Phantom, a leading crypto wallet deeply entrenched in the Solana ecosystem, has witnessed an exponential surge in its active user base, soaring to unprecedented heights over the past year.

According to a report by TechCrunch, the platform’s active user count has more than tripled, fueled by the recent influx of Solana-based decentralized finance (DeFi) airdrops.

In January 2024, Phantom reported a staggering 3.2 million monthly active users (MAUs), representing a remarkable 220% increase from the previous year’s 1 million.

Similarly, the platform recorded an astounding 463.5% surge in installations, with 941,000 installs in January 2024 compared to 167,000 in the corresponding period a year earlier.

CEO and co-founder of Phantom, Brandon Millman emphasized that these figures mark the pinnacle of Phantom’s performance, surpassing usage metrics observed during the previous crypto bull market in 2021 and early 2022.

The catalyst for this meteoric rise, according to Millman, can be attributed to the Jito Network and Jupiter airdrops—two prominent Solana-focused DeFi projects that distributed rewards or tokens to their users in late 2023 and early 2024.

These airdrops, coupled with the recent frenzy surrounding Solana memecoins, have galvanized both existing and new users, propelling Phantom to unprecedented levels of adoption.

As the crypto landscape evolves, Millman believes that wallets are becoming the primary gateway for individuals venturing into the world of cryptocurrency.

Traditionally, newcomers would enter the space through centralized exchanges like Coinbase, but the paradigm is shifting towards the adoption of crypto wallets as the preferred onboarding method.

In addition to facilitating cryptocurrency transactions, Phantom also serves as a secure gateway to Web3 experiences.

During the Jupiter airdrop, Phantom played a pivotal role in safeguarding users from potential scams by redirecting traffic to the official claim site, thus mitigating the risk of malicious links.