Introduction

Web3 marketing platforms function much like intermediary service platforms. These platforms offer users a gateway to discover projects launching incentive programs. Users can earn on-chain and off-chain rewards, such as airdrops or raffle prizes by participating in official tasks. Additionally, users can showcase their engagement with favored platforms by generating exceptional interaction data, increasing their chances of receiving token airdrops. For projects, reputable and high-quality platforms can drive traffic and boost project visibility and market enthusiasm through various activities, attracting more users and capital.

Layer3, founded in 2021, is a Web3 marketing platform combining on-chain and off-chain operations to reward users for completing tasks and drive project traffic. The team secured a $15 million Series A funding in June and announced an L3 token airdrop in early July. Subsequently, they introduced a new economic model, offering users more incentives and potentially sparking a surge in user growth. This article will delve into the details of their newly launched token model, including the design and distribution of the L3 token and its staking mechanism.

Team and Funding

Founded in September 2021, Layer3 is a Web3 project marketing platform that combines on-chain and off-chain operations to support up to 25 blockchains. It has almost aggregated all the popular ecosystems and has numerous well-known partners. In June of this year, Layer3 secured a $15 million Series A funding led by ParaFi and Greenfield, with participation from Electric Capital, Immutable, Lattice, Tioga, LeadBlock, Amber, and others. Previously, the team raised $3.7 million in strategic funding in 2022 and $2.5 million in seed funding in 2021, led by ParaFi. It is evident that Layer3 has a solid financial foundation.

The Layer3 team members are graduates of top universities worldwide. Co-founder and CEO, Dariya Khojasteh, graduated from the University of Southern California, USA, and began his entrepreneurial journey immediately after graduation. Co-founder Brandon Kumar graduated from George Washington University and was previously Vice President at Accolade Partners. Engineering Lead Peter Ng graduated from Columbia University and was CTO at Mojito.

With a strong team background and substantial funding, the protocol team’s core strategy is to attract platforms and users through project aggregation. The platform’s user base and interaction data have surged following the token airdrop and the launch of the new economic model.

Product Mechanism

Layer3’s value lies in connecting users and projects. Users can earn experience points (XP), tokens, or NFTs by completing various incentive tasks posted by projects. To acquire customers, projects collaborate with Layer3, paying a fee to the platform and offering rewards to users.

The primary goal for projects participating in Layer3 is to acquire and retain active users. To achieve this, they need to pay a service fee to Layer3, the specific amount of which is determined based on the nature of the collaboration.

Here’s a step-by-step guide for users participating in tasks on Layer3:

1. Connect a wallet (such as Metamask) and set up a profile with information like your avatar, Twitter, and Discord.
2. Select a task from the homepage, including answering quizzes, interacting with platforms, or minting NFTs.
3. To unlock new tasks, users must complete prerequisite tasks, and some tasks require users to reach a certain level.
4. Users earn experience points (XP) upon task completion and sometimes commemorative NFTs.

Source: app.layer3.xyz

Token Allocation

Recently, the Layer3 team conducted an L3 token airdrop event and announced a new tokenomics model for L3.

The total supply of L3 tokens is 3.3 billion, with 55% allocated to the community, 25.3% to core contributors, 23.2% to investors, and 0.5% to advisors.

Source：docs.layer3foundation.org

The 51% allocated to the community, totaling 1.683 billion L3, will be fully released over four years. In the first year, 40% will be unlocked, followed by 30% in the second year, 20% in the third year, and the remaining 10% in the fourth year. Out of the community’s share, 25% of the total supply is allocated by the foundation for initial airdrop activities and incentives. Another 26% is managed by the DAO and the foundation for future airdrop plans, incentive programs, and ecosystem development. 6% is allocated for OG and the first season airdrop, amounting to 200 million L3. The remaining 1.5% (50 million L3) will be distributed in the second season airdrop.

The 21% allocated to core contributors, totaling 843 million L3, will be fully released over four years. No tokens will be unlocked in the first year. Starting in the second year, 33% will be unlocked annually and distributed daily until the end of the fourth year.

The 25.3% allocated to investors, totaling 773 million L3, will also be fully released over four years. This follows the same unlocking model as for core contributors: no unlocking in the first year, with 33% unlocked annually from the second year and distributed daily.

The 0.5% allocated to advisors, amounting to 16 million L3, will be fully released over four years, following the same release model as for core contributors and investors. This unlocking model helps prevent excessive token release pressure in the first year.

Source: docs.layer3foundation.org

The token airdrop will be divided into the first and second seasons, distributing a total of 250 million L3 tokens. The snapshot date for the first season is May 10, 2024, with 200 million tokens available. The second season’s snapshot date is July 22, 2024, with 50 million tokens available. Users must claim their tokens by August 20, 2024.

Staking Model

Simultaneous with the launch of the native L3 token, the team introduced a new tokenomics model: the Layered Staking model for L3. The purpose of this model is to connect token holders to the ecosystem’s development through three primary use cases for L3. Let’s delve into the details of this model:

Source: docs.layer3foundation.org

The first layer is passive staking rewards and governance. By staking L3 on Layer3, users can earn passive income (in L3) and participate in governance decisions.

The second layer enables users to stake other tokens and increase the protocol’s utility actively. Specifically:

• By staking a certain amount of L3, users can participate in additional tasks initiated by Layer3’s partners and earn corresponding governance tokens.
• Staking different amounts of L3 unlocks rewards for different tiers of tasks, with higher staking amounts granting access to higher-tier rewards.
• Users can access the launchpad, enabling participation in new project launches and exclusive airdrop events.
• Extra races rewards are available.

The third tier allows users to actively earn L3. The team will continuously distribute L3 as incentives to active users and ecosystem stakeholders. Users can earn a multiplier based on their ongoing activity and staking, with higher multipliers increasing the likelihood of receiving additional benefits and governance rights.

Burn Mechanism

In addition to the staking model, L3 incorporates a burn mechanism, which applies to individual users and projects on the platform.

Projects must purchase and burn a certain amount of L3 to publish tasks, set incentives, and issue CUBE credentials on the Layer3 platform. CUBE is an NFT introduced by Layer3 to verify users’ cross-chain participation and has already been distributed to over two thousand users. The community can vote to decide whether to provide project participants with L3 protocol revenue buybacks or burn mechanisms.

Users can burn L3 tokens to obtain exclusive privileges in Layer3 partner projects, such as early access, token discounts, or exclusive NFTs.

Layer3’s value lies in connecting users and projects. Currently, Layer3 has a high level of active users, bringing its own traffic and attracting more projects to publish tasks. This, in turn, encourages existing users to stay and attracts more new users. The user base generates a steady stream of positive cash flow for Layer3, promoting the burning of L3 tokens. Combined with the staking mechanism, this could trigger a new wave of user growth.

Conclusion

Layer3 has introduced a platform that drives project traffic and offers users task rewards. They recently launched their native token, L3, and a new tokenomics model. Through a three-tier layered staking model and a dual-burn mechanism, the protocol can lock up a significant amount of L3 tokens, preventing selling pressure. The massive user base serves as a strong moat for the platform. The combination of product advantages and the new tokenomics model will likely trigger a new wave of user growth.