In a move aimed at enhancing its ecosystem, the Shiba Inu (SHIB) network has introduced a new initiative that is capturing widespread attention. Earlier today, the network unveiled an airdrop exclusively for SHIB holders, offering them the opportunity to claim Philtoken (PHIL). This announcement marks another step in SHIB’s ongoing efforts to expand its utility beyond being a meme coin.
Details of the Shiba Inu Airdrop
The airdrop features a substantial 10 million PHIL tokens, set aside for Shiba Inu holders who meet specific criteria. According to the announcement, only those who have owned SHIB since August 28, 2024, and hold their tokens in non-custodial wallets like Trust Wallet or MetaMask will qualify. Those who keep their SHIB on centralized exchanges, however, will not be eligible for this airdrop.
The announcement emphasized the importance of self-custody, stating, “This airdrop is exclusively for the self-custody crowd.” This shift towards rewarding decentralized wallet holders aligns with growing trends in the crypto world, where self-custody is increasingly seen as a safer and more decentralized approach to asset management.
The airdrop will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, with the first 10,000 qualifying wallets receiving a minimum of 500 PHIL tokens. However, some lucky holders could receive up to 500,000 PHIL. This initiative is part of a broader partnership between Shiba Inu and the Phil team, aimed at fostering greater utility and charitable initiatives within the crypto space.
The Shiba Inu and Philtoken Partnership
The airdrop is the result of a collaboration between Shiba Inu and Philtoken, a project known for integrating cryptocurrency with charitable events. The PHIL team has been teasing this partnership with SHIB through meme-based posts on social media, which have generated excitement and speculation within the community. Phil’s approach, using humor and philanthropy, fits well with Shiba Inu’s own playful yet impactful identity in the crypto world.
Shiba Inu and Philtoken’s Market Performance
Despite the exciting airdrop announcement, Shiba Inu’s price has seen some turbulence. At the time of writing, SHIB is trading at $0.00001825, reflecting a 3% drop over the past 24 hours. While the meme coin has struggled to regain momentum, the airdrop may provide a much-needed boost to community engagement and utility in the long run.
Meanwhile, Philtoken (PHIL) has been on a tear, surging by over 130% in the last week. Currently trading at $0.04483, PHIL has a market capitalization of $44.83 million, making it the 604th largest cryptocurrency. Its daily trading volume has also spiked by 34%, reaching $16.77 million. This upward trajectory suggests that the partnership with Shiba Inu is already having a positive effect on PHIL’s market standing.
A New Chapter for Shiba Inu?
Shiba Inu’s latest move to expand its ecosystem could signal a new chapter in its evolution from a meme coin to a more utility-focused cryptocurrency. The partnership with Philtoken and the focus on charitable efforts suggest that SHIB is looking to carve out a more meaningful role in the crypto landscape. While it remains to be seen how this will impact SHIB’s price, the airdrop could reignite interest in the token among both existing holders and potential new investors.
As the Shiba Inu network continues to push for greater utility, this airdrop serves as a reminder that the world of meme coins is evolving. For now, SHIB holders have a fresh opportunity to benefit from this partnership, while Philtoken is gaining increased visibility and market traction.
This airdrop marks another bold move in Shiba Inu’s efforts to stay relevant in an increasingly competitive market, and the rewards could be significant for those holding SHIB in non-custodial wallets. Keep an eye on both tokens as they navigate this next phase of growth and innovation.
The idea of the colloquial “American Dream” might be due for an upgrade after BeInCrypto reported housing credits in the US considering Bitcoin-backed mortgages.
While homeownership has long defined financial success in the US, a growing movement led by crypto heavyweights says that even owning 0.1 Bitcoin (BTC) might soon surpass that milestone.
Binance’s CZ Says 0.1 BTC Could One Day Outvalue a House
Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder and former CEO of the Binance exchange, suggested that owning just 0.1 BTC, worth $10,679 as of this writing, could one day be worth more than a house in the US.
“The current American Dream is to own a home. The future American Dream will be to own 0.1 BTC, which will be more than the value of a house in the US,” the Binance executive shared in a post.
