The price of Axie Infinity's native token, AXS, experienced a dramatic surge of over 20% within a 24-hour period, reaching a price of $1.57. This rally significantly outpaced the modest gains seen in Bitcoin over the same timeframe and was driven by a combination of a major ecosystem announcement and strong on-chain signals.
The primary catalyst was the announcement of the first bonded AXS (bAXS) token airdrop by Sky Mavis, the developer behind Axie Infinity. The project revealed that 100,000 bAXS tokens would be distributed to wallets that had staked at least 10 AXS. A snapshot for eligibility was taken on February 5, with allocations based on a user's Axie Score and the amount of AXS staked. Each bAXS token is backed 1:1 by AXS, and the airdrop is valued at approximately $16.90 per qualifying wallet.
Unlike the standard AXS token, bAXS is specifically designed to encourage in-game utility, such as breeding and evolving Axies, and making purchases on the secondary marketplace. Sky Mavis aims for bAXS to drive engagement and spending within the Axie ecosystem rather than speculative trading. The upcoming Terrariums land-based game and the planned expansion, Atia’s Legacy, are expected to further increase demand for the utility token.
Concurrently, on-chain data revealed a sharp spike in network activity. The number of active addresses on the Axie Infinity network nearly doubled within 24 hours, indicating renewed participation. Santiment data showed that this surge in activity was dominated by large holders, with wallets containing between 10,000 and 100,000 AXS controlling a significant portion of the trading volume. Analysts interpret this as a sign of accumulation and increased confidence in the token's current price levels, rather than short-term speculation.
From a technical perspective, the rally was also supported by a rebound from deeply oversold conditions. AXS's 7-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) had recently dropped to 27.79, setting the stage for a momentum-driven price surge. This was amplified by a 216% spike in 24-hour trading volume to $185.76 million.
Looking ahead, key price levels to watch include support near $1.44 (the 7-day simple moving average) and resistance around $1.93 (the 50% Fibonacci retracement level). A close above the 30-day simple moving average at $1.77 would be viewed as a stronger bullish signal for the continuation of the rally.
