COINS TO WATCH

INTRO

Recently, I wrote various articles dedicated to some interesting Airdrops, one of which focused on the fact that Airdrop Season just started, which at this point is definetely confirmed. In that article, I highlighted how hunting Airdrops allows you, in some cases, to earn free money while holding great assets. The most recent example, being Jito, where by Liquid Staking your $SOL on their platform, many were able to score figures that went from 10000$ to 200000$ (some with only 1 $SOL were able to bring home 10K), plus the entire $SOL uptrend. Starting from this concept, of farming Airdrops while holding great assets, I decided to write this article. Which is going to be a list of all the cryptos I own or I'm about to own, and which ones I'm using to expose myself to possible Airdrops. Obviously, the list won't be complete, because new interesting coins and tokens are definetely going to come up. Like for example, GameFI tokens on Avalanche, which seems to be a possible narrative in 2024. Although, I'm trying to expose myself to as many Airdrops as possible, there will be Cryptos that I own for pure conviction or because I'm trying to follow a specific narrative. Finally, I invite you to share more Cryptos and Airdrops that in your opinion I should have taken into consideration. Remember, that none of this is financial advice, and since the list is based around my personal portfolio, it definetely suffers from my own bias from time to time. I won't get too technical, and I'll try to be as short as possible for each asset, limiting myself to the only reason why I own it. All of it will be divided in categories, and the asset inside them will be in order of importance, this doesn't exclude the fact that there will be more important assets than others in categories that come below. That said, let's get started:

LAYER 1s:

