Publication Date: January 21, 2025
Author: BlockBeats Editorial Team

Over the past 24 hours, the discussion in the crypto market has shifted from a macro narrative to specific ecosystem events, with a high concentration of attention and clear divergence. The mainstream topics have focused on the airdrop and DeFi governance upgrade-driven participation boom, while WLFI governance controversy and the Trove rug-pull have heightened market vigilance towards transparency and fund security. In terms of ecosystem development, Ethereum has strengthened its institutional narrative and stablecoin innovation, the Perp DEX race has intensified competition around incentive mechanisms and fee optimization, and the battle for on-chain liquidity has further heated up.

1. Mainstream Topics

1. ETHGas Airdrop Release

The ETHGas Foundation has officially launched the $GWEI token airdrop eligibility check tool, allowing users to verify their eligibility by connecting their wallets. The airdrop eligibility is mainly based on historical Ethereum mainnet gas consumption (at least 0.5 ETH), community participation behavior (such as sharing Gas ID or forwarding announcements), Discord/Telegram activity, and at least 500 Beans points, among other indicators. The foundation has announced that the airdrop snapshot has been completed, and the claiming will commence at 13:00 UTC on January 21, aimed at rewarding Ethereum ecosystem contributors and initiating the governance process. The foundation emphasizes that this will be the "real-time Ethereum economy" starting point, with more seasonal activities to follow.

Community engagement is high, with many users eagerly sharing their eligibility results, some celebrating their qualification, while others have reported issues with the checker tool or missing eligibility due to a failure to bind their Gas ID promptly. Discussions regarding the allocation size and TGE expectations continue to ferment, with some believing that the project may drive the development of real-time Ethereum infrastructure. However, users are also reminded to be cautious of phishing links and scam risks. The overall sentiment is mostly optimistic, and it is regarded as one of the focal points of the airdrop season.

2. Pendle Launches sPENDLE

Pendle has introduced sPENDLE as a new governance and staking token, replacing the existing vePENDLE vesting system. This upgrade introduces a more flexible withdrawal mechanism (14-day unlock or instant withdrawal with a 5% fee) and supports deep staking integration to enhance DeFi composability. Pendle has stated that up to 80% of protocol revenue will be used for $PENDLE buybacks and distributed to sPENDLE holders, while the token emission is expected to decrease by 20%–30%. The vePENDLE locks will be suspended on January 29, in coordination with a migration snapshot to complete the transition. The current average TVL of Pendle is around $57 billion, and this adjustment is seen as a key move to address the pain point of "inefficient capital locking."

The community widely acknowledges this upgrade, seeing it as effectively addressing the issue of low veToken model adoption and making $PENDLE more aligned with institutional holding logic. The discussion primarily revolves around income distribution details (e.g., the yield split for virtual sPENDLE) and the potential impact of the upgrade on price. Some users are optimistic about its role in incentivizing long-term holding while also cautioning against short-term volatility. The overall feedback is mostly positive, seen as a significant milestone for Pendle toward a mature protocol governance system.

3. Mask Network Takes Over Lens

Mask Network has taken over the custody of the Lens protocol, with the original team (led by Aave founder Stani) transitioning to technical advisors and refocusing on DeFi. Mask plans to integrate products like Orb and Firefly to drive user-centric app development, strengthening creator economies and community growth. The Lens team emphasizes that the infrastructure will remain open-source and neutral, aiming to propel decentralized social interactions towards broader mainstream adoption.

The community overall holds an optimistic view of this change, with many users appreciating the foundational contributions of the original team and looking forward to Mask's capabilities in privacy and SocialFi. Discussions primarily focus on the ecosystem integration effects (e.g., interoperability among different clients) and sustainable monetization models in the long term. While some express concerns about potential further fragmentation of user and app ecosystems, the general sentiment is that this transition may inject new growth momentum into Lens and accelerate the productization of DeSoc.

4. Zama Token ICO Launch Imminent

Zama's $ZAMA token public sale is set to launch on January 21 at 8:00 UTC using a sealed-bid Dutch auction mechanism, with the supply accounting for 8% of the total tokens. The auction channels include the Zama app, CoinList, and KuCoin, with a floor price of $0.005 per token (approximately $55 million FDV), supporting USDT bids and offering a 10% bonus for OG NFT holders. Zama, with fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) at its core, focuses on on-chain privacy computation, having raised approximately $138 million.

The community is engaged in passionate discussions about bidding strategies and valuation expectations, with some believing the final clearing valuation may land in the $3–4 billion FDV range, drawing parallels to Gensyn's valuation path. Simultaneously, concerns about wallet security (such as Bron Wallet), reward mechanisms, and the impact of the presale on the secondary market are also gaining traction. Overall, the market generally views Zama as a significant representative of the privacy narrative, expecting its "seamless on-chain privacy computation" to enhance DeFi usability.

