As of writing, there was no conclusive data suggesting airdrop farmers were exiting Lighter.
The perpetual DEX (decentralized exchange) space is set to enter a new dynamic shift after Lighter launched its token LIT.
The privacy-focused, Ethereum-based perp DEX has been punching above its weight in terms of perp volumes lately, a move that experts attributed to aidrop farmers.
With farming almost over and after $625 million LIT has been shared with early users, analysts projected that these traders will move to another platform, especially Hyperliquid [HYPE].
According to the analytics firm Bubblemaps, the projection may have been validated amid massive withdrawals from the DEX post-TGE (token generation event).
The firm noted that $250M was withdrawn from the DEX a day after TGE. Amid the capital flight, Bubblemaps wondered,
“Are all the farmers leaving?”
Factoring in the deposits, the overall net outflow from DEX amounted to approximately $101 million.
Source: Artemis
In response, one user clapped back at Bubblemaps, calling the withdrawals “normal.”
“That’s kind of normal. Seeing the $650M airdrop distribution, $250m ain’t huge.”
Another analyst countered that the withdrawals weren’t from traders but from liquidity providers.
Lighter perp volumes slow
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That said, Lighter’s perp volumes have fallen off the cliff since late November. The weekly volume has declined from $66 billion to $31 billion in late December – A 50% drop in traction.
Source: Artemis
Worth pointing out, however, that Hyperliquid’s perp volumes also dropped by half from $41 billion to $26 billion over the same period. In short, it was still too early to conclude that Lighter users have effectively switched to Hyperliquid.
LIT price post mixed results
Still, the $625 million aidrop exerted significant selling pressure on the token. After its debut, LIT fell 32% from $ 3.30 to $ 2.20. At the time of writing, the altcoin had recovered 18% to $2.6.
In fact, another analyst projected that LIT could rally higher, citing the past performance of rivals such as HYPE and ASTER after their respective launches.
Source: LIT/USDT, TradingView
Meanwhile, there were slightly more people shorting the altcoin than buying it on the derivatives market. According to Coinglass, 54% of Binance top accounts were betting against LIT compared to only 45% eyeing a recovery at press time. This underscored short-term bearish pressure.
Source: CoinGlass
Final Thoughts
- Lighter recorded significant capital outflows just after its LIT token launch. Short-term positioning was slightly tilted towards bears as short bets overwhelmed longs.
Next: Is BitMine becoming Ethereum’s Michael Saylor as staking tops $1.3B?
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