$BTC: Like many others in this space, I like to separate Bitcoin from the rest. In fact, I'm of the opinion that Bitcoin solves a problem that humanity has almost had for forever, that Gold was never able to solve completely. It's basically an expansion of Gold, that solves almost all its problem. Although, this doesn't exclude the possibilities of even better currencies to be created. Bitcoin is and will improve completely our lifes, especially by solving the problem of money being controlled by third parties. While the other cryptos, are solving current problems, which, obviously, doesn't exclude the possibility that they can evolve with time. But, Bitcoin solves a problem that has accompanied humanity since forever. That's why, my endgame is to accumulate as much Bitcoin as possible, and I want to do it by using the other cryptos:
$STX: It shouldn't be this high, but since it's directly connected to $BTC, I decided to put it up here. Great token for the narrative of DEFI, NFT... on $BTC. Plus, there are many Dapps ready to launch their Airdrop programs like StackingDAO, a $STX LST.
$ETH: Like I said in a previous article, often when people get used to a product, they tend to stay with it, even though better alternatives have been created. That's definetely Ethereum's case, but it also leads too many developers ready to make the product better. In fact, we're practically getting a new Layer 2 each day, but we'll get back to it later. And there's also plenty of new Liquid Staking protocols, where I stake most of my $ETH, since they're running Airdrop programs, like: $SWELL, ether.fi, EigenLayer...
$ATOM: I've dedicated an entire article to the $ATOM Ecosystem, so I'm not going to talk about it's importance in the crypto space here. Instead, let's talk about Airdrops. If you're hating all these new Point programs, where before getting an Airdrop, you get farmed by the developers, $ATOM is what you're looking for. In fact, all you have to do is stake your $ATOM and wait for the Airdrops to get to you, like the recent $TIA and soon $NAM. And let's not get to the fact that Staking the Airdrops you get, might make you eligible for even more Airdrops, but we'll also get back to this later.
$SOL: It's the hottest ecosystem right now, it's where the Jito Airdrop just happened, and where soon will see more like Jupiter, MarginFI, KAMINO, Parcl... But, there's much more than just Airdrops, better User Experience than Ethereum, some of the fastest transactions in Crypto, some of the cheapest transactions in crypto and let's not forget that in the USA in the news they stopped putting $LTC as the third main crypto asset, instead there's $SOL now. In any case, in my opinion it's the most interesting ecosystem right now, because it seems to be in something very simular to Ethereum's DEFI summer of a few years ago, also thanks to the many Airdrops.
$AVAX: I already mentioned it in the intro, but there's much more than just gaming thanks to the Subnets, that allow for a ecosystem composed of many services that go way beyond Crypto. Which will turn it in time, into one of the most complete Layer 1, where you will be able to do many different things while still enjoying fast transactions and cheap costs. Plus, I expect the Airdrop narrative to expand into $AVAX aswell, with Liquid Staking protocols, Subnet tokens, GameFI... Gaming, for which I already own 3 tokens: $SHRAP, $DOMI and the good old $JEWEL.
$NEAR: Recently, I noticed that this is the blockchain that received the most funding in 2023 and they're a Solana competitor, consequently it's a great way to diversify. Even in this case, I expect possible Airdrops from new protocols, since much funding usually equals to many developers ready to develop new applications. To this I add $AURORA, which is a $NEAR Layer 2 EVM which uses $ETH as gas token, great if near picks up, plus it's the cheapest $ETH Layer 2... Sort of. Finally, we have $OCT, which is ready to launch $NEAR restaking, and also makes $NEAR more interoperable by using IBC.
$MATIC: Let's start by saying that this is the blockchain with the most partnerships, in fact many important brands are or will launch they're services on their chain. This makes $MATIC the perfect entry for institutions in Ethereum, allowing them to offer services on it with low fees and fast transactions. Plus, they're also developing their sidechains, which will allow this brands to create their own specific appchains for the services they want to offer. What I'm trying to say, who am I to go against all this brands?? Anyways, right now I'm using my $MATIC on TIMESWAP to farm $TIME.
$MINA: The first ever Layer 1 blockchain using Zero Knowledge technology. They're the lightest blockchain, which means the one that requires the least computing power to run a node. That turns into fast and cheap transactions and a better user experience. On paper it's all awesome, but there aren't many protocols on it yet, will see how it evolves.
$DOT: Polkadot is a $ATOM competitor, honestly I have some just to diversify, cause there ain't much development nor much to do on it. Sometimes, people wonder what's $ATOM's utility, than explain me what's that of $DOT?? And then explain me why it has a higher market cap?? But, things can still change, for better or for worse...
$FTM: Lots of development, but also lots of problems. But, it always was the most important chain for innovative/ponzi projects, and I'm always ready to have some fun with a new PONZI on $FTM, high APRs, Airdrops, what could you possibly want more in life??
$APT & $SUI: 2 Cryptos born from the $DIEM project from Facebook/Meta, nothing special, they're ulterior $SOL competitors. Nothing makes them special in any ways, except for the enormus investments received, which as said leads to developers ready to make new protocols. In fact, I'm trying to farm some LST protocols without a token like: DITTO, Tortuga and Amnis on $APT and VOLO and Haedal on $SUI.
$CFX: It's a pretty regular EVM Layer 1, with the peculiarity of being the most interesting Chinese project right now. If chinese market good, than token also good. Also, since it's a EVM chain, Dapps are easily portable, so Airdrops might come to the $CFX ecosystem as well.
$TRX: Who am I to go against Justin Sun? The only man on earth that discovered the infinite money glitch.
$XRP: It's only about narrative, I don't like it, I'm not interested in it, but I know institutional investor like it. Personally, I think that if they win against the SEC, one of the next ETF might be of $XRP.
$FIL: You're probably surprised of seeing $FIL. But, you have to know that during the bear market they've been hard at work, and launched smart contract capabilities. Which led to many LST protocols, and also big inflows of capital, and obviously many of these protocols are tokenless, like $stFIL.
$ADA: Never understood why, but when things go up, the retails buy $ADA, don't know if it will happen this bull cycle too, but just in case...
$TON: Ex project from Telegram, which later became independent, that still ended up being integrated a lot in the app, and it's destined to increase. Given Telegrams popularity, I expect that with further integration, it can increase in adoption, thus in price. I mean, we're talking about one of the most used messaging apps, easy to use if you find the token already in the app. And let's not forget, that even if not mentioned that much, there are already many Dapps deployed on the chain, like BEMO for example.
$HBAR: Many important companies as investors and also chain validators (Ubisoft, Google...), plus it's based on a completely different technology (DAG) than most chains, which makes it a different solution that might make it more efficient in certain areas.
$OAS: I already talked about this coin in my Cosmos article, it's a chain which allows the creation of many subchains dedicated to gaming. The most interesting part is that in their investors we can find many important gaming companies like Ubisoft again, than Square Enix, SEGA... Whom are also validators of the chain and in Ubisoft's case they're launching their own subchain for their new game Champions Tactics. Definetely an interesting project in the GameFI narrative.
$XMR: Regulations are probably going to kill it, but it's a very important project for the crypto world, which I'm not willing to abandon.

