350 Million People are Coming Onchain ⛓️
Flipkart, the Indian Amazon, Launched an L2
👋🏽 Hello everyone, gm gm, WELCOME BACK to another edition of the Overpriced JPEGs newsletter!
Today, we’re talking about Flipkart (the Amazon of India) launching their own layer-2 blockchain.
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Flipkart just partnered with Polygon to launch their own Ethereum-based zero-knowledge (ZK) Layer 2 network.
Who’s Flipkart? They’re basically the Amazon of India, worth $38 billion. 🤯
With over 350 million active users, Flipkart is the biggest e-commerce company in India, with the likes of Walmart & Ubisoft owning pieces of it.
This might be the largest company to launch an L2, which they’ll do with the help of Polygon.
The goal? To scale FireDrops – their very own web3 loyalty program, which amassed over 3.5 million users since testing began in September 2023.
This is the biggest onchain loyalty program ever, and now, FireDrops is set to be taken to the next level. Let’s explore how. ⏬
🛒 What is Flipkart’s FireDrops Loyalty Program?
Earlier this year, in June, Flipkart & Polygon announced the start of a new web3 loyalty program – FireDrops – which was meant to gamify brand loyalty and enhance customer experience for Flipkart’s millions of users.
FireDrops officially launched in September on a Polygon-powered blockchain that was closed to the public (think of this as a testnet).
Since then, FireDrops accrued a whopping 3.5 million users, each holding their own NFT.
How does FireDrops work? By making a purchase on Flipkart (the Amazon of India), or by interacting in a quest on their platform, you get to claim a digital collectible, which is an NFT.
So far, users claimed NFTs related to brands like Lenovo, Apple, New Balance, Nike, L’Oreal and others…
This doesn’t mean that these brands have had anything to do with these NFTs. It just means that users purchased items from these brands or interacted with them in some type of way (e.g. quests) via Flipkart & received an NFT for their efforts.
With over 3.5 million users, FireDrops might just be the largest onchain loyalty program to date and very few people are talking about it.
What’s next?
By officially launching their L2 via Polygon, they’re basically upgrading from testnet to mainnet.
This will allow Flipkart to scale this onchain loyalty program to meet the needs of their 350 million users.
Not only are they able to tailor this program to better fit their users’ needs & preferences, they can also provide instant settlements for transactions for millions of new users.
Furthermore, because this L2 is being built on Polygon’s CDK, Flipkart will get instant access to the users, liquidity & network effects in the broader Polygon & Ethereum ecosystem.
As an example, Lufthansa is also building their onchain loyalty program – Uptrip – on Polygon.
Theoretically, by building in the same ecosystem, Lufthansa and Flipkart can seamlessly join forces to provide any sort of experience to their customers. Sky’s the limit.
Additionally, with upcoming Polygon upgrades, and the introduction of ZK tech, onchain transactions can become private & there’ll be no need for a token to run the chain.
Massive for UX!! 🤩
Oh, and I almost forgot that Flipkart is exploring the launch of a dynamic marketplace that allows users to buy and sell rewards, adding flexibility and value to loyalty programs and fostering deeper brand engagement.
All of these features are only possible onchain, which is why…
Onchain >>> Online. 🫶
🟣 What’s the Opportunity? Polygon!
In 2024, Polygon is set to complete its transition to Polygon 2.0, aspiring to become a 'super-chain' by integrating various Ethereum Layer 2 scaling solutions.
This upgrade aims to enhance efficiency, versatility, and user-friendliness, and by utilizing the $POL token, these L2s will coexist under a unified network.
Polygon is currently building this infrastructure, encouraging brands to develop their own L2s using the Polygon Chain Development Kit (CDK).
They’ve done an incredible job recruiting builders to utilize their toolkit.
This toolkit facilitates the creation of scalable, interoperable, and cost-efficient custom blockchains, incorporating security features like zero-knowledge proofs.
So far here’s the list of L2s that are being built using Polygon’s CDK.
OKX
Immutable zkEVM
Celo
Astar
Eclipse
Manta Network
Gnosis Pay
IDEX
Aavegotchi
Wirex
Capx
Canto
Nexon
Nubank
Dogechain
And now Flipkart.
As Polygon’s roadmap materializes, the potential for network effects and interoperability across various blockchain networks and applications is immense.
Big brands like Reddit (in-app NFT Avatars), Starbucks (Odyssey), Nike (dotSwoosh), Lufthansa (Uptrip) are already using the Polygon network to build their web3 initiatives.
When Polygon 2.0 is fully functioning, these will be able to integrate with each other seamlessly.
Not to mention that they can also start collaborating with web3-native protocols like Lens, who are also building on Polygon.
The future is very bright for Polygon, who’s set to have a very good 2024.
If you’d like to dive deeper into whether or not Polygon’s a good investment, check our recent onchain report where we dive into the tokenomics of both $IMX and $MATIC ($POL).
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and not financial advice. Conduct your own research and consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions or taking any action based on the content.