Early airdrop player Ignas shares his journey to wealth, openly stating he will no longer invest money into cryptocurrencies.

During DeFi Summer, crypto researcher Ignas participated in multiple airdrops. Recently, he reflected on his investment journey and revealed that his true path to wealth was not through trading activities but rather early airdrop bonuses. However, he admitted that the current market environment is different from the golden years of 2018 to 2022, and he does not plan to invest new funds in the future, sparking concerns within the community about whether the wealth effect in the crypto industry is weakening.

Starting with 13,930 Euros: Ignas’s Trading Journey

Ignas stated that between 2017 and 2020, he invested a total of 13,930 Euros (approximately $16,000 USD), after which he no longer added fiat funds. During this period, he accumulated significant gains by early purchases of Ethereum (ETH), buying Solana (SOL) at cycle lows, and later switching to assets like HYPE when ETH was around $12.

However, he emphasized that relying solely on spot investments, even if he had bought ETH at about $200 and held until now, would have resulted in roughly a tenfold increase, which still wouldn’t be enough to “change his life.”

DeFi Summer Airdrop Bonuses as a Key to Asset Accumulation

In Ignas’s view, the real wealth leap came from the DeFi airdrop wave around 2020. He recalls participating in $YFI mining from day one and receiving airdrops from well-known protocols like $UNI, $CRV, and $DYDX. The highest single airdrop was $INV, which he received just by filling out a Google form, worth about $120,000 in tokens. Although he didn’t manage to sell at the peak, these airdrops became a crucial source of capital for his subsequent operations.

Looking ahead to 2024, he mentioned that airdrops from projects like $JTO, $ETFI, $KAITO, $MON, and $LIT have also been quite rewarding.

Ignas candidly said, “Without airdrops, I wouldn’t have achieved what I have today. Airdrops are the real ‘seed capital’ that has allowed me to continue participating in the market since 2022, and they are a key factor in early participants turning their fortunes around.”

(Market downturns and the decline in crypto rewards: Cobie’s guide to patience and valuation skills)

Market Maturity and the Shift Away from Additional Capital Investment

Regarding the current market environment, Ignas believes that as the industry matures and participation increases significantly, the low-threshold, high-reward airdrop opportunities of the early days have greatly diminished. Even investing the same amount now has a much lower chance of hitting big compared to 2018–2022.

He also openly stated that he does not plan to inject new fiat funds into the crypto market in the future. Instead, he will only operate with his existing crypto assets, including trading and participating in airdrops. He observed that many seasoned crypto participants share a similar “only withdraw, no deposit” attitude, leading the market to increasingly rely on institutional capital:

“However, I hope we can create opportunities for the younger generation, especially for those in Generation Z who only have around 10,000 Euros and want to turn their fortunes around. Where are these opportunities? RWA, yield-bearing stablecoins, low-risk DeFi, pure neobanks? When you’re already financially free, these are great products, but they don’t create wealth like the airdrops of the past.”

Revisiting the Crypto Paradox: Do Users Want to Get Rich Overnight or Grow Steadily?

Some users pointed out that the crypto market has long been viewed as a place either to create generational wealth or to have no investment value. Compared to traditional stock markets, which focus on steady appreciation, crypto lacks mechanisms for long-term incentives, ultimately leading to value erosion.

Ignas agreed, noting that the desire for overnight riches has been especially amplified by the pressure-filled participation of Generation Z. He said that reversing this trend requires revolutionary wealth-betting opportunities, and ultimately, the crypto market may split into “high-risk, high-reward” speculative areas and “value accumulation” growth sectors.

(When effort seems to have no future: How can trapped young generations turn around through long-term speculation and betting on the casino?)

Some users believe that cases like Hyperliquid or Lighter show that large-scale airdrops have not disappeared, only that their scale and jackpot chances are less than before. The real wealth stories may have to wait for the next bull market.

Perhaps, as Dragon managing partner Haseeb mentioned, the airdrop mechanism itself has issues, continuously incentivizing short-term speculation. He emphasized that future token economies should be built on “on-chain reputation,” allowing genuine users not only to benefit from early participation but also to be continuously rewarded for long-term behavior.

(From the impressive IPOs of traditional finance to the crypto airdrop dilemma: How to leverage on-chain transparency to reward genuine participants)

This article features early airdrop participant Ignas sharing his path to wealth, openly stating he will no longer invest money into cryptocurrencies. The story was first published by Chain News ABMedia.