EXCHANGES:

$BNB: They're losing a bit of market share, but they're still the biggest exchange, and more FEES equals more value accrual for $BNB. And let's not forget about the great launchpools, which just keep on coming.
$CRO: They survived and defended themselves very well from the critics during the bear market, their sponsor is everywhere (Formula 1, NBA...) and they're the easiest exchange to use on smartphones. Definetely the most interesting exchange token in this upcoming bull market.
$KCS: I might be a bit biased, but it's my favourite go to exchange for exotic tokens, thus I own a bit of $KCS.

LAYER 2s:

$ARB: Considering its TVL, the fact that it's the most used Layer 2 and especially the fact that it works very well. I think their token is extremely undervalued, and sooner or later the price will have to reflect the actual results. Furthermore, on Aribitrum I also have some $GMX, since it's the best perpetual dex on the chain and $STG to farm the possible LayerZero Airdrop.
$OP: I like more $ARB, but in doubt I own some, considering that the OP Stack is being used by many chains like Coinbase's BASE and soon a Kraken Layer 2.
$BLAST: This is the future token that has started the current Airdrop Season. And it's right now sitting at more than a Bilion Dollars in TVL, at this rate it's going to become the biggest Ethereum Layer 2, without even launching... All of this while having a pyramid scheme as point system. So, if you want to join, I've got a few invite codes:
blast.io/EKSPA
blast.io/65O83
blast.io/DZYRW
blast.io/HBMKE
blast.io/Y0C3M
Jokes aside, a positive thing about $BLAST, is that part of the Gas Fees will go to the Dapps on the chain, thus constantly incentivizing developers to improve their products.
$MANTA: Following $BLAST, they created a very simular program with the key difference of the chain being already live. I talked about it, in depth, here: $MANTA Airdrop .
If you need some codes, you can use these:
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=SMIY3
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=9YRPI
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=BZJ5B
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=VYMIY
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=YQRBS
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=YD987
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=7VNZE
https://newparadigm.manta.network?inviteCode=HX8O8
$ZK: There's many Layer 2s developing with the Zero Knowledge technology, but ZKSync is definetely the one at the best point and the one with the most funding behind, shown by their TVL of 150 milion Dollars.
$STRK: Starknet comes right after in terms of investments received, even though the TVL doesn't prove it. That's mostly because it's not a EVM chains, thus not compatible with Metamask. Which means less Dapps due to the difficulties in porting them. Less TVL, less users, but big investments, this is lining up to be a big Airdrop, I remind you that Jito got Airdropped to only 10K users.
$LINEA: This is a Layer 2 developed by the same company that brought you Metamask, which definetely means big investments behind it, and also ease of use. In the end of the day, if Metamask remains the most used wallet, we can only expect that it will be the most reachable and integrated Layer 2.
$SCROLL: This is one of the most recent Layer 2, Airdrop is confirmed, I don't see why not getting started right now.
$BASE: Token is still far, probably there won't even be one, but it's Coinbase's chain. So I excpect things to go simularly to the birth of the Binance Smart Chain, many projects, high APRs and lots of Airdrops. And I remind you that the token is not off the table, based on what the Coinbase's Lawyer said.
$ZKEVM: This is the second Layer 2 from Polygon, but this time it has as Gas token $ETH and uses ZK technology. And even though it might seem absurd, a token might happen, that's why I've got my $MATIC position there on TIMESWAP.
$ZORA: It's a Zora Layer 2, thus dedicated to NFTs, I don't know if there will be a token, but just in case I mint a NFT once in awhile. I remind you that Paradigm it's one of their investors, the same from $BLAST.
$METIS: With the recent program, $METIS ha become interesting again, incentive plus Layer 2 narrative, it's definetely going to have a great effect on price.

