The second quarter saw a record number of Web3 unique daily active wallets, but DappRadar cautioned the growth may be due to temporary airdrops.
According to a July 4 report from blockchain analytics platform DappRadar, the number of users using Web3 applications reached a record high in the second quarter. The number of daily unique active wallets (dUAW) was approximately 10 million over the quarter, a 40% increase from the first quarter and the highest number ever reached.
According to the report, “[e]ach sector of the DApp [decentralized application] industry has experienced notable growth, contributing to an overall bullish trajectory.”
The social sector saw the largest percentage growth, with a more than 66% increase in dUAW, driven by apps like Fantasy.top and UXLINK. The blockchain gaming sector also registered more users during the quarter, though its overall share declined slightly compared to other sectors.
Non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces saw their highest usage since Q1 2023, reaching $4 billion in trading volume. Over 14.9 million individual NFT trades occurred during the quarter. NFT marketplace Magic Eden saw its market share increase from 17% to 22%, while leader Blur’s dominance was cut in half, falling to 31% market share.
Decentralized exchanges Uniswap and Raydium saw double-digit or greater increases in dUAW, as memecoin traders piled into these apps. Uniswap’s number of users increased by 80% and Raydium’s by 134%.
Despite the rising number of users, the total value of cryptocurrency locked into decentralized finance applications (TVL) fell by $7 billion, a decline of 4% over the previous quarter. Tron and Arbitrum were hit especially hard, losing 17% and 9% TVL, respectively.
Ethereum layer-2s Linea and Base were the outliers for the quarter, as Linea’s TVL increased by 420% and Base’s by 44%.
DappRadar warned that Q2’s tremendous growth in dUAW may not be sustainable. It may have been partially driven by “airdrop farming,” the practice of performing actions in the hope of receiving airdropped tokens as a reward. Both the Blast and zkSync airdrops occurred in June.
The report stated that if the rise in dUAW is to be sustained, “it is essential to focus on delivering a superior user experience, robust roadmaps, and strong development teams.”