CZ was reacting to a post by William J. Pulte, a US housing policy official and crypto advocate, who announced crypto inclusion as an asset for a mortgage application.
According to CZ, this is great to see, with Bitcoin now counting as an asset when applying for a mortgage in the US.
After significant studying, and in keeping with President Trump’s vision to make the United States the crypto capital of the world, today I ordered the Great Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare their businesses to count cryptocurrency as an asset for a mortgage.
Pulte is the director of the US Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees major entities such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks.
The decision marks a fundamental shift in US financial policy. Enacting this policy, particularly regarding Bitcoin, enhances the pioneer crypto’s popularity among high-net-worth investors. More closely, it legitimizes crypto as a financial asset in federal housing policy.
“When I bought a house last year, I provided a portfolio summary from DeBank as proof of funds. No bank would accept such a document but realtors will accept the document for cash offers,” one user revealed.
This aligns with a broader trend of digital assets gaining mainstream legitimacy in financial infrastructure, including Bitcoin ETFs (exchange-traded funds) and Ethereum counterparts.
Notably, Pulte also revealed regulatory momentum, ordering executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mae to provide regulatory changes. After a “productive meeting,” Pulte confirmed the addition of crypto to US mortgage qualification.
Did you see we added crypto to US mortgages yesterday?
Saylor has long viewed Bitcoin as a long-term store of value. This latest development cements that vision, tying Bitcoin to the foundational aspects of middle-class life such as homeownership.
In a recent US Crypto News publication, BeInCrypto reported Saylor offering MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin Credit framework to calculate credit risk using BTC price volatility and loan duration, among other factors.
Bitwise’s Jeff Park Explains The Rise of the “Wholecoiner”
Elsewhere, Jeff Park says the American Dream is being redefined for younger generations. According to the portfolio manager at Bitwise, becoming a “wholecoiner” (owning 1 full BTC) is replacing suburban homeownership as a symbol of financial independence for Millennials and Gen Z.
With US home prices soaring, weighing heavily on younger Americans, the dream of owning property is slipping away.
Median US homebuyer housing payment on median-priced home. Source: Charlie Bilello on X
Similarly, student debt is a challenge, with reports suggesting high unemployment rates even for students graduating from top-of-the-line institutions.
The unemployment rate of Harvard’s 2025 graduating class of is ~25%, the highest on record.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin, trading at $106,796 as of this writing, represents an alternative grounded in scarcity, autonomy, and global access. A report from Jumper Learn echoes this sentiment.
“Owning one Bitcoin is viewed as a milestone akin to homeownership in previous generations, anchored not to land but to sound money and digital autonomy,” read an excerpt in the blog.
The policy shift reflects a broader cultural transformation. As digital natives prioritize flexibility, decentralization, and sovereignty, Bitcoin is going beyond being just an asset and progressively becoming a lifestyle anchor.
As Saylor, CZ, and Pulte, among others, converge around this narrative, Bitcoin becomes a benchmark of aspiration. The modern American Dream could soon be measured in satoshis, not square footage.
In recent months, Solana has demonstrated remarkable growth in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, prompting discussions about its potential to rival Ethereum’s valuation.
A new report by Franklin Templeton highlighted that Solana’s DeFi protocols are among the most utilized and highest-earning platforms across all blockchain environments.
Franklin Templeton Predicts Solana as Ethereum’s Rival
In an analysis, Franklin Templeton highlighted the rapid growth and potential of Solana’s DeFi ecosystem. The report suggested that its valuation could soon rival Ethereum’s.
The global asset management firm, which oversees $1.68 trillion in assets, noted that six Solana-based protocols surpassed $1 billion in Total Value Locked (TVL).
During the third and fourth quarters of 2024, Solana outperformed Ethereum in several key metrics. Solana’s decentralized exchange (DEX) volume notably exceeded that of Ethereum and all Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)–based DEXs combined.
The surge indicates a significant shift in DeFi activity towards Solana, challenging Ethereum’s longstanding dominance in the space. Jito (JTO) leads the charge, a liquid staking protocol that recently reached an all-time high of $3 billion in TVL. Notably, this marked the first time a Solana-based protocol has achieved this milestone.
