Pontem Network
Pontem Network was established in 2020, more than a year before Aptos was launched. At that time, Meta was still researching the Diem blockchain project, and the Move language was part of it. The initial goal of Pontem Network was to provide a connection between the highly regulated Diem ecosystem and other parts of the blockchain world, with the idea of utilizing Polkadot's infrastructure to achieve this.
What is the Pontem Network Product Studio?
Pontem Network is a product development studio, essentially what many public chains refer to as "developers." Pontem's strategic cooperation with Aptos involves creating DApps and infrastructure for Aptos, including development tools, EVM, AMM, etc., to promote the widespread use of its L1 blockchain.
Basic Products of Pontem Network
Pontem Network has created: Pontem Wallet, Liquidswap DEX, NFTs, and Pontem also supports NFTs, …
Lumio L2
Lumio is a groundbreaking Optimistic Rollup developed by Pontem Network, ready to redefine the realm of Layer 2 solutions.
What sets Lumio apart from similar products like Optimism and Arbitrum is that Lumio supports both the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and Move VM, aiming to utilize Aptos to process transactions settled on the Ethereum network.
Lumio is developed based on the OP Stack (the open-source toolkit of the Optimism Collective), inheriting the powerful opportunities of the Optimism mainnet to effectively ensure transaction speed and scalability.
Technically, Lumio benefits from the solid foundation provided by Paradigm's execution layer, utilizing the OP Stack's Rust implementation, along with the Magi client developed by a16z and Reth (Rust Ethereum) to achieve various scalability.
SuperLumio is the EVM iteration planned for Lumio L2 by Pontem Network (already on the mainnet), supporting both the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and Move VM (part of Aptos).
As research progresses on merging alternative virtual machines, SuperLumio may integrate with other networks such as Solana, Avalanche, Cosmos, etc.
Can Pontem Network be farmed?
After all this talk, has Pontem Network issued a token?
Pontem Network has not issued a token yet, making it one of the few projects on APTOS without a token, and it is the first cross-chain solution between APT and EVM.
Pontem Network raised 10.5 million USD from primary markets like Animoca Brands, with a TVL of 42 million USD.
So Pontem Network is worth farming. As a strategic partner since APTOS's inception, we should actively farm to secure the maximum airdrop allocation.
So how do we farm Pontem Network?
5. Preparations Before the Airdrop Tutorial
Pontem tweeted in 2022, hinting that a token might be launched.
What preparations are needed to farm Pontem?
(1) Fund Preparation
- Fund 1: + 10.1 APT (current value 80 USD+)
- Fund 2: +100 USD
These funds have the following uses:
- Trading volume: + 5,000 USD
- Interaction count: + 30 times
- Adding liquidity: + 100 USD, at least add 3 pairs
- Staking: + 10 APT
The above is just a basic estimate; the more interactions, the better.
(2) Wallet Preparation
- Phantom Wallet
- Metamask or OK Wallet
- Pontem Wallet (if you previously used APT fees on OK Wallet, you can directly import the original mnemonic)
Since this tutorial is about the Pontem Network airdrop, we will use the Pontem wallet to start the tutorial. I imported the original OK Wallet mnemonic.
(3) Pontem Wallet Tutorial
- Log in to the Pontem Airdrop Page
https://airdrop.liquidswap.com/?ref=01HYAQ97X8M52ZCEJWEJBFVG7R
- Click on the Pontem section and install the Pontem Wallet
After creating the wallet and recharging APT, continue with the first step above, sequentially linking the Pontem wallet, Phantom wallet, Metamask, or OK wallet. Once linked, it will display as shown below:
6. Airdrop Tutorial
(1) L2 Lumio Whitelist
Step 1: Visit https://lumio.io/#join-whitelist
Step 2: Fill in your email, check "I have read and agree to the terms and conditions" and "I agree to receive emails from Lumio" -> "Join"
(2) Exchange on Liquidswap
Step 1: Log in to Liquidswap and link your wallet
Step 2: Select a trading pair to trade
If you want to qualify, it is recommended that each account has a trading volume of over 5,000 USD and interaction counts of no less than 30 times.
(3) Staking
- On the Liquidswap website, click Earn
- Select Staking
- Choose any "Validators" section
- Click stake
- Stake at least 10.1 APT (it is recommended to choose validators with longer durations)
(4) Adding Liquidity (Multiple Benefits)
Here we choose the Amnis Finance platform. Amnis Finance is a liquid staking protocol, and Amnis has a points program. Creating an Amnis Finance account allows simultaneous use of both Amnis and Aries Markets systems, enabling us to receive at least 3 airdrops.
Step 1: Log in to Amnis Finance and link your wallet
https://stake.amnis.finance/mint
Step 1: Enter the amount of amAPT you want to mint and click Mint Only (if you want to farm more from Amnis Finance, you can choose Mint&Stake later, but we won't do this step for now)
Step 2: Add liquidity on Liquidswap
- Return to the Liquidswap platform
- Click Earn
- Select Farms
- Add amAPT/APT
Step 3: Stake LP
- Click the "small fish icon"
- Click Balance
- Click Stake to stake LP, with an annualized return of 30% here;
(5) Purchase NFTs (For Reference Only)
NFT 1: Log in to the NFT trading platform and link your wallet
https://www.topaz.so/collection/Pontem-Space-Pirates-c46dd298b8
Select an NFT for trading
NFT 2: Log in to the NFT trading platform and link your wallet
https://www.topaz.so/collection/Pontem-Dark-Ages-7fef9d50cd
(6) Use PontemAi
PontemAi is a Web3 native chatbot. To register, you need a verification code, NFT, or doodoo token.
Conclusion
Pontem is a very powerful project collection on APTOS, including many products, and it has not issued a token yet, which may happen during the second airdrop of APTOS.
This article introduced the interaction tutorials for various products on Pontem. If you want to farm, please focus on the DeFi section to increase trading volume and interaction counts, allowing for multiple benefits.
