[100k JPY Challenge] Vol.1 The CandyDrops Insider Will Airdrop Hunt with 100,000 JPY of Their Own Money\!

Hello, we are CandyDrops.

A quick question: what comes to mind when you hear the word "Airdrop"?

"I hear about it a lot, but there's too much information, and I don't know what to follow." "I want to participate, but I'm worried it requires a lot of money for gas and other fees." "I want to know if there's a way to aim for big returns efficiently, even from a small amount."

We believe more than a few people share these concerns.

That's why we at CandyDrops are starting a new project.

"What if a CandyDrops insider had to start airdrop hunting from scratch with a 100,000 JPY budget constraint... using their own money?"

This project is not just about reporting "which tasks we completed." The core of this series is to reveal our real-time thought process and research behind the scenes: "Why did we choose this option among so many?" and "What risks did we consider?"

This is a real-life investment documentary using 100,000 JPY. We hope you'll use this as a "practical textbook" for airdrop hunting, experiencing our thought process along with us.

Hello again, everyone. I'm the "insider" in charge of this project. I have 8 years of crypto experience, and at CandyDrops, I'm responsible for project selection and content creation. My areas of expertise are trading, DeFi, and project research. For trading, I determine direction based on fundamentals and use charts to decide my entry/exit points. For project selection, I evaluate future potential based on "who is building it, and how and how much will users use it."

The theme for this challenge will be "management that someone working full-time can do realistically" and "avoiding trading or complex operations as much as possible." I used to be glued to the screen trading all day, but now I'm a working professional and can't watch the charts constantly.

In other words, I'll be aiming for airdrops that are "relatively easy to replicate," "can be left alone to some extent," and "are efficient." I'm using my own money, so please view this as a case study of how one "insider" thinks and what management strategy they chose.

First, we've set three "absolute rules" for this series. This is to ensure transparency and share the sense of tension with you, our readers.

1. [Strict Budget Management] Initial Budget is 100,000 JPY
   • The starting budget is 100,000 JPY (Japanese Yen).
   • All costs, including gas fees, bridge fees, and swap fees, will be deducted from this budget.
2. [Full Transparency] Complete Disclosure of P&L
   • We will record and publish all income and expenditures as they are, from costs incurred to any future airdrop profits.
3. [Real-Time Documentary] Publicizing Successes and Failures
   • We will share our activities in real-time as much as possible.
   • We promise to disclose everything: not just successful strategies, but also failures where we just burned gas, and analysis of any time we are disqualified from an airdrop (Sybil detection).

Now, for the main event. You have 100,000 JPY. What do you do first?

Blindly jumping into trending projects is the most inefficient approach. We start with "current analysis" and "strategy formulation."

This is how we (CandyDrops) see the current market:

• The Rise of Perpetuals:
  • Following HyperLiquid, many projects like Aster, Lighter, and EdgeX are increasing their volume, OI, and TVL. They are attracting a lot of attention and generating good returns. Airdrops are earned by "grinding" (earning points by paying trading fees) or simply "trading" to seek capital gains.
• The Emergence of Yield-Bearing Synthetic Pegged Coins:
  • An increase in farming projects using synthetic pegged coins like $USDe, $USDM, and $DUSD. By depositing, users can earn the project's own airdrop token, as well as aim for airdrops from the project's underlying protocols.
• Excitement in Prediction Market-Related Projects:
  • Many prediction market projects like PolyMarket, Limitless, and Kalshi are appearing, with projects running ad campaigns to acquire users and volume. However, we've determined that stable management is extremely difficult here, so we will not be touching this sector in this series.
• Passive Management via AI Rebalancing or Trading:
  • Using AI rebalancing projects, represented by Almanak, to earn airdrops and passive income through near-passive management.

The Core Premise of Our Strategy

• Avoid activities that rely on trading profits as much as possible.
• Do not include any revenue from referral links in the project, and do not manage the funds with the aim of referral profits.
• Reduce risk by avoiding unstable emerging chains or projects with a high risk of "Rugpulls" (devs running off with funds).

Based on the above, our 100k JPY strategy branches into three main options.

Plan A: All-In Strategy (High Risk, High Return)

• Overview: Concentrate almost all of the 100,000 JPY (minus a gas buffer) into a single chain/protocol deemed to have the highest expected value.
• Pros: Maximizes returns if that one project is a "jackpot."
• Cons: If the airdrop fails (or is disappointing), the result could be far from what was expected.

Plan B: Balanced Diversification Strategy (Mid Risk, Mid Return)

• Overview: Split the funds into 3-4 parts and execute tasks on multiple promising chains/protocols.
• Pros: Risk diversification. Avoids a "total wipeout." If one fails, others might cover it. Creating transactions on various projects may increase airdrop allocation.
• Cons: Returns are diluted. Also, having less capital on each chain could be disadvantageous for Sybil detection (e.g., minimum deposit requirements). Gas and management costs rise, reducing capital efficiency.