5. WLFI Stablecoin Proposal Sparks Controversy

The World Liberty Financial (WLFI) USD1 stablecoin expansion proposal passed through governance voting, approving the use of 5% of the treasury funds (around $120 million) to drive USD1 expansion. However, voting data shows that the top 9 wallets (presumed to be the team and partners) control nearly 60% of the voting power. The proposal had initially failed, but was later "forced through" amidst controversy, leading to community suspicions. According to the WLFI whitepaper, 75% of the protocol revenue goes to the Trump family, and 25% goes to the Witkoff family, with token holders having no profit-sharing rights. Additionally, investor tokens remain locked and cannot be voted to unlock.

The community has strongly pushed back, viewing this as a typical case of "pseudo-governance" and value extraction structure. Further analyses by Bubble Maps and others have reinforced the accusations of team-controlled governance manipulation. Users are calling for the project to be "shamefully exposed," predicting a continued weakening of its long-term value (currently around $17 billion FDV). Some traders have taken short positions, seeing it as a cautionary tale of governance failure and highlighting systemic risks in the "trustee model."

6. Trove Incident Reveals More Information, Reigniting ICO Risks

Trove has been accused of being an ICO scam: the project raised around $11.5 million, canceled the Hyperliquid integration plan post-TGE, shifted to Solana, and withdrew funds. The token plummeted by 95% post-TGE, with the FDV dropping from around $20 million to $1.4 million. On-chain tracking revealed that team wallet funds flowed to a casino and betting platform, and no refunds were made, sparking collective community outrage.

Discussion around the incident is predominantly angry, with users sharing losses and blaming some KOLs for not fully disclosing advertising partnerships. The controversy has also expanded to pre-sale risks, information asymmetry, and market manipulation. Many see this as a representative "rug pull example" since the beginning of 2026, and are calling for more transparent issuance and fundraising platforms, such as Legion.

II. Mainstream Ecosystem Updates

1. Ethereum

TokenRelations has released the "Institutional Ethereum Update" report to address institutional investors' need for coverage of the Ethereum ecosystem. This report provides macro and ecosystem insights to institutions and retail investors on a daily basis, emphasizing Ethereum's long-term value and institutional adoption trends.

The overall community response has been positive, with many users acknowledging the necessity of this kind of "institutional perspective content," and some even suggesting expanding similar updates to other chains like Solana. Throughout the discussion, Ethereum's security and decentralization advantages have been repeatedly mentioned and seen as its long-term moat.

Meanwhile, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated in a Bloomberg live stream that cryptocurrencies will open wealth generation opportunities for 4 billion people and that "issuing stablecoins" could ultimately reshape the traditional banking business model, driving real ownership, sustainable use cases, and a higher level of economic freedom. He also emphasized the potential of tokenized assets and mentioned Coinbase's role at the infrastructure layer.

Armstrong's remarks sparked widespread discussion. The community broadly agrees with the direction of stablecoins and asset tokenization but also stresses the need for more than just narrative, requiring more "on-the-ground evidence" such as larger-scale infrastructure advancements and sustainable scenario validations. Some opinions criticize the current lack of commitments, calling for solutions to real-world obstacles such as volatility, compliance pathways, and institutional adoption thresholds. The overall sentiment remains largely positive, with more people seeing it as a signal of Ethereum's move towards institutional-grade maturity, but also maintaining caution regarding the practical challenges of TradFi integration.

2.Perp DEX

The competition in the Perp DEX space continues to revolve around "incentive mechanisms and fee optimization." Nado introduced "The Choice" mechanism during the Private Alpha phase, where users must choose one of three reward schemes: points (8 million points for $INK rewards), fee rebate ($4 million), or NFTs (1000 available, limited to the first 30% of users). The deadline is January 26, and those who do not choose will default to receiving points. The Open Beta will launch on January 30, with ongoing tracking of activity data.

This mechanism has received much praise, with users believing that the choice increases the fairness of incentives and sense of participation. Discussions mainly focus on the strategic trade-offs between "points vs. NFTs," while also reminding the need for a careful evaluation of the actual benefits of different options.

Additionally, Blockworks interviewed Lighter's founder, Vladimir, discussing the progress of their collaboration with Robinhood, the differentiated path from Hyperliquid (emphasizing Ethereum L2's composability and trust model), equity versus token value accrual mechanisms, and the team's long-term alignment strategy. The interview has generally received positive feedback from the community, recognizing the narrative of "Ethereum-first + alignment design," but some have raised concerns about the ecosystem isolation risk outside of Ethereum L1 and latency issues in high-frequency trading scenarios.

Meanwhile, Markets has updated its funding rate mechanism to reduce holding costs and enhance the trading experience; HyENA has been opened up for external use, with trading fees reduced by around 50% and a 12% boosted APR available for both long and short positions. Users with a trading volume of over $5000 in the past week can also receive a 1.15x points bonus. Overall, these actions are all pointing towards the same goal: to attract more traders back to on-chain by reducing fees, improving privacy, and enhancing liquidity efficiency.

The community has responded positively to the fee optimization of Markets and HyENA, with users sharing their trading experiences and "points maximizing" strategies, while also emphasizing the importance of leverage risks and market volatility. The overall sentiment is optimistic, but there is still a focus on team transparency and long-term sustainability.

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