Blur Founder's L2 Network Blast Raises $20M, Backed by Paradigm

Blast, an Optimistic Rollup-based Layer 2 network, has raised $20 million in a funding round led by Paradigm, with participation from Standard Crypto, EGirl Capital, Mechanism Capital co-founder Andrew Kang, Lido strategy advisor Hasu, The Block CEO Larry Cermak, and several angel investors.

Blast claims to be the only Ethereum Layer 2 with native yield on ETH and stablecoins, as opposed to the 0% base rate of existing Layer 2s. Specifically, Blast natively participates in ETH staking, and the staking rewards are passed on to users and dapps on the Layer 2. Users’ balances on Blast will automatically compound and earn additional Blast rewards. Blast believes this advantage alone could attract $20 billion in liquidity.

According to the announcement, Blast is built by the Blur founder Pacman and a team with experience at MakerDAO, MIT, Yale, and Seoul National University. The Blast Early Access is currently live on an invite-only basis, with all participants earning Blast Points rewards. Whitelisted users can earn yields (4% on ETH and 5% on stablecoins) and Blast Points ahead of the mainnet launch in February 2024, with early access members earning more points based on the number of bridges and referrals.