DeFi users anywhere can connect with Valkyrie to test new protocols and help them generate mindshare/attract new users in exchange for rewards. Dubbed “Share to Earn,” Valkyrie has helped more than a dozen of projects find their earliest adopters.
Last week, Astroport’s ARC-20 governance proposal passed to activate dual rewards for a Valkyrie trading pair (VKR-axlUSDC). Users can add and stake liquidity on Astroport’s pool page to begin earning VKR and ASTRO rewards today.
Curious to learn more about the protocol, AstroIntern invited the Valkyrie’s Head of Global Business, BC to chat. Their conversation follows.
Can you introduce yourself including your current role and background?
My name is BC and I work as Head of Global Business at Valkyrie Protocol. I’m mainly responsible for our lateral engagements, working with other protocols to launch campaigns and community engagements. Prior to my role here, I used to work in finance as an equities algo trader. I’ve also held roles in the startup space in Korea and other fintech firms in New York and Hong Kong.
Why did you decide to create Valkyrie?
Valkyrie was created on the premise of being an DApp Activation protocol. The intended purpose was to help protocols gain user adoption and incentivize their users in exchange for mindshare and a meaningful interaction.
Initially, we found that there was a culture of 7-figure airdrops for new protocols whereby most of it will eventually be dumped by speculative traders causing a downward price pressure. We came in to fill that gap: users can now be incentivized to check out and use a new protocol, and protocols can create a loyal user base filled with users who actually interacted with the protocol in a meaningful way.
Can you give a few examples of how projects can tap the Valkyrie community?
Give us a call. We’re flexible in types of campaigns we can offer. Whether you’re at a pre-launch, post-launch (genesis) or growth stage, we have different campaign types to suit your needs. I think it’s always good for any business to scale out to their first 100 and first 1000 users. We have a strong community of users who participate in campaigns and refer others to do the same. By having the right strategy, protocols can grow their user adoption.
Have you had any surprise learnings along the way since launching Valkyrie?
Tons. So many. But luckily, I’m working with people who are crypto native and been working on the Terra Universe for some time. I really have a stellar team who absorbs all the surprise learning for me. Too many to name, but I’m personally still getting over the fact that this industry moves on Twitter and Telegram.
How did the Terra Classic meltdown impact Valkyrie and the project's vision?
It may sound cliché, but it didn’t. In fact, it really did offer an opportunity. That’s why when all other protocols first migrated to other chains, we were determined on being the first one to ship onto Terra 2.0.
Yes, we lost money. Personally, I lost a lot. And yes, all of our partner protocols lost a lot, and/or migrated somewhere else. Our hearts go out to them. But we took an afternoon off after the crash to recuperate. We run a tight ship here at Valkyrie. Be the first to get up to be the first to seize opportunities.
What's coming in the near-term future for Valkyrie?
We recently completed our first campaign with a partner protocol – it was with Terra Poker who did their token sale in a campaign type called Initial Participation Campaign (IPC).
In the near future, we’ll be doing more campaigns with protocols who have launched onto Terra to expand their user bases and increase engagement. But this has been a relatively slow process because not only has there been a somewhat slow launch back onto Terra 2, but many protocols are going to different chains. Although we have IBC capabilities in the roadmap, we want to be established here, being the guardians of the Terra Ecosystem.
As a launchpad, you're in a unique position to see what founders are working on and thinking about. With that in mind, what are you excited about on Terra 2 and beyond?
Terra builders were always passionate and resilient folk. Three months ago, the entire community was wiped out, but you find seeds of hope sprouting everywhere. Not only that, but Cosmos is a great parallel universe that many partners have migrated too, and that’s thriving. So you got a broken (for now) community, hungry to revive Terra 2 and you got a thriving next door universe that is seamlessly bridgeable. Nothing seems to be impossible at the moment.
Where do you see Valkyrie five years from now?
Hopefully, Valkyrie will be the launchpad destination for Terra 2 and Cosmos. I say hope, because nothing is definitive in the crypto world.
Is there a particular niche in crypto that you think might drive new interest in the sector and the next big wave of adoption?
There’s a lot of talk of gaming or geo-cached interactive interest. It’s an important one to ramp more people into the crypto ecosystem in a simple way. Apart from that, I think that decentralized finance (DeFi) is still on the upside: people need to fight inflation and money supply issues that affect the global economy. I’m always going to be advocating for DeFi.
What advice would you give to a young entrepreneur thinking about launching their own crypto project?
It’s not a quick buck. It’s cliché, but do it for the community and build with a vision. Greed driven building doesn’t get you very far. After the Terra collapse, I’m personally back at ground zero. I lost my entire life savings. But being at the cutting edge of industry innovation, means that you take the risk, too. I think the Terra event saw a lot of fall out from the crypto world, mainly because many were not considering risks. If an asset is going to appreciate 100-1000%, then understand that it may go to 100% the other way too. Nothing is definite. Nothing is certain. But keep pressing on. (And if you do launch a protocol gimme a shout so we can run a campaign with you…shameless plug).
How can people learn more and get involved with Valkyrie?
As aforementioned, we recently did an IPC launch with a great team, Terra Poker. These types of events will continue to happen this year, punctuated with smaller campaigns. You can always get more involved by joining our Telegram, Twitter and our app at app.valkyrieprotocol.com.
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DISCLAIMER
Remember, Terra 2.0 and Astroport are experimental technologies. This article does not constitute investment advice and is subject to and limited by the Astroport disclaimers, which you should review before interacting with the protocol.