Plan C: Balanced Single-Point Strategy (Low Risk, Mid Return)

• Overview: Split the funds into 1-2 parts and execute tasks on multiple promising chains/protocols. Also sets additional criteria, such as a high likelihood of a TGE (Token Generation Event) soon or the ability to calculate the allocation amount.
• Pros: Diversifies risk and avoids a "total wipeout." If one fails, others can potentially cover it. This strategy aims to eliminate the possibility of getting nothing, while still leaving open the chance for a big win.
• Cons: Returns are diluted. Less capital on each chain might be a disadvantage for Sybil detection. Gas and management costs rise, reducing capital efficiency. Project selection difficulty is high.

CandyDrops's Choice: "Plan C: Balanced Single-Point"

For this project, we will adopt "Plan C: Balanced Single-Point."

[Thought Process] The reason is our budget: "100,000 JPY." If this were 1 million JPY, Plans A or B would be viable options. But with 100,000 JPY, a single failure (like a high gas fee) can have a major impact on the entire operation. However, considering the research and management costs, allocating capital to too many projects is undesirable from a potential profit standpoint.

Our top priority is to avoid a "major failure" and "generate capital for the next activity (compounding)." If we can score a big win somewhere along the way, it will expand our operational choices.

We will cast a net over multiple possibilities, acquire several airdrops (even if small), and reinvest them into the next promising project. To get results with a small amount of capital, we believe this strategy, which leverages the "power of compounding," is the most realistic.

Now, based on our "Balanced Single-Point" strategy, we will announce the specific allocation of our 100,000 JPY budget.

① Main: Almanak: 100,000 JPY

• Reason: We expect to see results in about 1.5 months. We are aiming for continuous returns using Pendle YT, plus token profits from Almanak. As long as Almanak's FDV (Fully Diluted Valuation) does not fall below $60M, we can expect a profit. Click here for an article on Almanak.
• Reference Data

Competing Investment Targets

• <u>StandX</u> - A Perpetual DEX on BSC. It uses a synthetic pegged coin called DUSD for trading, allowing for stable income and point generation even when not actively trading. It has about 200m in TVL, 200m in volume, and 30m in open interest (an 8:1 volume ratio). It hasn't raised funds, but with a founder from the original Binance Futures team, it has the potential to aim for Aster's position.
• <u>Etheral</u> - A Perpetual DEX using Ethena's $USDe. It allows for stable income and point generation even when not trading. Currently, participation is limited to a whitelist, and volume is low, offering a potential first-mover advantage. Trading platforms using synthetic pegged coins like $USDe (and Monad's $USDM) are likely to increase. Using Strata might also be an option. It hasn't raised funds but has strong connections to Ethena, Securitize, and Converge.
• <u>HyperLiquid Ecosystem</u> - The airdrop has already occurred, but the ecosystem and token price remain strong. The issuance of $USDH could accelerate this further. ProjectX or HypuurFi might be good targets. Personally, if I were to bet on this ecosystem, I'd also consider longing the $HYPE token. Using Upshift is also a possibility.
• <u>Plasma Ecosystem</u> - Currently, options are limited and there are many unknowns, making it difficult to get involved.
• <u>MegaEth Ecosystem</u> - Earn points on the ETH mainnet using Cap or Valhalla. Currently, few projects offer points in the MegaETH ecosystem, making Cap a strong candidate.
• <u>Other Perpetuals</u> - There are many other perpetuals like Pacifica, EdgeX, Variational, Paradex, GRVT, etc., but we decided they were too difficult to judge for a "small amount" "right now" and passed on them.

Once the strategy is set, it's time to execute.

First, I'll deposit the 100,000 JPY for this project.

Next, I deposited 100,000 JPY worth of ETH from a domestic exchange into the wallet. (Please note that I am reusing a previously used wallet due to Whitelist reasons, etc.)

Next, I converted this $ETH to $USDC to deposit into Almanak. I didn't think too hard about the exchange rate or swap and just used 1Inch. I regret a little that I could have used a DEX that might have its own airdrop, but oh well. Since it's a small amount, using the built-in function in Metamask or Rabby Wallet would have been fine too. Don't forget to leave some for gas fees! I decided to keep about $30 for gas. Then I used this gas fee and the $USDC to deposit into Almanak.

This was "Vol. 1: Strategy Edition," where we revealed the project rules and our initial strategy (thought process) for managing the 100,000 JPY.

• Rules: 100k JPY budget, all on-chain activity public, reporting successes and failures.
• Strategy: Adopted the "Balanced Single-Point" model.
• Allocation: Almanak - 100%

The next update is scheduled for one week from now!