The crypto market is attempting a recovery, with Bitcoin (BTC) nearing the $90,000 milestone. Amidst improving sentiment, several startups are launching enticing airdrops, providing crypto enthusiasts with opportunities to engage with budding platforms without initial financial input.

This week, we discuss airdrop participation opportunities from three projects with financial backing from renowned investors.

Optimism

Layer-2 blockchain Optimism is one of the top three crypto airdrops this week. The Optimism crypto airdrop comes after the network raised $267.50 million from key investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Coinbase Ventures, Paradigm, and IDEO CoLab Ventures, among others.

The airdrop concerns a SuperStacks Campaign, which opened on April 16 and will remain until June 30.

“With many chains building as one, a new network structure is emerging to solve fragmentation in Ethereum. This network is modular, interoperable, and composable by default. We call it the Superchain: and it changes everything,” Optimism explained.

Rewards are in the form of points, awarded for interacting with the projects. Airdrop farmers also get rewarded for providing liquidity to superchains, scalable blockchains combined into a single ecosystem to solve Ethereum fragmentation.

Actual tasks bring 10 EXP (experience points) per $1 of daily liquidity. In the past, Optimism held five airdrops, giving away over 265 million tokens.

“You may be eligible for the 6th airdrop without realizing it. In the system, we collect badges as you perform operations on Optimism. However, since it counts your previous operations when you log in, you may have opened many badges.,” one airdrop farmer explained.

This means even minimal effort could yield rewards. However, participating in the Optimism airdrop does not guarantee future rewards. Instead, it only provides an opportunity to earn points.

Aztec

Another top crypto airdrop to watch this week is Aztec, bringing forth a privacy-focused Layer-2 zero-knowledge (ZK) rollup on Ethereum.

Aztec is backed by $119.1 million in funding from investors such as Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Paradigm, Consensys, and Coinbase Ventures.

The project has garnered significant attention, following talks of a native AZTEC token and a confirmed retroactive airdrop for early users.

On April 17, the network announced the Aztec Sequencer Form, front-running a public testnet. Interested participants were asked to fill out the form to gain early access to the testnet.

Historically, blockchain projects reward testnet participants with tokens. Based on this, Aztec’s funding and investor backing increase the probability of an airdrop.

Huma Finance

This week, the watchlist also includes Huma Finance, the first PayFi (Payment Finance) network built on Solana. The project focuses on transforming global payment settlements using blockchain technology.

Huma Finance launched the second version of point farming, which is available only on the Solana network. Participants can deposit USDC tokens and earn Feathers (points). Notably, no KYC is needed in this version, and more pools are available.

Recently, the project announced social and deposit quests on Galxe, allowing users to complete these quests and try to win a share of $2,000. Notably, participants should have at least lvl 2 of Web3 Passport.

“Huma 2.0 is The Next Wave! Now anyone can earn real yield and stack rewards, exclusively on Solana. New quest is LIVE on Galxe Quest. Join the PayFi movement for a chance to grab a share of $2000 USDC,” the network shared.

 The project also launched a point farming program, in which participants can deposit USDC tokens into one of the pools. For this activity, users must pass KYC.

Meanwhile, Huma Finance boasts up to $46.3 million in funds raised from backers such as HashKey Capital, Circle, ParaFi Capital, and Distributed Global.

According to data from StakingRewards, Solana (SOL) has overtaken Ethereum (ETH) in staking market capitalization, reaching $53.15 billion compared to Ethereum’s $53.72 billion. 

This milestone has sparked heated discussions across the social media platform X, raising the question: Is this a turning point for Solana, or merely a short-lived surge?

Solana Outpaces Ethereum As High Staking Yields Prove Appealing

Recent data reveals that 64.86% of Solana‘s total supply is currently staked, delivering an impressive annual percentage yield (APY) of 8.31%. In contrast, Ethereum has only 28.18% of its supply staked, with an APY of 2.98%.

This disparity highlights Solana’s growing appeal for investors seeking passive income through staking. Staking market capitalization is calculated by multiplying the total number of staked tokens by their current price. With SOL priced at $138.91 as of this writing, Solana has officially surpassed Ethereum in this metric.

However, Solana’s high staking ratio has sparked some controversy. Critics, such as Dankrad Feist on X, argue that Solana’s lack of a slashing mechanism (or penalties for validator violations) undermines the economic security of its staking model. With its slashing mechanism, Ethereum offers greater security, despite its lower staking ratio.

“It’s very ironic to call it ‘staking’ when there is no slashing. What’s at stake? Solana has close to zero economic security at the moment,” Dankrad Feist shared.

