Jupiter Targets JUP Airdrop for End of January

Decentralized trading aggregator Jupiter plans to airdrop its JUP token toward the end of January, the Solana-based protocol's pseudonymous founder said Tuesday.

Since early December. meme coins, the Jito airdrop and SOL's own booming price have contributed to a surge in decentralized finance (DeFi) activity on the Solana blockchain. The airdrop may test the longevity of the altcoin frenzy.

In a post on X, the founder, Meow, said the protocol was "not optimizing for hype or price of perfect price discovery." Rather, the airdrop would be an experiment in conducting a major token distribution – a "high stress event" – while "ensuring no cats left behind."

Nearly 1 million Solana wallets have qualified for a slice of the unusually large airdrop: 40% of JUP's total supply, a size that reflects Jupiter's popularity with traders. The program routes token buy and sell orders through a litany of other on-chain trading venues to find the best price.

The distribution will be a stress test for JUP trading infrastructure as well as the Solana network itself, Meow said.