ERC20s:

$LINK: Practically, every chain and every protocol uses Chainlink for its data. Furthermore, they recently introduced $LINK Staking, which further improves token utility.
$FXS: FRAX Finance has become a HUB for everything DEFI, Stablecoin, LST... And soon also their own $ETH Layer 2.
$QNT: You know when they tell you to avoid investing in things you don't understand, this is exactly that. Quant's objective is to interconnect the WEB2 world with the WEB3 world, how?? You might be asking. No idea, too complicated for me to understand, but I definetely want to find out if they can do it, by owning some.
$TENET: $TENET's objective is to become a chain dedicated entirely to DEFI experiments. Needless to say, I'm always in for a good PONZI.
$MNT: Their Layer2 is doing great and their also launching lots of great products about RWA, LSTs...
$SAND: Lately it hasn't been talked about that much as it was in the past, but they kept on building during the bear market, and The Sandbox is probably one of the most promising GameFI/Metaverse projects (thanks, also, to many big brand partnerships, like Ubisoft once again)
$VIRTUE: Be advised because this one is definetely shilling my bags, so take my words with caution. That said, $VIRTUE is the token of a semi failed project, whose objective was and still is to sell their NFTs and with the revenue from the mint, plus the marketplaces sales, buy $stETH and redistribute it to the NFT holders. Does it work? Well, actually yes, I'm currently earning decent amounts of $stETH from my NFTs. The problem is that unfortunately the project didn't get the attention it deserved.
$BITCOIN: I'm not a big fan of betting on memecoins, but if I do, I do it when they just launched, since their life cycle is usually very short. Exception made for HarryPotterObamaSonic10Inu, ticker $BITCOIN. That's because, I expect that when we're in full FOMO mode, it's going to attract many investors in search for a discounted Bitcoin or just because the idea looks funny.

COSMOS ECOSYSTEM:

