After the conclusion of the NFT incentive scheme, on-chain activity on Optimism decreases

The amount of transactions on Layer 2 network Optimism has decreased by 70% after a previous surge.

The amount of transactions on Optimism, a scaling solution for Ethereum, has decreased by 70% after a prior surge. After reaching a record of almost 800,000 transactions per day on January 12, the number of daily transactions has decreased to 238,000, according to statistics from blockchain explorer Blockscan.

The decline in activity corresponded with the conclusion of the Optimism Quest incentive program, which attempted to enhance user involvement and educate users about the Optimism Layer 2 network.

According to a recent analysis by The Block Research, the increase in on-chain activity during Quest coincided with rumours of a second airdrop from the Optimism team.

In April 2022, Optimism announced a free token airdrop for early adopters, with sums ranging from $500 to $10,000 per user. The crew also indicated a second, bigger airdrop, but no other information was supplied.

Users speculated that completing activities inside the Optimism Quest program, which rewarded participants with non-fungible tokens (NFTs), may qualify them for the airdrop.

On-chain data indicates that throughout the four-month Quest program, 450,000 wallets mined over 3.4 million NFTs by completing tasks requiring the usage of decentralised applications in the Optimism ecosystem. The software was driven by Galxe, a framework for on-chain credentials.

Odyssey, a comparable NFT program on Optimism’s closest rival Arbitrum, was essential in expanding network activity, which was also driven by airdrop speculation. In the instance of Arbitrum, there has been no airdrop to date.

“The upswing in on-chain activity serves as a reminder that rumors of a prospective airdrop may sometimes be exploited to increase on-chain activity, much as the Arbitrum Odyssey prompted a spike in on-chain activity for Arbitrum,” said Arnold Toh, research analyst at The Block.

Despite a decline in transactions, Optimism’s native token, the OP token, has lately achieved a record high. According to CoinGeko, the cryptocurrency has grown around 150% since the beginning of the year and is presently trading at $2.25.

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