ANIME Launches Token: Over Half Allocated to Community Airdrop, Azuki NFT Series Shows No Significant Price Increase

By Nancy, PANews

Following the successful token airdrop of Pudgy Penguins, Azuki's anime-themed project Animecoin is set to launch its ANIME token this January. However, the upcoming release of the ANIME token has not significantly boosted the prices of the Azuki NFT collection. The market appears unconvinced, and controversy has begun to emerge.

Azuki-series NFTs have seen modest gains as a result, but are still far from recovering their historical highs. According to NFT Price Floor data, Azuki rose 13% over the past 24 hours, with a current floor price of 14.08 ETH—down nearly 43.7% from its all-time high. Azuki Elementals gained 17%, reaching a new record floor price of 1.9 ETH. Beanz surged approximately 20.1%, with its floor price now at 0.95 ETH, still down 81% from its peak.

In contrast, after announcing its token issuance plan, the Pudgy Penguins NFT series experienced massive buying pressure. From announcement to launch, both Pudgy Penguins and Lil Pudgys saw triple-digit percentage increases in floor price, briefly hitting new highs—indicating stronger and more positive market demand compared to Azuki.

On the occasion of Azuki’s third anniversary, ANIME announced on January 13 that the ANIME token will launch this month on Ethereum and Arbitrum. In fact, last year, Azuki founder Zagabond had already teased the token generation event (TGE), stating at the time that Animecoin would go live before Anime Chain.

The ANIME tokenomics reveal a total supply of 10 billion tokens, with an initial circulating supply of 7.69 billion—representing 76.9% circulation at launch. The specific allocation includes: 37.5% for the Azuki community, 13% for AnimeDAO, 24.44% for the Animecoin Foundation, 2% for partner communities, 15.62% for the team and advisors (33.33% unlocked after a 1-year cliff, remainder linearly vested), and 7.44% for Azuki Inc. (33.33% unlocked after a 1-year cliff, remainder linearly vested). As part of the TGE, partner communities including Hyperliquid (HYPE stakers), Kaito yappers, and Arbitrum community members will receive ANIME airdrops.

Azuki also officially announced a collaboration with the Animecoin Foundation to jointly advance the development of an open anime metaverse. The statement read: “Azuki has demonstrated Web3’s unique value in IP incubation through decentralized brand-building—creating over 100 sub-communities, global events, and vibrant fan-generated content. This partnership, including the upcoming Anime.com platform and the ANIME token, aims to transform anime fans from passive consumers into true owners of culture.”

Notably, an image from the highly popular Japanese anime *Jujutsu Kaisen* appears on the ANIME tokenomics page, leading the community to speculate about a potential major collaboration.

Meanwhile, crypto KOL @a_raving_ape analyzed the ANIME token distribution based on badges, points, and other factors. Under a neutral scenario (assuming an ANIME FDV of $2.5 billion), each Azuki NFT could receive an airdrop worth $40,700, while each Azuki Elementals NFT could receive one valued at $4,000.

Despite significant attention surrounding the ANIME TGE, it has also sparked criticism and negative feedback. Compared to Pudgy Penguins’ generous distribution—allocating 24.12% of tokens to external communities—ANIME is seen as offering a relatively small airdrop to non-Azuki communities. Notably, although Pudgy Penguins previously airdropped tokens to Azuki holders, Azuki has not reciprocated with a similar gesture.

Additionally, Azuki and Animecoin have been criticized for retaining too large a share of tokens, with many community members calling it a "classic VC dump party." Approximately 60.5% of the ANIME tokens are allocated to the Animecoin Foundation, AnimeDAO, the team and advisors, and Azuki Inc. For instance, AI agent AIXBT commented, “Honestly, this means VCs are ready to dump. If holders want real balance, the circulating supply at TGE should be 90%, not 76%.”