Increased Whale Activity Signals Caution

Meanwhile, recent moves by “whales” (large investors) have further fueled interest in Solana. On April 20, 2025, a whale unstaked 37,803 SOL (worth $5.26 million). Similarly, Galaxy Digital withdrew 606,000 SOL from exchanges over four days (April 15–19, 2025), concluding with 462,000 SOL.

Additionally, on April 17, 2025, a newly created wallet withdrew approximately $5.15 million worth of SOL from the Binance exchange. In the same tone, Binance whales withdrew over 370,000 SOL tokens valued at $52.78 million.

While some whales withdrew their SOL holdings, other large holders accumulated. Janover, a US-listed company, increased its Solana holdings to 163,651.7 SOL (worth $21.2 million) and partnered with Kraken exchange for staking on April 16, 2025.

These actions signal diverging plays from institutional investors and whales, as the Solana price fluctuates around key levels.

SOL Price Analysis: Opportunities and Challenges

As of this writing, SOL was trading at $140.49, up 3.53% in the past 24 hours. Analysts highlight $129 as crucial support for the Solana price, with $144 presenting the key roadblock to overcome before Solana’s upside potential can be realized. Breaking above the aforementioned roadblock could propel SOL toward new highs.

Conversely, dropping below the $129 support level could trigger increased selling pressure. Nevertheless, SOL has shown a remarkable recovery, with a 14.34% increase over the past week.

Another factor to consider is the ongoing development of the Solana ecosystem. Key innovations include the QUIC data transfer protocol, the combination of Proof-of-History (PoH) and Proof-of-Stake (PoS), and the diversification of validator clients.

With these, Solana continues to enhance its performance and decentralization. Additionally, the launch of the Solang compiler, compatible with Ethereum’s Solidity, has attracted developers from the Ethereum ecosystem.

BeInCrypto also reported on Solana’s upcoming community conference, otherwise termed Solana Breakpoint. Key announcements from this event could provide further tailwinds for the SOL price.

Nevertheless, despite surpassing Ethereum in staking market capitalization, Solana faces significant challenges. Ethereum benefits from a more mature DeFi ecosystem, greater institutional trust, and enhanced security through its slashing mechanism.

To some, Ethereum’s lower staking ratio (28%) may be a deliberate strategy to reduce network pressure and ensure liquidity for DeFi applications.

In contrast, Solana’s high staking ratio (65%) could limit liquidity within its DeFi ecosystem. This raises the question of whether Solana can strike a balance between staking and the growth of its decentralized applications.

As Solana continues challenging Ethereum’s dominance, the crypto community remains divided. Is Solana’s rise a sustainable breakthrough, or just another wave of hype?

Ethereum price started a increase from the $1,550 zone. ETH is now rising and might attempt to recover above the $1,650 resistance.

• Ethereum started a fresh increase above the $1,580 and $1,600 levels.
• The price is trading above $1,600 and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average.
• There was a break above a connecting bearish trend line with resistance at $1,590 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD (data feed via Kraken).
• The pair could start a fresh increase if it clears the $1,650 resistance zone.

Ethereum Price Eyes Upside Break

Ethereum price remained stable above the $1,500 level and started a fresh increase, like Bitcoin. ETH traded above the $1,550 and $1,600 levels to enter a short-term positive zone.

There was a break above a connecting bearish trend line with resistance at $1,590 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD. The pair even cleared the $1,620 resistance. A high was formed at $1,644 and the price is stable above the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the upward move from the $1,566 swing low to the $1,644 high.

Ethereum price is now trading above $1,600 and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average. On the upside, the price seems to be facing hurdles near the $1,640 level. The next key resistance is near the $1,650 level. The first major resistance is near the $1,680 level.

A clear move above the $1,680 resistance might send the price toward the $1,720 resistance. An upside break above the $1,720 resistance might call for more gains in the coming sessions. In the stated case, Ether could rise toward the $1,800 resistance zone or even $1,840 in the near term.

Downside Correction In ETH?

If Ethereum fails to clear the $1,650 resistance, it could start a downside correction. Initial support on the downside is near the $1,620 level. The first major support sits near the $1,605 zone and the 50% Fib retracement level of the upward move from the $1,566 swing low to the $1,644 high.

A clear move below the $1,605 support might push the price toward the $1,580 support. Any more losses might send the price toward the $1,550 support level in the near term. The next key support sits at $1,500.

Technical Indicators

Hourly MACD – The MACD for ETH/USD is gaining momentum in the bullish zone.

Hourly RSI – The RSI for ETH/USD is now above the 50 zone.

Major Support Level – $1,600

Major Resistance Level – $1,650