Other notable protocols include Jupiter (JUP), Raydium (RAY), Kamino (KMNO), Marinade (MNDE), and Sanctum Coin (SANCTA). Collectively, these protocols contributed to Solana’s growing DeFi ecosystem.
Further emphasizing its growing prominence, Solana’s active addresses per hour were reported to be 26 times higher than Ethereum’s as of January 2025. This surge in user activity reflects the network’s scalability and efficiency, making it an attractive platform for developers and investors seeking faster transactions and lower fees.
Despite the impressive growth, Franklin Templeton’s report points out that Solana’s DeFi protocols remain undervalued compared to their Ethereum counterparts. The analysis reveals that Solana’s DeFi tokens are trading at lower valuation multiples, although they exhibit higher growth profiles and strong fundamentals.
“Solana DeFi valuation multiples trade on average lower than their Ethereum counterparts despite significantly higher growth profiles. This highlights an apparent valuation asymmetry between the two ecosystems,” an excerpt in the report read.
Notwithstanding, Franklin Templeton says the increased activity has also contributed to Solana’s rising market capitalization and overall ecosystem growth. According to the asset manager, these discrepancies suggest a potential investment opportunity as the market adjusts to recognize Solana’s expanding influence in the DeFi sector.
Reflecting this optimism, Franklin Templeton filed for a spot Solana ETF (exchange-traded fund) with the US SEC. Notably, the proposed ETF includes staking capabilities. This means investors can earn rewards by participating in network validation processes, which is the first for a Solana-based ETF.
Solana Rising – Could It Overtake Ethereum?
While some investors are enthusiastic about Solana’s potential, others remain skeptical. A user on X (Twitter) challenged the move to compare Solana to Ethereum, alluding to stark differences in foundational robustness.
“It’s like comparing Ethereum versus Las Vegas casino. Yea Vegas has more chips,” the user quipped.
Similarly, industry analysts caution against assuming Solana is poised to surpass Ethereum imminently. Juan Pellicer, Senior Research Analyst at IntoTheBlock, noted that while Solana has narrowed the market capitalization gap with Ethereum, it still faces significant hurdles.
“While Solana may continue to grow and potentially challenge Ethereum in specific niches, overcoming Ethereum’s entrenched position as the dominant platform in the immediate future is still unlikely, though the competitive landscape is dynamic and evolving,” Pellicer told BeInCrypto.
Specifically, Pellicer emphasized that Ethereum benefits from established trust and a vast developer community. According to the analyst, these are critical factors in maintaining its leading position in the DeFi space.
He also highlighted the need for Solana to address centralization concerns and achieve parity in developer adoption. These, according to the analysts, would see Solana truly challenge Ethereum’s dominance.
As Solana continues to innovate and expand its DeFi ecosystem, its potential to reach valuations comparable to Ethereum becomes more plausible.
In 2025, the ecosystems that thrive aren’t the loudest — they’re the most strategic, the most focused, and the ones building lasting value. Ecosystem health today is increasingly measured by the depth of developer engagement, not the size of token airdrops or surface-level metrics. Marketing has evolved too: AI tools, grassroots community operations, and hybrid content strategies are replacing short-lived, high-gloss campaigns.
As crypto becomes a fixture in national policy and economic frameworks, credibility and trust within ecosystems have emerged as the new currencies of growth.
There’s no one-size-fits-all playbook anymore. To uncover what’s actually working today, we spoke with growth leaders from Sui, Avalanche, Syscoin, Manta Network, and others.
This report helps to shed some light on the ongoing trends in the crypto-related marketing and find out which of them are setting the pace for the next wave of sustainable growth.
TL;DR:
In 2025, the ecosystems thriving aren’t the loudest. They’re the most strategic, most focused and most aligned with long-term value.
Ecosystem health is increasingly tied to the depth of developer engagement, not the size of token airdrops or vanity metrics.
Marketing has evolved. AI tools, grassroots community ops, and hybrid content strategies are replacing high-gloss, short-cycle campaigns.
