ZKsync responds to airdrop concerns: there are imperfections, but we have made reasonable trade-offs
Trading volume has no effect on allocation scale and value scaling.Author: ZKsync
1. How to qualify for this airdrop?
There are two ways for addresses to qualify for 17.5% of the airdrop:
- Users (89%): ZKsync users who bridge crypto assets to ZKsync Era and meet at least one of the seven eligibility criteria.
- Contributors (11%): Individuals, developers, researchers, communities, and companies who contribute to the ZKsync protocol and ecosystem through development, promotion, education, or participation, regardless of whether they use the ZKsync network.
For wallets in the 11% contributor category, participation in the ZKsync Era event is optional. The contributor allocation mainly targets those who built early projects on ZKsync, contributed to relevant GitHub repositories, conducted security research, served as Discord moderators, or participated in communities like Degen, Bonsai, Crypto the Game, Pudgy, and Milady.
2. What does it mean when this airdrop is usage-based?
The user-based allocation (which accounts for 89% of the total airdrop) is primarily aimed at identifying and rewarding the diverse user base on ZKsync Era, who will help manage and develop ZKsync in the long term. The goal is to find those who connect crypto assets to ZKsync Era and provide multiplier rewards for their actions that demonstrate they are organic users. Such individuals are likely to become valuable members of the ZKsync community.
The historical record of wallets across various chains can reveal a lot about their owners. True users tend to be less risk-averse, especially when they feel part of a community. They spend time exploring, trying new protocols, and holding speculative assets. In contrast, bots and speculators act cautiously, making minimal efforts to integrate into the community and extract value.
3. I meet some eligibility requirements but did not receive an allocation. Why?
The ZKsync user airdrop allocation (which accounts for 89% of the total airdrop) is based on the following combination:
- How many of the seven eligibility criteria are met.
- The time-weighted average balance (TWAB) based on the amount bridged and held on ZKsync Era over the 12 months leading up to the snapshot date (whether in your wallet or in DeFi protocols). This is referred to as value scaling (see details in question 5).
- Bonus multipliers: If the wallet belongs to a predefined group, such as early ETH adopters, holders of top ZKsync native NFTs/tokens, or holders of airdrops like ARB, OP, ENS, it will receive a distribution multiplier.
Important Note: Trading volume itself does not impact the allocation size.
The allocation amount for users is calculated based on the above criteria. To qualify for the airdrop allocation amount, the result must be greater than ZK 450.
This means that even if you meet all seven criteria, if the average amount you held over time is low or you do not qualify for any other bonus multipliers, you may not be eligible for an allocation.
4. I meet four eligibility criteria, but my reward is less than someone I saw on X who only meets two. Why?
The number of eligibility criteria met is just one of three factors determining the allocation size. The ZKsync airdrop allocation is a combination of eligibility criteria, time-weighted average balance (TWAB) on ZKsync Era, and bonus multipliers.
In this case, another person may have transferred a large amount of crypto assets to ZKsync Era and/or held them for a longer duration. Alternatively, another person may qualify for one of the bonus multipliers or be part of the contributor-based airdrop, while you do not.
5. How does "value scaling" work?
To identify and reward users who put crypto assets into the ZKsync Era platform, part of the allocation is based on the value scaling formula. This formula adjusts the allocation for addresses based on the amount sent to ZKsync Era and the duration those crypto assets are held in the wallet.
For example, an address that sent $100 to ZKsync Era at the mainnet launch (March 2023) and held it since then will have a greater weight than an address that only deposited $100 one month before the snapshot.
Value scaling = Time-weighted average balance (TWAB) = scaling the allocation based on the value of crypto assets bridged by someone and the duration they are held.
Reminder: Trading volume itself does not impact value scaling.
For more information, please refer to these examples.
6. What if I only used ZKsync Lite? Why was I excluded?
To qualify for the airdrop, an address must meet one eligibility criterion and bridge crypto assets to ZKsync Era. The airdrop focuses on the first ZK chain, ZKsync Era, as it is expected to become the decentralized hub for the entire ZKsync ecosystem.
ZKsync Lite users, as OGs of the ZKsync ecosystem, can earn up to 2 qualification points for using ZKsync Lite. However, they also need to have crypto assets on ZKsync Era at some point.
For usage-based airdrops: If users only used ZKsync Lite without using ZKsync Era, unfortunately, they are not eligible for any user airdrop allocation.
7. Why did some addresses with zero transactions still receive allocations?
The airdrop is divided into user-based allocations (accounting for 89% of the airdrop) and contributor-based allocations (accounting for 11% of the airdrop). Wallets in the contributor category do not need to show activity on ZKsync Era. For example, contributor allocations focus on those who built early projects on ZKsync, contributed to relevant GitHub repositories, conducted security research, managed communities on Discord, or participated in communities like Degen, Bonsai, Crypto the Game, Pudgy, and Milady.
There are 184 addresses that meet the ZKsync Lite eligibility criteria and have bridged assets on ZKsync Era but have no other transactions, and these wallets qualify for the airdrop.
Additionally, 10 test addresses were added for internal quality assurance and testing. These addresses were allocated a minimum of 917 tokens. Once claimed, these tokens will be sent to a burn address.
0x6adb27812220f1ff5df618e3273d83c430705eec 0xb1ded8ff2f7a45f436951f082dda770e1dcee84d 0x07528fba97b02bba1aaa03a8ffe51d3fda86b585 0xc527a57ebcc7af699055bb8a3aca917a00a235ed 0x358291b1ea089437a9b16fb8c23d8a035ea7c358 0x023e3e6d98d7a5c7209910ab4ab9f91713dbdc1d 0x65f8dfc419b418ae82f289059d038428d038cd9a 0x6cc3a7f20f0f2f3d3fb5e07f89f7449e6a2537d6 0xae757f4c8aad55712018e6fef0612a091279517a 0x5f66edefd2d3d228244d5801911cdccb87df92bc 0x0e602a94192f9da3db92f159a724ea8442916987
8. Why are rewards given to external groups like Degen and Bonsai instead of ZKsync users?
A small portion of the total airdrop (2.8%) is reserved for experimental on-chain communities: recipients from Degen and Bonsai, Crypto The Game, Pudgy, and Milady. These communities are known for their advocates and passionate defenders of their ecosystems, sharing the same cypherpunk values as ZK Nation, while also experimenting with innovative self-organizing methods. These positively engaged communities are a valuable addition to any network and are expected to become long-term members and guardians of ZKsync.
9. Why did some people receive more than 100,000 tokens?
100K is the maximum reward for the user-based allocation of the airdrop (which accounts for 89% of the total airdrop). 155 addresses (0.022%) received allocations of over 100K tokens because they met the qualifications for the highest user rewards and also qualified for the contributor category rewards (which account for 11% of the total airdrop).
Examples of groups belonging to the contributor category include: ZKsync native projects, GitHub developers, security researchers, Discord community moderators, ZK Credo translators, and more.
Disclaimer: The publication of addresses follows this privacy policy.
