Kraken-incubated Ethereum Layer 2 plans to launch and airdrop new INK token, foundation says

The Ink Foundation, the nonprofit supporters of the eponymous Ethereum Layer 2, has formally announced plans to launch and airdrop an INK token. The long-expected move could help the Kraken-incubated Ink challenge Base, the L2 launched by rival U.S.-based exchange Coinbase. 

Coinbase has consistently stated that it has no plans to launch a token for its Base network. Base officials have said the L2 will continue to use ETH as a gas token. 

While details from the Ink Foundation's announcement are sparse, it appears the organization sees the INK token in limited terms. “no fluff. no governance theater. just aligned incentives from day one,” Ink’s official X account posted, describing INK as a “single-token model designed for usage, not speculation.”

“From lending to trading and beyond, the Ink Foundation envisions a future where INK powers a robust DeFi ecosystem governed by its users and aligned with their success,” the foundation wrote in an announcement. 

According to a press release, there will be a maximum of 1 billion tokens, with a “permanent cap” that is “not subject to change via governance.” The token “will not play a role" in any of the governance decisions for the Ink Layer-2, the foundation said. Instead, it will primarily be used for liquidity aggregation and to incentivize the use of the network’s applications.

"The Ink Foundation is a group of full time employees, consultants, and partners led by a group of directors who are currently choosing to remain anonymous as a matter of security," a representative told The Block. "The Ink Foundation is approaching this in stages to support utilities for the Ink Layer-2. The Foundation will make those plans public as milestones are reached."

Aave liquidity pool

INK's first use case will be "built around" an Aave liquidity pool. The Ink Foundation expects for this pool to help onchain users and developers through a concentrated source of liquidity, which “will provide a new critical building block in Ink’s DeFi stack, governed and incentivized through the INK token.”

"The Ink foundation believes the INK Token can help underpin a new wave of DeFi on the Ink Blockchain built around concentrated liquidity and cornerstone functionalities," a representative told The Block in an email. "Details to come as the liquidity protocol passes Aave governance and goes-live on the Ink Layer-2."

Participants in the INK liquidity pool on Aave will be eligible for an upcoming airdrop. The foundation hinted there could be multiple INK drops, though it is sparse on details, beyond the suggestion that a token launch will be managed by a foundation subsidiary so as to limit liability.

"To reward early usage, INK tokens will be distributed to participants of the Aave-powered liquidity protocol through an airdrop. This is the first planned mechanism for distribution," the representative said. 

The Superchain

The Ink network is part of Optimism’s “Superchain” ecosystem, along with Base and the L2s being developed by Sony, Uniswap, and World, among others. The Superchain is a unified, interoperable network built using the OP toolkit, which allows Ethereum L2s to share security, communication, governance, and technological innovations. Kraken’s Ink, for instance, was the first Superchain network besides the Optimism Mainnet to unveil permissionless fault proofs.

Since its launch, Base has quickly become one of the most active Layer 2s, with over 10 million daily transactions, approximately four times more than the next most active chain, Arbitrum, according to The Block’s data. Base also has the highest number of active addresses and draws the most fees. 

Kraken has said it is considering going public as soon as the first quarter of 2026. 

Editor's note (June 17 — 6:10 p.m. ET): Updates with additional context from a foundation representative.