With crypto entering national policy agendas and economic frameworks, credibility and ecosystem trust are new growth currencies.
There’s no one-size-fits-all. We spoke with growth leaders from Sui, Avalanche, Syscoin, Manta Network and others to uncover what’s actually working.
Back in 2024, crypto felt like it was everywhere and nowhere all at once.
Timelines were flooded with debates, L1 vs. L2, monolithic vs. modular, liquidity this, fragmentation that. Almost everyone had a hot take and every project was scrambling for a flash of attention that barely lasted longer than a tweet.
You could launch a project, nail the narrative, get your retweets and podcast mentions and still wake up the next day with no real momentum.
It wasn’t sustainable and deep down, most teams knew it.
And yet, behind the scenes, something foundational shifted.
For the first time, crypto became a serious topic in policy rooms.
The U.S. government announced a strategic crypto reserve.
The SEC greenlit Bitcoin and Ether ETPs, signaling a long-awaited shift in regulatory posture.
Lawmakers started treating blockchain not as a niche asset class, but as infrastructure and a core component of national strategy.
Suddenly, crypto had a seat at the big table. That was the moment the growth playbook started to change.
Fast-forward to 2025, ecosystems that had been optimizing for virality started asking tougher questions:
What does long-term credibility look like?
How do we show up to policymakers and enterprises, not just degens and influencers?
Can we measure our health beyond just wallet counts and discord headcounts?
To find answers, we spoke with ecosystem leaders across 10 blockchain networks, from early-stage innovators to mature platforms. Despite technical and strategic diversity, they shared one common mindset: They’re building like they plan to be here in five, ten, twenty years.
This is post-hype crypto and the rules have changed.
Key highlights and critical findings
Marketing budgets are all over the place: Some teams are grinding with less than $100K a year while others are spending $10 million and up. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach, but the gap speaks volumes.
Hybrid teams are the new normal: The smartest teams are optimizing for speed, adaptability, and high-context execution. They’re ruthlessly prioritizing talent that moves the needle, not just fills roles.
Builders are the flywheel: Growth teams are channeling most of their energy into developer outreach such as grants, hackathons, ambassador programs, and local language support are common plays.
Audience alignment: In an oversaturated, narrative-heavy market, cutting through the noise to reach the right set of audience is still one of the biggest hurdles.
Tactics are getting sharper: AI-powered marketing, community-based onboarding, and incentive models like “watch-to-earn” are emerging as key differentiators in creating sticky, engaging experiences.
Research Methodology
To understand what’s driving ecosystem growth in 2025, we went straight to the source in conversations with ten executives across active, forward-thinking blockchain networks including Sui, Avalanche, Manta Network, Syscoin, eCash, and CrossFi Chain.
Our findings are structured across five critical themes:
→ Strategic Priorities
→ Growth Challenges
→ Team Structures
→ Marketing Tactics
→ Budget Allocation
These are the pressure points where ecosystems are being tested, where they’re iterating and where the shift from hype to health is most visible.
The answers weren’t surface-level.
They were honest, revealing, and at times, surprisingly candid.
Section 1: The Evolving Landscape of Crypto Ecosystems
1.1 From Noise to Nuance
Not long ago, crypto felt like a winner-takes-all race.
Ethereum and Bitcoin dominated headlines, while new chains clawed for attention with a flashy feature or a viral announcement.
But that playbook has changed.
Today, the landscape is more fragmented and more alive than ever.
Upstart chains can gain real traction in months. Niche ecosystems are finding staying power by serving focused communities with precision: real dev support, localized outreach, unique tooling, and use cases that resonate with people who actually build.
It’s no longer about being the biggest.
It’s about being the most relevant to the audience that matters.
Source: Market share distribution among top ecosystems.
The momentum has shifted from mass appeal to mission-driven growth.
The ecosystems making progress are the ones listening, serving and playing the long game.
1.2 Key growth metrics and benchmarks
Among surveyed ecosystems, developer adoption has become the north star metric.
