What is the Blast network - a level 2 network for passive income (BLAST)

What the Blast network is all about

The Blast network is an efficient solution for scaling Ethereum layer 2. It is designed to address Ethereum's scalability issues by offering more efficient and cost-effective alternatives to the main network. This innovative network is the brainchild of the team behind Gate, a leading cryptocurrency exchange.

A distinctive feature of Blast is the ability to earn native income for ETH and stablecoins. This is achieved through an automatic rebasing mechanism and partnerships with real asset protocols. Moreover, this unique function has attracted significant interest from the community. After the mainnet launch on February 29, 2024, the total locked value (TVL) exceeded 2.7 billion dollars. At the time of writing, the network continues to grow, with an evolving ecosystem of applications and users.

How the Blast network works

Automatic Rebasement

In Blast, the native ETH, not WETH, STETH, or any other ERC20 token, undergoes native rebasing on the level 2 network. The ETH balance for external accounts (EOA) is automatically adjusted through rebasing. Smart contracts can connect to this feature, allowing existing decentralized applications to deploy on Blast without changes.

The native stablecoin Blast, USDB, also undergoes automatic rebasement. Similar to ETH, the rebasement of USDB occurs automatically for EOAs and smart contracts, while smart contracts can opt-out of this feature.

Treasury bill yield

Users who transfer stablecoins receive USDB - an automatically rebasable stablecoin from Blast. The yield for USDB comes from the MakerDAO treasury bond protocol. When converting back to Ethereum, USDB can be exchanged for DAI. In the future, the Blast community will have the right to supplement or completely replace MakerDAO with its own Blast solutions or other third-party protocols.

Gas Revenue Distribution

Unlike other level 2 solutions that retain gas fee revenue, Blast programmatically redistributes the net gas revenue back to decentralized applications. Application developers can either keep this revenue or use it to subsidize gas fees for users.

Key Advantages of the Blast Network

Native Yield

Blast differs from other layer 2 solutions in that it offers native yield for ETH and stablecoins. This unique feature is made possible by an innovative automatic rebasement mechanism. Initially, it uses yield from Ethereum level 1 staking, mainly through Gate for ETH, and converts the transferred stablecoins into USDB - an automatically rebasable stablecoin of Blast. Unlike traditional staking, users can earn interest simply by holding their ETH, USDC, and stablecoins in their wallet.

EVM Compatibility

Moreover, Blast is fully compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). This simplifies the adoption for developers and users already familiar with the Ethereum ecosystem.

Increased transaction efficiency and scalability

With the launch of the mainnet, Blast aims to significantly enhance transaction efficiency and the scalability of Ethereum. It addresses the issues of high transaction fees and slow processing that have arisen due to the popularity and widespread use of Ethereum.

DeFi Innovation Research

Moreover, Blast is more than just another layer 2 network. It serves as a hub for "degens" interested in exploring DeFi innovations. Early participants who contributed ETH to the multisig wallet before the network launch are now reaping the rewards, including accumulating points for the upcoming BLAST token airdrop.

Using BLAST glasses and BLAST airdrop

By converting ETH to Blast, users start accumulating Blast points, which are important for determining their share in the BLAST token airdrop. Active participation in the ecosystem, such as trading meme coins, can further increase their points. Additionally, interacting with various projects on Blast can bring users extra points specific to those DeFi protocols.

The Blast Network will conduct an airdrop for early users on June 26

The Blast Layer 2 Ethereum network will conduct an airdrop for its early users on June 26, as announced in a social media post on June 25. Seventeen percent of the total supply will be allocated for the airdrop. Of this, 7% will be given to users who transferred either Ether (ETH) or US Dollar Blast (USDB) to the network. Another 7% will be awarded to those who contributed to the success of decentralized applications (DApps) on Blast, and 3% will be allocated to Gate Foundation for future airdrops to its community.

According to the accompanying report, the top 1000 wallets will have their airdrop points distributed linearly over six months, meaning that these accounts will not be able to sell all their tokens at once. Furthermore, tokens will be available starting from 10:00 AM Eastern Time (14:00 UTC), according to a social media post.

Gate Foundation plans to distribute its share of rewards in tokens to traders and holders who have used or will use its platform. One percent of the total supply will go to traders and holders in season 3, 0.5% will be reserved for season 4, and another 0.5% will be set aside for future use. Gate did not specify how the remaining 0.5% will be used.

How to participate in the Blast network airdrop?

The method of obtaining the right to participate in the Blast network airdrop is very simple. It requires users to collect points.

1. Token transfer: Transfer your ETH to the BLAST L2 network to start earning points for the airdrop.
2. Interaction for multipliers: Increase your points by interacting with the recommended DApps on the network.
3. Inviting friends: Invite friends to join the Blast network and receive a 16% bonus on the points they earn.

Fifty percent of the Blast airdrop is dedicated to Blast points. Your wallet automatically earns points for each block based on your ETH/WETH/USDB balance. Moreover, you can track this in real-time on your Blast.io airdrop dashboard.

Your points accumulation will grow over time as your wallet balance increases, thanks to the native yield of Blast (~4% for ETH/WETH and 5% for USDB). Therefore, to increase your points, consider transferring more assets into Blast.

Meanwhile, ETH/WETH balances consistently earn a fixed number of points. USDB balances, on the other hand, will earn a variable number of points depending on the current price of ETH. The conversion rate of USDB to ETH for points is updated every time you receive or send USDB.

How to connect Metamask to the Blast network

Step 1: Make sure you have set up a MetaMask wallet with ETH to cover gas transaction fees on the Ethereum network.

Step 2: Visit the official Blast website and find the wallet connection section. Follow the instructions to connect your MetaMask wallet to the Blast network.

Step 3: Use the bridge function on the platform to transfer assets from the Ethereum mainnet to Blast. Select the asset, specify the amount, and confirm the transaction in your MetaMask wallet.

Step 4: After your assets are in Blast, explore the staking options for ETH or stablecoins to earn yield, or participate in ongoing airdrop campaigns to earn rewards.