Blast crosses $2 billion in TVL ahead of Feb. 29 mainnet launch

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Quick Take

Ethereum Layer 2 Blast has hit more than $2 billion in total value locked.
Blast’s mainnet launch is anticipated for Feb. 29.

Ethereum Layer 2 Blast has exceeded $2 billion in total value locked ahead of its expected mainnet launch this week.

“Blast has reached $2 Billion in TVL. 157,638 community members are now earning yield and Blast Points [rewards],” the project posted on X earlier on Tuesday. Current data from DeFiLlama shows Blast’s TVL at $2.1 billion.

Built by Tieshun Roquerre — the founder of the NFT marketplace Blur, also known as “Pacman” — Blast went live in early access mode in November following a $20 million investment from Paradigm and Standard Crypto, among others.

Blast claims to offer native Layer 2 yield generation for ether and stablecoins — natively participating in staking ether and depositing stablecoins in on-chain T-Bill protocols like MakerDAO to pass on the yield to the Layer 2’s users and dapps.

However, despite the apparent demand, the project has received criticism over how its model is structured and marketed — with members offered more points based on how much they bridge and who they invite to rank further up the leaderboard, unable to withdraw until the mainnet launch.

Earlier this week, a Blast-based gambling project RiskOnBlast allegedly rugpulled investors by emptying funds on Feb. 25 after it raised 420 ether (over $1 million) in a token presale. Its website and social media accounts also disappeared.

Disclaimer: Larry Cermak, CEO of The Block, is an angel investor in Blast.

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About Author

James Hunt is a reporter at The Block, based in the UK. As the writer behind The Daily newsletter, James also keeps you up to speed on the latest crypto news every weekday. Prior to joining The Block in 2022, James spent four years as a freelance writer in the industry, contributing to both publications and crypto project content. James’ coverage spans everything from Bitcoin and Ethereum to Layer 2 scaling solutions, avant-garde DeFi protocols, evolving DAO governance structures, trending NFTs and memecoins, regulatory landscapes, crypto company deals and the immersive metaverse. You can get in touch with James on Twitter or Telegram via @humanjets or email him at [email protected].