ZKsync Layer 2 Scaling Solution Plans Major Airdrop of Its New ZK Token Next Week

The ZKsync Association announced an airdrop of 3.675 billion ZK tokens to early users of the ZKsync network.

ZKsync is preparing for a substantial airdrop of its new ZK token, set to commence next week. The ZKsync Association has announced the distribution of 3.675 billion ZK tokens to early users of the ZKsync network. This allocation comprises 17.5% of the total 21 billion supply.

The ZK airdrop, among the largest token distributions across major layer 2 networks, will reward users who actively utilized ZKsync Era and ZKsync Lite, in addition to developers, communities, and projects that contributed to the broader ZKsync ecosystem.

Out of the total airdropped tokens, nearly 89%, amounting to around 3.27 billion ZK, will be allocated to regular users who engaged in transactions on the ZKsync network and met the specified eligibility threshold.

The remaining 11% is designated for contributors, including developers, communities, and projects building on ZKsync. Furthermore, a small portion of 0.5% is reserved for experimental communities, such as recipients of the DEGEN and BONSAI airdrops, Crypto The Game players, and holders of Pudgy Penguins and Milady Maker NFTs.

Users will be able to claim their airdropped ZK tokens starting next week and continuing until January 3, 2025. The tokens will be fully liquid upon distribution, with no vesting period.

The ZKsync founder, Alex Gluchowski, highlighted the intention behind allocating more tokens to the community than to the ZKsync team and investors. This measure aims to ensure that the community will control the majority of the liquid token supply once ZKsync governance is launched in the near future.

In Gluchowski's words, “It's a community governance airdrop, so we hope recipients will participate in governance, delegate tokens, and become active members.”

Additionally, the airdrop is designed to prioritize “real people” over whales and bots through various mechanisms, including a 100,000 ZK cap per wallet. While it may not completely eliminate bots, ZKsync has attempted to reward genuine users and contributors to the ecosystem.

After the airdrop, the remaining ZK token allocations include 49.1% for ecosystem initiatives through the ZKsync Foundation, 17.2% for investors (vesting over three years from 2025-2028), and 16.1% for the Matter Labs team (also subject to the same three-year vesting schedule).

Currently, ZK tokens are trading at around $0.71 on perpetual exchanges like Aevo. At this price and considering the total 21 billion supply, the 3.675B airdropped tokens would be valued at approximately $2.6 billion based on the total 21 billion supply. This airdrop thus represents a substantial windfall for ZKsync's earliest and most active users and supporters.