BlackRock asset management firm has hit a new milestone in its spot Ethereum ETF (exchange-traded fund) offering, breaching the $1 billion mark in total asset value in a record two months.

It comes after a favorable week of trading, during which Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) ETFs recorded multi-week highs as crypto markets recovered.

BlackRock Hits Key Milestone With ETHA

According to Sosovalue data, BlackRock’s Ethereum ETF (ETHA) reached a significant milestone after Friday’s inflows, bringing its total net asset value to over $1 billion just two months after its launch.

This achievement makes ETHA the second Ethereum ETF to surpass $1 billion in value, following Grayscale’s Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH). Nate Geraci, President of the ETF Store, noted that this milestone places BlackRock’s ETHA among the top 20% of the 3,700 ETFs currently available in the US market.

Read more: How to Invest in Ethereum ETFs?

BlackRock’s watershed moment comes after crypto ETFs recorded a favorable week. As BeInCrypto reported, both Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs hit multi-week highs in inflows, signaling growing optimism for a crypto market recovery. Bitcoin ETFs attracted $1.11 billion in inflows, while Ethereum ETFs recorded $84.6 million — the highest since August.

Notably, three out of five trading days last week saw positive net inflows for Ethereum ETFs, marking the second consecutive week of gains since their debut in late July.

The renewed optimism comes amid a paradigm shift in the US macroeconomic space, instigated by the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision. With the stance inspiring increased liquidity, investors continue to bet on crypto market recovery, with Bitcoin holding well above $65,000.

BlackRock Bought More Bitcoin This Week Than Any ETF Sold

As BlackRock advances its Ethereum ETF, it is also ramping up efforts in its Bitcoin portfolio. As BeInCrypto reported, the firm’s BTC stash is steadily closing in on Binance.

Data from Arkham shows that BlackRock bought more Bitcoin this week than any ETF has sold in the past three weeks. Specifically, the firm acquired 5,894 BTC, valued at $387.68 million, over four days, signaling a strong accumulation trend.

This buying spree follows three years of skepticism, with BlackRock now holding approximately $23.86 billion worth of Bitcoin. Further purchases were reported by Lookonchain, including an additional 1,684 BTC worth $110.7 million on Saturday, September 28. These acquisitions have brought BlackRock’s total Bitcoin holdings to around 365,310 BTC, valued at over $24.039 billion.

Read more: Who Owns the Most Bitcoin in 2024?

Robbie Mitchnick, BlackRock’s head of digital assets, notes Bitcoin’s immunity to risks such as currency debasement and political turmoil. BlackRock suggests that Bitcoin’s scarce, non-sovereign, and decentralized nature makes it a potential flight-to-safety asset. The firm also believes that global instability could drive long-term adoption of Bitcoin as a store of value.

On September 26, 2024, Hamster Kombat, a popular tap-to-earn Telegram game, launched the trading of its HMSTR token on several major exchanges. While the event was highly anticipated, the airdrop ended up disappointing a large portion of the crypto community.

Many believe it was “one of the worst airdrops in the history of the crypto.” Here are five reasons why the Hamster Kombat airdrop failed to meet expectations.

What’s Wrong With the Hamster Kombat Airdrop

1. Unfair Reward Distribution

Ahead of the airdrop, many participants were unexpectedly disqualified. Those who focused on boosting their points per hour (PPH) to accumulate tokens were banned just before the event. The developers implemented a new “anti-cheat” system, which caught many off guard.

According to those affected, the move seemed to benefit influencers, with a significant amount of the tokens redirected to them instead of regular players. This last-minute rule change caused major outrage.

2. Frequent Postponements and Sudden Rule Changes

Initially, the Hamster Kombat team had planned the airdrop for July 2024, but due to technical unpreparedness, the event was delayed. This postponement angered many who had been eagerly awaiting their rewards.

In late August, the team announced that the airdrop would finally occur in September. While they met this new deadline, they lost the trust of many community members.

Worse, just before the airdrop, the developers announced that participants would only receive 88.75% of their tokens. The remaining 11.25% wouldn’t be distributed until July 2025. This unexpected rule change led to a growing boycott movement within the community.

3. Low Listing Price of the HMSTR Token

One of the main concerns going into the airdrop was the value of the HMSTR token at launch. Unfortunately, these fears were realized when the token debuted at $0.01.

Almost immediately, the price began to decline. This sharp drop disappointed both long-term and short-term investors who had expected more from the project’s token.

“Where are those YouTubers and influencers who gave the community false hope of $0.10 or $0.50?  Hamster Kombat has turned out to be the worst airdrop in crypto history. It’s almost 50%-60% down now,” one X user wrote.

Read more: 7 Best Exchanges To Buy and Sell Hamster Kombat (HMSTR) in 2024

As of this writing, HMSTR is trading at $0.0019 — almost 40% lower than its initial value.

4. Problems with Selling HMSTR Tokens

Many project participants found themselves with only a few dollars’ worth of HMSTR tokens after months of interacting with the game. Players complained that despite the time spent on activities like tapping hamsters to earn rewards, the payouts were disappointingly low.

“Hamster Kombat has cheated the community. They have allocated a large portion of airdrops to YouTubers and influencers for referrals. They’ve implemented vesting without informing the community. They’ve made people work like labor, day and night to collect keys from their games and gave $5 or $10 tokens,” Crypto with Khan, a prominent crypto influencer commented.

Moreover, those with small token amounts faced additional challenges when trying to sell them. Some exchanges, like Binance, require a minimum transaction value of $5, making it impossible for users with smaller token balances to cash out their HMSTR.

5. Telegram Wallet Outages

The launch of HMSTR trading coincided with technical issues in the Telegram wallet, which is operated by TON blockchain. TON, built on the remnants of an abandoned Telegram crypto project, is responsible for running the crypto wallet within Telegram, where users hold HMSTR tokens.

Due to network overloads, many users found themselves unable to access or trade their tokens, further compounding frustrations around the airdrop.