$TIA: Besides the fact that basically every $ETH Layer 2 is going to need Celestia, it is highly likely that $TIA Stakers are going to get lots of Airdrops from Dapps on their chain, all the Layer 2s and generally every project utilizing their technology.
$RUNE: $RUNE is the dream of every Crypto enthusiast, it allows you to swap coins and tokens from every chain, thus connecting the whole crypto space, with the goal of replacing Centralized exchanges. The only problem is that it is still hard to get and use their products, but if that changes, I don't see why it shouldn't be in the TOP 10.
$INJ: Initially born as a DEFI chain, that now as also NFTs and more, thus becoming one of the fastest Layer 1 on the block. Lots of new projects ready to launch on it, and these projects will have to launch their own token, right? And in the end of the day, your best bet is to just stake it, exactly like with $ATOM.
$KUJI: Kujira is a hub for DEFI products, which offers many innovative financial services. Even though it's been going up a lot lately, I still think it's very undervalued, considering it's still not in the TOP 100 Cryptos. Plus, it has been getting lots of Airdrops for stakers lately, like $NSTK.
$DYDX: By going from a EVM chain to a Cosmos one, it has made itself a much more attractive asset to hold, since the Stakers are now earning a portion of the protocol fees, which means they're earning $USDC.
$STRD: They were the first Liquid Staking protocol to launch on Cosmos, and they're the fastest in integrating new chains. It definetely won't be easy to take their crown of being the hub of LSTs in Cosmos.
$OSMO: Even though it has plenty of rivals ready to take its place, Osmosis is still the DEFI hub of Cosmos, and with all the Dapps they keep on adding, it will be hard to take their place. Plus, most of the Airdrops that come to $ATOM Stakers, usually come to $OSMO Stakers as well, like $NAM recently.
$NTRN: They're actually a $OSMO competitor, the difference is that it's handled by the $ATOM Stakers, through ICS. It's also the chain where LIDO has decided to launch their Liquid Staked $ATOM, which should come soon.
$AXL: This token isn't discussed that much, and some probably even don't know about it, but their bridge is one of the most used and it's definetely the fastest and safest way to go from a EVM chain to a Cosmos one, in a decentralized manner.
$AKT: Probably the most interesting project for Decentralized Cloud Services.
$SEI: They recently made a partnership deal with Circle, and they're about to launch their own EVM chain. Plus, they're the fastest Layer 1.
$SOMM: TVL has been up only, although no one talks about it. They offer the creation of vaults to earn interests on. Great Dapp, TVL is constantly at new highs, it's just a matter of time before the price is going to reflect it.
$KAVA: Great EVM chain with IBC connection, that recently has integrated native $USDT, becoming the first Cosmos chain to do so.
$MARS: Ex lending market on $LUNA, now better on $NTRN.
$QSR: Very simular to the services offered by $SOMM, but in this case they're concetrated on offering vaults only dedicated to the Cosmos ecosystem.
$STARS: It was the first NFT marketplace on Cosmos, and still the biggest. Great interface and user experience, so I except it to grow even more, especially if Cosmos keeps getting the attention it deserves.
$XPRT: Even though, I said that $STRD was the first to bring LSTs on Cosmos, the guys at $XPRT were the first to make a $ATOM LST, but they did it on Ethereum. Recently, they had a partnership with Binance to bring $stkBNB on BSC and they received a grant in $ATOM, hopefully this will lead the project to new highs.
$CACAO: Part of the $RUNE narrative, still very hard to buy, which is actually a bullish thing.
$BLD: Decentralized USD Stablecoin, with better mechanisms than $UST (hopefully).
$CMDX: This is another DEFI focused chain, with already some innovative protocol and more to come. As said, I'm always in for a good PONZI.
$UMEE: They're trying to become the main Lending protocol on Osmosis, after being a Cosmos chain for a long time. If it ends up passing, it might be a good news for their token.
$ARCH: Even though $BLAST seems to be doing something very simular, this has been the first chain to incentivize protocols, through transaction fees. This hasn't for now led to many Dapps, but they launched in the midst of the bear market, let's see if things change in the bull.
$JKL: Decentralized Cloud Storage.
$NOM: Recently, they brought native $BTC to Cosmos, already available on both $KUJI, $OSMO... $NOM is still not tradable, the best way to obtain it, is by staking your $ATOM, since the Snapshot for the third phase of the Airdrop has still not been taken.
$NLS: A more interesting lending and borrowing protocol.
$CANTO: For a while it has been the home of many interesting DEFI Projects, even though it's still very hard to bridge to their chain, but this might change when they complete their move to become a $ETH Layer 2.
$PASG: Passage is a Gaming dedicated chain, one of this games is Strange Clan, that from what I've seen, seems very promising (which is a very rare thing for a WEB3 game).
$DVPN: Decentralized VPN. A very great product, especially if you're living in a jurisdiction where you can't claim Airdrops, this should get you to bypass also VPN blockers.
$PICA: The idea is, to connect the Cosmos and Polkadot worlds. Plus, they're about to ship restaking for $SOL.
$SCRT: Secret allows you to use many Dapps in a private and anonimous way. I know, there are other simular chains, what separates it from the rest is the ease of use and slick interfaces, this also thanks to being a cosmos chain. Another great thing, is that you can bridge very easily your $ETH, ERCs and EVM Tokens, thus allowing you to get the Ethereum experience in a private way, plus the Cosmos one, also privately. On $SCRT you can also find $SHD, which is a Dapp that offers various DEFI services, one of which is a very peculiar Stablecoin. That is $SILK, a revolutionary Stablecoin, composed of various financial assets, like several international currencies, gold, $BTC... Which allows you to not be completely exposed to a possible collapse of the dollar, you never know these days...
$DEC: Decentralized Browser.
$HUAHUA: The biggest memecoin on Cosmos, still very undervalued NGL.
$QCK: A $STRD contender.
$FET: AI project on Cosmos.

SOLANA ECOSYSTEM:

$HNT: The project seemed dead, but the move to Solana saved it. They also just launched the first ever Decentralized Phone Plan. To this, we can add $MOBILE, which is directly connected.
$RNDR: They also just moved to Solana, and they're probably the best token for the AI narrative.
$NEON: They're bringing $SOL to the Ethereum and EVM world, by creating a EVM chain that leverages Solana's scalability and security.
$ATLAS & $POLIS: They're both tokens of the Star Atlas game, which seems to be a game with lots of potential.
$BONK: The best memecoin on Solana, and non other than the third largest memecoin by market cap, but still undervalued if you ask me.
$JTO: I had to re-buy some, as a sign of gratitude...
$BULB: I'm constantly farming it, I'm literally doing it right now...

CONCLUSIONS:

Yeah, I'm a bit diversified...
Anyways, the goals of this article, are 2. To have a list to come back to in the future to see what worked and what didn't. For example, see if my extremely high conviction on $ATOM and the Cosmos Ecosystem will have worked out, or see if my wildest plays like $TENET will be on the moon or at rock bottom. The other goal, is to get feedback from you, what am I missing out on? Let me know!
And, obviously, remember that these were my personal opinions, and none of it has to be considered financial advice.