While TVL remains a benchmark, leading teams are shifting toward engagement depth over vanity counts. Grants, hackathons, and local campaigns outperform short-term airdrops in both onboarding and retention.
1.3 Critical Challenges Facing Ecosystem Growth
Source: Top Barriers to Ecosystem Adoption Identified by Executives
Based on direct feedback, the top challenges for ecosystems today are:
Difficulty reaching the right audience
Oversaturation of the crypto landscape
Budget constraints and limited runway for experimentation
While blockchain infrastructure is improving,especially with L2 scalability and better dev tooling, the biggest challenges aren’t technical anymore.
They’re strategic.
Most teams aren’t struggling with what to build but with how to position, differentiate, and communicate.
“It’s no longer enough to be technically sound. Ecosystem success depends on whether you can communicate value to developers, users and partners in the clearest, most compelling way possible.” – — Matthew Schmenk, Ecosystem Growth Lead, Avalanche
Section 2: Marketing & Growth Strategies
“Marketing in crypto used to be noise. Now it’s systems thinking – who you reach, how you reach them, and why they stay.”- The Lunar Strategy Team
Ecosystem marketing in 2025 isn’t about dropping a flashy campaign, running a paid KOL loop, and hoping it sticks. Today, marketing is infrastructure.
It’s the connective tissue between ecosystem layers: builders, users, tokenholders, institutions driving onboarding, retention, and legitimacy.
Let’s break it down:
2.1 Choosing the Right Growth Model
Source: Percentage of Ecosystems Using External Agencies vs. In-House Teams
According to our survey:
60% use a hybrid model (in-house + agency)
40% operate with fully internal teams
2.2 Analysing the Pros and Cons
Hybrid models allow for speed and flexibility while maintaining institutional knowledge. Fully in-house teams prioritize cohesion but may lack bandwidth or breadth of expertise.
2.3 Marketing Budget Allocation Across Ecosystems
Annual budgets vary widely:
<$500K: Primarily in-house with lean teams
$500K–$1M: Hybrid setups with agency retained for campaigns
$5M+: Full-stack growth teams covering PR, events, KOLs, paid media, SEO and more
What’s changing in 2025 isn’t just how much teams spend, it’s how precisely they deploy capital:
Early-stage: lean, localized execution
Mid-tier: AI tooling, content ops, ambassador focus
Mature: brand systems, KOL pipelines, segmentation
“In 2024, we spent $2M and didn’t know what moved the needle. In 2025, we’re spending half that – with 3x the return – because we track the full funnel.” — Ecosystem CMO
Section 3: Driving Ecosystem Adoption
As ecosystems compete for market share, one truth is becoming increasingly clear: developers are the new power users.
Ecosystem health is now largely measured by the number and quality of developers actively building, contributing, and shipping.
3.1 Developer Acquisition & Retention
Across the board, developer evangelism and hackathons ranked as the most effective levers for attracting high-quality builders. In 2025, 9 out of 10 ecosystem leaders called them “critical” or “highly effective.”
But incentives alone aren’t enough.
The modern developer is motivated by clear value exchange and personal growth, not just payouts.
Here’s what’s working now:
Hackathons with real-world utility
On-chain recognition (e.g., badges, NFTs)
IRL builder meetups with funded follow-through
In short, developer outreach is all about frictionless onboarding, compelling challenges, and a clear value exchange.
Also, programs that combine monetary reward + mentorship + visibility are far outperforming “spray-and-pray” grants.
Case Highlights:
eCash: Turned its internal engineers into public-facing magnets for talent. Builders engage because they trust the humans behind the chain.
Syscoin: Hosts regionally targeted AMAs → feeds directly into localized hackathons → devs connect directly to mentors.
Sui: “Watch-to-Earn” onboarding that rewards learning with gas fee discounts, NFTs, and access to future funding rounds.
Takeaway: Attracting developers is about storytelling. The ecosystems seeing long-term success are those building not just incentives but infrastructure, identity and upward mobility.
3.2 Community Building & Engagement
While developer acquisition drives infrastructure growth, community engagement fuels longevity. Every successful ecosystem in 2025 has one thing in common: a loyal, activated community with a clear identity.
