The adventure of investing in cryptocurrencies does not at all have to start with buying BTC, ETH or any token. It is enough to follow the airdrop market and acquire digital assets this way. If we manage to acquire tokens of real value, it can give us capital for the first more serious investments.
Airdrop, or what?
Airdrop is a method of token distribution in which users receive free assets without having to buy them. But why do some projects decide to take such a step? Most often, it's an idea to promote a given token, increasing its adoption with the help of a “drop”. It can also be about rewarding loyal users of a given ecosystem.
Airdrops come in different forms. Standard ones require neither action nor any merit in the blockchain community. It is enough to own a certain cryptocurrency wallet and thus receive tokens that are “scattered” randomly. Every address holder on the blockchain has probably received such free tokens at some point, most often, however, they have no value.
Some airdrops are received in exchange for performing certain tasks. What are they? It is enough, for example, to join the community of a given project on Telegram or to like its page on X. So it requires commitment and action. The goal is to reward no longer random blockchain users, but the most active ones.
Another type is airdrops based on “snapshot”. The term “snapshot” refers to the state of the network at a given moment. “Snapshots” based on this model refer to those tokens that are awarded based on the state of the wallet at a certain point in time. For example, tokens will be awarded only to those who have a given amount of other tokens or cryptocurrencies at an address.
Then there are bounty airdrops, which require more advanced activities - they are aimed at online creators, such as influencers or programmers. In general, it's about activities that aim to increase the value of the project, whether through technical or advertising activities.
How to make money on airdrops?
The descriptions above already suggest that airdrops can be earned. The tokens given out in airdrops are free in the sense that you get them for free (or for some action, but still without paying for them), so much so that they can then have a market value. Of course, if the projects are successful.
In the paragraph above, we suggested that some airdrops could be a source of income for influencers or developers. Then there are the simpler airdrops that we can get from simpler marketing tasks (such as sharing social media posts about a project). This is already a task not only for tech-savvy individuals, but blockchain fans who do not have the start-up capital to invest in “big” cryptocurrencies.
But how to start the adventure with airdrops? It's a good idea to follow information about them - it's necessary to use special websites and forums such as Airdrop Alert, Airdrops.io, or follow profiles on X or Telegram that promote new airdrops. You can also create an account on a cryptocurrency exchange that organizes periodic “airdrops.” An example is Binance, which organizes airdrops as part of its Simple Earn program. All you have to do is “subscribe” to the exchange's tokens, BNB, in “Simple Earn” and wait for occasional tokens.
After that, all you have to do is adjust the airdrop model to your capabilities (see the above part of the article).
After acquiring tokens, you can sell them right away, but sometimes it is worthwhile to analyze the project and see if it is worthwhile to farm them, hoping to develop the project and thus increase the value of the tokens.
The dangers of airdrops
This brings us to perhaps the most important piece of information - scammers also prowl the airdrop market. Some airdrops are actually attempts to extort personal information or funds from wallets. What does this look like in practice? For example, we receive tokens for our wallet. Intrigued, we look for information about them online and find out that, in order to cash in our new assets, it is necessary to register on a special platform. Only that the latter is used to steal data or private keys (we may be asked for these during registration). So if an airdrop requires the transfer of such data, let's stay away from it.
Some airdrops are promoted with emails that contain links to sites with malware, or simply viruses.
How not to let the criminals in this field ? It's simple. Just don't give out private keys or personal information. No honest blockchain project behind airdrop will ask for this kind of data.
It is also worth carefully analyzing such an airdrop - check what kind of project, and what kind of people, are behind it. If they are anonymous users, it may turn out to be a scam.
It is also worth simply... not to be naive. If someone has not participated in any airdrop, and yet has received a token at his address on the blockchain, it may be a scam - it is possible that its sale will be conditioned on just registering on a platform that steals private keys or personal information.
Perhaps the easiest way to fool the scammers is to use separate wallets - it's best to use a separate wallet to receive airdrops, that is, not the one where you keep your main cryptocurrencies. This way, even if we get fooled by criminals, the latter will not steal anything valuable from us.
Biggest airdrops in market history
The decentralized exchange Uniswap is behind one of the biggest airdrops. Its tokens were given to users who used its services in a timely manner.
The dYdX exchange with decentralized futures contracts promoted itself in a similar way. Interestingly, as with Uniswap, no one announced an airdrop - this one was simply a bonus for those who used dYdX at least once. Of course, the more volume a given trader provided, the more tokens he received.
Airdrop also organized Arbitrum, the second layer of the Ethereum network. Here, the user's activity, such as the number of transactions the user made, was similarly counted.
The list of the largest airdrops is as follows:
- Uniswap - $6,433M,
- Apecoin - $3,544M,
- dYdX - $2,010M,
- Arbitrum - $1,969M,
- Ethereum Name Service - $1,879M,
- Internet Computer - $1,737M,
- Bonk - $1,325M,
- Celestia - $728M,
- LooksRare - $712M,
- 1inch Network - $671M.
Airdrop vs. tax
Is airdrop taxable? In Polish law it is something like a donation, so the taxpayer will be required to account for it, but only when the value exceeds 4902 PLN. This threshold implies a third tax group, i.e. receiving a donation from persons unrelated to the recipient.
The taxpayer will also be required to recognize a tax liability when the tokens obtained for free are sold and taxed at a rate of 19%. The income is disclosed in the PIT-38 return.
Summary
Airdrops are an interesting way to get free tokens, and thus capital for more serious investments. However, it is worth remembering that they always require caution and prudence on the part of the investor. The basis should be proper selection of projects that offer airdrops. This can be helped by using reliable sources of information and following security rules - setting up a wallet that we will use only for airdrops, and, above all, not giving the private key to insecure projects. Only then will “airdrops” allow us to realistically earn money on the cryptocurrency market.
