Update Sept. 10, 02:42 pm UTC: This article has been updated to include quotes Anndy Lian.
The newly launched Dogs token could have staged the biggest token generation event (TGE) in memecoin history.
Over 17 million users have already claimed their Dogs (DOGS) tokens, which is a memecoin project on The Open Network inspired by Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov’s iconic dog drawing.
The Dogs Mini App has surpassed 53 million users, of whom 42.2 million are eligible for the token airdrop, making it the “largest meme TGE in cryptocurrency history,” according to a Sept. 10 Telegram post by the TON community.
“DOGS token is now held by 4.5M unique wallets on TON, putting it in a unique position — it has the most unique token holders on any chain ever, and it achieved this in just 2 weeks. Only USDt on TRON and Ethereum have more holders than DOGS.”
Over 17 million users have claimed DOGS tokens. Source: TON community
Although this number of holders is impressive for a memecoin, it is considerably smaller when compared to leading cryptocurrencies. For instance, Ether (ETH) alone has over 273 million unique addresses, according to data from Ycharts.
The memecoin received significant investor interest following the TGE, which led to two major Dogs-related outages on TON.
While the volume of so-called “users” is impressive, the question of potential bots remains a significant factor to consider, according to Anndy Lian, intergovernmental blockchain expert and author of NFT: From Zero to Hero. Lian told Cointelegraph:
“We have to understand what kind of users they have. Are they able to KYC? Are they able to trade? Are they all bottled? In the view of whether they can be a top project or maybe even a “dogecoin killer”, we need to see the actual active users and how many are trading.”
“It’s 2024, bots are useless and non-sustainable,” added Lian.
Related: Leaked Chainalysis video suggests Monero transactions may be traceable
Even bigger airdrops for Hamster Kombat and Catizen?
Despite the successful launch of the Dogs token, the TON community expects an even bigger impact on the upcoming Hamster Kombat and Catizen airdrops.
The two airdrops could come as soon as this September, according to the TON community’s post:
“In September, we anticipate even larger TGEs for Catizen and Hamster Kombat, which could bring tens or even hundreds of millions of users to the blockchain for the first time.”
Earlier in August, the Telegram-based viral clicker game Hamster Kombat released more details about its much-awaited airdrop, touted as the “largest in crypto history,” a week after the game reached 300 million players.
Top crypto airdrops. Source: CoinGecko
In terms of value, the Bonk (BONK) token staged the biggest memecoin airdrop, distributing over $1.3 million worth of tokens to eligible holders, making it the seventh largest airdrop across the entire crypto space, according to CoinGecko data.
Related: Ether poised for price breakout after summer slump in crypto markets
Telegram–based Mini Apps are a “Trojan horse” for mass blockchain adoption
The crypto industry is increasingly betting on the onboarding potential of Telegram-based Mini Apps.
Telegram Mini Apps may be a “Trojan horse” for mass blockchain adoption, according to Justin Hyun, the director of investments at TON Foundation.
This is because onboarding the next 500 million users will require simple apps with “actual usability,” explained Hyun:
“But bringing 500 million people on-chain by 2028 — which is our goal — is going to require use cases that interact with the blockchain without the user knowing that in the front end.”
Justin Hyun talks about the mechanics of Mini Apps. Source: YouTube
TON launched a $115 million community incentive program on March 20, with $38 million for token mining and user incentives, $22 million for airdrops, $15 million for The League developer ecosystem, and $40 million for liquidity pool boosts.
Magazine: Clicker games to fade post-airdrop, Is Hamster Kombat any good? Web3 Gamer