FriendTech Sees Renewed Interest Ahead Of Anticipated Airdrop

Community-based protocols are staging a comeback.

After months in the doldrums, SocialFi platform FriendTech saw a $7.4 million inflow and more than 40,000 transactions on April 8, both the highest since Oct. 2023. In 2024, the platform averaged less than $400,000 in daily inflows.

FriendTech points are changing hands for $6, according to OTC platform WhalesMarket.

A resident of Coinbase’s popular Base chain, FriendTech’s increased activity seems to be in anticipation of the platform’s V2 iteration, expected to go live later this month with a potential airdrop. The total value locked (TVL) on the platform has also risen by a third to $40 million in April.

SocialFi refers to the intersection of social media and blockchain, and is a branch of the crypto ecosystem focused on building community-oriented social platforms, much like Twitter By utilizing elements of DeFi, SocialFi platforms allow anyone to monetize themselves through peer-to-peer transactions, creating a new open layer for a creator-based economy.

Farcaster and Lens Activity Rises

FriendTech isn’t the only SocialFi platform that has seen a resurgence in activity.

Farcaster usage spiked in early February after the platform launched its flagship Frames feature, which allows users to embed interactive experiences, such as NFT mints, in their posts. Since then, the platform witnessed a slump until March 23, when it began to buck the trend.

The Optimism-based platform hit an all-time high in terms of posts, also known as Casts. These reached a record high of 50,732 on April 5, accompanied by a peak in terms of reactions to casts, notching up 56,205.

Users have been flocking in droves to Farcaster, which has showcased a 3,000% growth rate since launching Frames, soaring from 10,000 daily users in late January to 300,343 on April 10.

Lens is another SocialFi platform showing renewed signs of interest.

However, Lens protocol isn’t adding signups, as shown by a stagnant chart of new profiles created. A Dune dashboard exhibits a flurry of activity from the already existing Lens user base. Interacting users has been somewhat volatile but can be seen in a strong uptrend since early February.

Publications jumped from 16,077 on March 31 to 29,079 on April 9, and reactions have been trending higher, hitting an all-time high on April 5, when the figure pierced the 123,000 mark.