Ethereum

Friend.tech

The native token of crypto social media platform Friend.tech has plummeted after its team transferred the admin and ownership of its smart contracts to Ethereum’s null address — permanently relinquishing any control over them.
The Sept. 8 <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://basescan.org/tx/0xfd06b08beb7b89c1e8d52dbc2f08080c38fec8a9d2fe0d72e62a6178a29347bd#eventlog" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">transfer</a> was made to “prevent any changes to their fees or functionality in the future,” Friend.tech <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/friendtech/status/1832581118165709140" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">said</a> on X.
The platform’s Friend.tech (FRIEND) token dropped by nearly 26% to $0.067 in the 24 hours after the transfer, <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/friend-tech" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">according</a> to CoinGecko.
<figure>
 <img alt="Crypto platform Friend.tech sees token dive 26% following admin transfer" name="" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-09/0191d47d-742c-73e9-98dc-78a4410a2007">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">
 Source: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/friendtech/status/1832581118165709140" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="https://x.com/friendtech/status/1832581118165709140">friend.tech</a>
 </figcaption>
</figure>
<a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/explained/what-is-the-ethereum-eth-burn-address" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Ethereum’s null address</a> is a burn address for intentionally destroying tokens. Tokens sent to this address cannot be recovered or reused.
In an X post, Serpin Taxt, a builder behind blockchain reputation protocol Ethos, <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/0x5f_eth/status/1832596754258100464" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" text="null" title="https://x.com/0x5f_eth/status/1832596754258100464">said</a> that Friend.tech’s move was the “end of an era” and “not at all how I saw it playing out.”
The smart contract change comes three months after Friend.tech announced it would <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/friend-tech-blockchain-coinbase-base-layer-2" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">build its own blockchain</a>, “Friendchain,” which left its community confused about the protocol’s future direction.
Related: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/half-telegram-clicker-gamers-crypto-newcomers-blum-creator" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">50% of Telegram tap-to-earn gamers are crypto noobs — Blum CEO</a>
Friend.tech’s X account later <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/Dr_Kojipup/status/1799288688830263708" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">deleted</a> its announcement post, which added to the confusion.
Friction between Friend.tech’s team and its users also worsened when many reported issues claiming the <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/friend-tech-airdrop-largest-recipient-sells-tokens" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">much-hyped FRIEND airdrop</a> in early May.&nbsp;
The token’s market cap, which hit $233.6 million within the first four days of launching, has since fallen to $6.3 million.
The total value locked on Friend.tech has also fallen from its all-time high of $52 million in early October 2023 to less than $3.5 million, <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://defillama.com/protocol/friend.tech#information" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" text="null" title="https://defillama.com/protocol/friend.tech#information">according</a> to DefiLlama.
<figure>
 <img alt="Crypto platform Friend.tech sees token dive 26% following admin transfer" name="" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-09/0191d47e-7b67-7b60-a538-7d89ebdf5553">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">
 The rise and fall of the total value locked on Friend.tech since August 2023. Source: DefiLlama
 </figcaption>
</figure>
Since late July, daily fees&nbsp;<a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/friendtech-pronounced-dead-inflows-activity-declines" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">earned on the protocol</a>&nbsp;have consistently been below $1,000, while FRIEND trading volume has had a similar decline.&nbsp;
Friend.tech is native to Ethereum layer-2 Base and allows <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/what-is-socialfi-a-beginners-guide-to-the-social-network-of-the-future" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">creators to monetize their content</a> through tokenized shares or “keys.” Its rival platforms include the Theta Network, Hive and Decentralized Social.
Magazine: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/algorithm-choice-can-fix-social-media-but-only-on-decentralized-platforms/" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Dorsey’s ‘marketplace of algorithms’ could fix social media… so why hasn’t it?</a>

Crypto platform Friend.tech sees token dive 26% following admin transfer

Cointelegraph

Other articles published on Sep 9, 2024

Bitcoin ETFs see $706m in outflows, BlackRock and WisdomTree buck trend

Navigating Aviator SkyBridge™

Io.net and Flock.io Launch World’s First Proof-of-AI Consensus Mechanism

FTX Bankruptcy Plan Faces Scrutiny as SEC Questions Stablecoin Payments

SOL Bulls Gravitate to This New Dog-themed SOL Memecoin, as WIF and Bonk Lag Behind

Bitcoin Gains Attention with Limited Price Recovery

Join our free newsletter for daily crypto updates!