Ink Foundation has recently made a significant announcement on June 17th regarding the minting of 1 billion INK tokens. These tokens will be used to fund user-run liquidity on Ink, the Ethereum layer-2 network that is backed by Kraken.
The foundation has set a permanent supply cap for the tokens and will release the mint date and contract address once the audits are completed. This milestone also marks the beginning of the eligibility process for the airdrop, where predefined usage thresholds will be established.
It is important to note that INK holders will not have a say in the governance process of the rollup itself. Instead, they will have the opportunity to influence incentives and resource allocation for protocols that deploy on the rollup.
The distribution of INK tokens will be done through an airdrop that is tied to a liquidity protocol powered by Aave. A subsidiary will oversee the airdrop process and implement measures to prevent farming through Sybil-deterrence checks.
The Aave-based platform will offer lending and trading functionalities and will serve as the foundational element in Ink’s DeFi ecosystem. The foundation’s decision to mint INK tokens is aimed at advancing the project into its next phase of development and aligning users, builders, and protocols around the token.
Ink was initially launched by Kraken on October 24th, 2024, as an Optimism-based network that allows users to trade, borrow, and lend without the need for intermediaries. The founder of Ink, Andrew Koller, expressed the team’s commitment to accelerating on-chain activities with an interoperable L2 and announced plans to roll out a developer testnet later that year.
Additionally, Optimism’s chief growth officer, Ryan Wyatt, disclosed that the Optimism Foundation had approved a 25 million OP grant for Kraken to integrate Ink into the Superchain ecosystem. This grant includes funds for OP Stack engineering and transaction volume milestones that aim to generate fees for the Optimism Collective.
This latest development signifies a significant step forward for Ink and its ecosystem, as it continues to grow and expand its offerings in the DeFi space. Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting project.