Source: The Most effective community growth tactics
While growth tactics vary, one truth stands out: the most resilient ecosystems pair online engagement with offline connection.
Top tactics driving community growth:
Strategic partnerships and cross-promotion
Ambassador programs built around values, not vanity
Hybrid content strategies that blend memes, education, and culture
In fact, ecosystems like Sui and Syscoin consistently outperform larger chains on key ecosystem health metrics not because they’re bigger, but because they’re tighter:
Higher TVL per wallet
Greater contributor-to-user ratio
More active builders per community member
Case Study: Syscoin’s grassroots events across APAC led to a 30% increase in wallet retention among new users, with ongoing community-led workshops in 5+ cities.
3.3 The Role of Kaito in Ecosystem Brand Building
In 2025, brand strategy has moved beyond logos and Twitter handles.
The Kaito framework, designed to optimize ecosystem mindshare is fast becoming a differentiator for projects seeking credibility and cohesion.
Source: Kaito mindshare metrics across top ecosystems
Adoption Snapshot:
Only 10% of surveyed ecosystems are currently using a structured Kaito strategy
However, 40% are actively exploring adoption in the next cycle
Projects like Berachain that adopted early Kaito brand structuring reports increased developer trust, faster community onboarding and stronger alignment between technical and community narratives.
Strategic Approaches to Kaito Optimization:
Clear “voice pillars” that reflect ecosystem values
Unified messaging across technical, enterprise, and community verticals
Scalable content kits and assets to empower contributors to amplify the brand
Today, ecosystems aren’t asking “How do we go viral?”
Instead, they’re asking “How do we show up with the right message, in the right format and to the right audience consistently?”
The new growth stack includes:
Influencer alignment by audience layer
PR as a funnel driver, not a vanity boost
Social media as ecosystem UX
AI and segmentation to fine-tune delivery
Let’s break down the mechanics behind the ecosystems getting it right.
4.1 Influencer Marketing Effectiveness
Influencer marketing remains effective, only if you get the tier right.
Source: ROI comparison across influencer tiers
Key Takeaway:
Nano Influencers (1K–10K): ~4.2x ROI
Micro Influencers (10K–50K): ~3.9x ROI
Macro/Mega Influencers: Significantly lower returns due to saturation and high CPM
Nano and Micro influencers (1K–50K followers) outperform all others in ROI due to stronger niche focus, higher engagement, and lower cost-per-activation.
Though, the Top-performing influencer strategies in 2025 blend:
Nano creators for authenticity (Twitter threads, walkthroughs)
Mid-tier educators for onboarding and explanation (YouTube, LinkedIn)
Selective mega partnerships for major announcements or enterprise plays
Best for:
Early-stage projects
Ecosystems entering new regions or subcultures
Campaigns focused on developer credibility over hype
The Lunar Amplification Method
Used by select top-tier ecosystems, the Lunar Amplification Method is a multi-tiered distribution system that combines:
AI-driven influencer matching
Creator content kits (assets, talking points, tone guides)
Performance-based tiers (creators earn more by driving on-chain action)
It’s a system where the creator voice becomes a scalable growth vector backed by data, incentives, and trust.
4.2 Public Relations & Media Coverage
Too many ecosystems view PR as a vanity move.
The most effective teams treat it as distribution infrastructure.
This dual-axis chart illustrates how media coverage intensity correlates with:
Average Developer Sign-ups
Total Value Locked (TVL) Growth
Investing in PR campaigns and consistent media exposure can significantly accelerate ecosystem adoption both in developer participation and capital inflow (TVL).
Key Takeaways:
Developer sign-ups scale from ~50 (Low coverage) to ~400 (Very High coverage).
TVL growth jumps from 5% under low coverage to an impressive 45% with very high media presence.
Higher media coverage directly correlates with a sharp rise in both developer sign-ups and TVL growth.
Example: Manta Network launched its dev-focused ZK SDK and timed the announcement with coordinated earned media + regional hackathons = 3.2x increase in sign-ups over 14 days.
