Monad Testnet Hits 150 Million Addresses – A Breakthrough In The Blockchain Race

Background: Monad and the Vision of High-Performance Blockchain

Launched in 2022 by Monad Labs, founded by Keone Hon, James Hunsaker, and Eunice Giarta, Monad is a Layer-1 blockchain designed to overcome Ethereum's speed and scalability limitations. Committed to remaining fully EVM compatible, Monad allows developers to easily port decentralized applications (dApps) from Ethereum without modifying the source code, while delivering superior performance.

According to the project's website, Monad is capable of processing 10,000 transactions per second (TPS), with a block time of just 1 second and a single-slot finality. These numbers far exceed Ethereum (around 12-15 TPS) and even compete with other high-performance blockchains like Solana (average 1,500 TPS). Monad's standout feature is its use of parallel execution and MonadDB – a database optimized to store the blockchain state on SSDs instead of RAM, reducing node operating costs and promoting decentralization.

The $225 million funding round from Paradigm, along with participation from major funds such as Coinbase Ventures, Electric Capital, and OKX Ventures, has affirmed investors’ belief in Monad’s vision. However, the question is: Does the rapid growth of the testnet truly reflect the project’s long-term potential, or is it just a “hype” effect before the mainnet launch?

The meaning of the number 150 million addresses

Reaching 150 million testnet addresses is a notable milestone, especially considering Monad added 5.5 million addresses in just one day. This shows a strong level of interest from the developer community, users, and “airdrop hunters” – those who participate in the testnet for a chance to receive token rewards when the mainnet launches.

• Vibrant Community Activity: According to posts on X, Monad’s testnet has seen over 800 million transactions and millions of wallets participating. This reflects that Monad is not only attracting attention but also creating a rich ecosystem of applications, from games (like Rug Rumble, LootGO) to NFTs and decentralized trading platforms.

• Testnet Token Distribution Strategy: Monad sent testnet tokens to over 8.8 million EVM addresses based on previous on-chain activity, a smart move to incentivize user participation. The project’s faucet allows users to claim testnet tokens every 12 hours, making it easy to experiment with dApps and protocols.

The role of parallel execution

This growth can be explained by Monad’s core technology: parallel execution. Unlike Ethereum, where transactions are processed sequentially, Monad allows for concurrent execution of independent transactions, which significantly increases throughput. Combined with MonadBFT, a consensus mechanism based on HotStuff but optimized to reduce the number of communication rounds from three to two, Monad ensures speed and security without sacrificing too much decentralization.

However, parallel execution also poses challenges. According to an analysis on Medium, executing transactions that depend on each other can lead to errors if not carefully managed. Monad addresses this issue with optimistic execution and static code analysis to identify dependencies, but the actual performance still needs to be verified on mainnet.

"Dust loading" or real growth?

Some comments on X have questioned whether the 150 million address figure is the result of “dust loading” — that is, addresses created automatically or in bulk to hunt for airdrops. While there’s no denying that the airdrop factor is a big driver, the presence of over 20 live applications on the testnet since day one and recent NFT hackathons suggest that Monad is building a real ecosystem. Popular wallets like Phantom and Backpack have integrated native support for Monad, further increasing its reach.