Lawrence Damilola
Friend.Tech, a Web3 social network platform, has effectively relinquished control over its operations by transferring its smart contract administration to Ethereum’s null address. This action, carried out yesterday, prevents further changes to the platform’s functionality or fees. The development team confirmed in an announcement on X that “no fees from either smart contracts or [the website] currently go to the Friend.Tech dev team multisig.”
Admin and ownership parameters have been set to 0x000…000 to prevent any changes to their fees or functionality in the future.
— friend.tech (@friendtech) September 8, 2024
This change does not affect the separate web client operated at https://t.co/YOHabcBL3H which will continue to function as is. No fees from either…
The platform, which launched on the Coinbase-backed Layer 2 network Base in August 2023, allowed users to trade tokens for “keys” to access the feeds of influential individuals. The transfer to Ethereum’s null address, often used as a burn address for permanently locking assets, means that the existing system is now fixed, and no further updates or modifications can be made.
Following its launch, Friend.Tech quickly gained popularity within the crypto community. By mid-September 2023, the platform’s daily earnings had surpassed Ethereum’s. The most valuable key, linked to the feed of the pseudonymous co-founder Racer, was sold for 8.9 ETH, approximately $14,500 at the time. The platform also secured a seed round of funding from the crypto venture capital firm Paradigm, though the investment amount was not disclosed.
However, after the initial surge in activity, Friend.Tech faced challenges in maintaining user engagement and trading volume. Data from The Block indicated a significant drop in activity, which coincided with the platform’s decision to remain on the Base network after initially considering a move to its own blockchain, dubbed “FriendChain.” The developers ultimately chose to stay on Base, leading to a decline in the platform’s native token value and user activity.
The transfer of control to the null address had an immediate impact on Friend.Tech’s native token, which dropped by nearly 26% to $0.067 within 24 hours, according to CoinGecko. The platform’s market capitalization, which reached $233.6 million shortly after its launch, has since decreased to $6.3 million. Additionally, the total value locked on the platform has fallen from its peak of $52 million in early October 2023 to less than $3.5 million, as reported by DefiLlama.
The decision to transfer control to the null address followed a period of uncertainty and confusion within the Friend.Tech community. Earlier plans to build a dedicated blockchain were scrapped, and issues with claiming a highly anticipated FRIEND token airdrop in May contributed to growing friction between the platform’s developers and users. Serpin Taxt, a developer at Ethos, a blockchain reputation protocol, commented on X that the move signaled the “end of an era” and was “not at all how I saw it playing out.”
Friend.Tech operates on Ethereum’s Layer 2 network Base, enabling creators to monetize their content through tokenized shares or “keys.” The platform competes with other decentralized social media networks such as Theta Network, Hive, and Decentralized Social. Despite its early success, the recent developments have cast uncertainty on its future trajectory, with the platform now effectively locked in its current state due to the transfer of smart contract control.
At the time of writing, Friend.Tech token is currently trading at $0.076 and has increased by 5.8% in the last 24 hours, according to CoinGecko,
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Lawrence does not hold any crypto asset. This article is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The Shib Magazine and The Shib Daily are the official media and publications of the Shiba Inu cryptocurrency project. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decisions.