4.3 Social Media Strategy
In 2025, ecosystems aren’t asking “should we be on [platform]?”
They’re asking how do we show up with the right content, for the right moment, on each platform?
This bar chart displays how frequently various social media platforms are mentioned as part of crypto ecosystem growth strategies.
Platform Highlights:
Twitter dominates as the most commonly used platform
Telegram and Discord follow closely, suggesting strong emphasis on community interaction and support hubs.
Lesser-used platforms like Reddit, YouTube and Facebook play a niche role in ecosystem marketing.
However, crypto ecosystems should create platform-specific content:
Twitter: Memes, threads, real-time updates
Telegram/Discord: Community health, AMAs, governance
Ecosystems are moving beyond flat airdrops and short-term incentives, and instead architecting behaviorally intelligent tokenomics that reward commitment, skill and genuine contribution.
The question is no longer “What do we give?” but “What are we reinforcing?”
5.1 Effective Incentive Structures
Incentives were once a shortcut for growth.
Now, they’re shaping everything from user retention to governance alignment to ecosystem stickiness.
Source: This bar chart compares the perceived effectiveness of two major types of incentive mechanisms used in crypto ecosystems.
These often tie directly to network growth metrics such as TVL, active wallets, and user retention.
Off-chain rewards can still be useful for short-term engagement, brand visibility, and community culture.
Projects that tie incentives to measurable contributions and future value (e.g., governance power, access tiers) retain users longer than those offering flat token grants.
Case Examples:
Syscoin offers tiered rewards for contributor milestones
Manta Network combines token drops with future airdrop eligibility tied to participation
5.2 Local Developer Hubs
Ecosystem growth is global by default and regional by design.
Local developer hubs are now a critical piece of post-hype strategy.
Source: Geographic distribution of developer hubs
This chart highlights the regional presence of developer hubs across the globe, indicating where ecosystems are establishing a physical or community-driven footprint to support builders.
Regional presence is shaping ecosystem strength:
Asia-Pacific leads in number of hubs, driven by fast-growing developer ecosystems
North America/Europe hold steady with mature infrastructure and funding access
Latin America, MENA, and Africa show rapid interest but remain early-stage
More consistent retention through community anchoring
Best Practices:
Launch hybrid events (online + local)
Create language-specific docs and support
Offer region-based grant programs tied to local needs
Conclusion
Crypto in 2025 is quieter, deeper, and more intentional.
The ecosystems winning today are building context, culture, and trust, rooted in purpose where meaningful value, thoughtful execution, and trusted communities are taking center stage.
Our deep-dive conversations with builders, marketers and ecosystem leaders across ten blockchain networks uncovered three core principles that are setting the pace for the next wave of sustainable growth:
Developer-First, Always: The thriving ecosystems treat developers with genuine support, visibility, and growth paths. They’ve recognized that every successful builder brings ten more, creating a powerful flywheel effect and it’s the foundation everything else builds upon.
Communities Over Crowds: The most dynamic ecosystems are building tight-knit, purpose-driven communities where members feel ownership and identity. They’re creating spaces where online connections lead to offline relationships and where shared values matter more than token price.
Strategic Over Tactical: Leading teams build comprehensive growth systems where every channel, message, and touchpoint works together. They’re tracking full-funnel metrics and optimizing for lasting engagement, not just initial attention.
We’re past the era of chasing “what’s working.”
The real question is: What’s worth building and who’s staying to build it with you?
So, focus on creating real value for the people who matter most to your ecosystem. Build with intention, authenticity and remember that in a market still finding its footing and the strongest position isn’t being the loudest voice but the most trusted one.
Because ecosystems aren’t websites.
They’re living systems.
About Lunar Strategy’s Ecosystem Launchpad Accelerator
Lunar Strategy’s Ecosystem Launchpad Accelerator combines deep expertise in go-to-market strategy, ecosystem growth, and strategic advisory to help innovative Layer 1 and Layer 2 projects capitalize on the historic crypto market shift.
With 25+ years of combined experience across top ecosystems like Solana, Cardano, Mantle, Polkadot, and ICP, our team brings proven frameworks for:
