Kaspa (KAS) Tokenomics

Kaspa (KAS) is the native token of the Kaspa network, a decentralized peer-to-peer payment system utilizing a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism and a unique blockDAG (Directed Acyclic Graph) architecture. The token economics are designed with principles similar to Bitcoin, emphasizing a deflationary monetary policy, no premine, and no central governance.

Issuance Mechanism

The issuance of KAS tokens is governed by a predetermined, deflationary schedule that rewards miners for securing the network.

• Consensus Mechanism: Kaspa uses a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism secured by the kHeavyhash mining algorithm. Miners validate and secure transactions by performing complex computational tasks.
• Maximum Supply and Emission Schedule: The maximum token supply for KAS is 70 billion KAS, which is projected to be fully mined around the year 2057.
• Block Rewards and Halving: Miners receive newly minted KAS via an inflationary block reward, along with all transaction fees in the associated block.
  • Initially, miners were rewarded 500.00 KAS per block.
  • These rewards are subject to a continuous "halving" mechanism, which refers to the decreasing rate of Kaspa's inflation.
  • The block reward decreases geometrically each month by a factor of $(1/2)^{(1/12)}$.
  • As of February 26, 2024, the block reward had decreased to 81 KAS per block.
• Future Adjustments: Kaspa plans a codebase transition to RustLang, which is expected to increase the block time to 10 blocks per second (BPS), with an ultimate goal of 100 BPS. Following this transition, the KAS reward per block will decrease proportionally to the increase in blocks per second (e.g., if 10 BPS = 13.08 KAS per block, then 100 BPS = ~1.31 KAS per block), ensuring the overall emission schedule remains unchanged.

Allocation Mechanism

Kaspa was launched following a "fair-launch" model, meaning there was no initial pre-mine, zero pre-sales, or pre-allocated coins to the project team or founders.

• Fair Launch: The project was fair-launched on November 7, 2021.
• Distribution: All KAS tokens are distributed through the Proof-of-Work mining process as block rewards to miners.
• Community Funding: While there was no pre-allocation, the community has conducted crowdfunding campaigns to support various ecosystem initiatives, such as developing the DAGKnight consensus or funding exchange listing fees. For example, a crowdfunding campaign for the DAGKnight consensus raised approximately 70.23 million KAS (about 0.24% of the maximum token supply).
• Development Fund: Public donations are directed to a unified Kaspa public development fund, which is managed by four publicly voted Community Treasurers via a 2/4 multi-signature wallet.

Usage and Incentive Mechanism

The native token, KAS, serves multiple utility functions within the network, primarily centered around payments and network security incentives.

Locking Mechanism and Unlocking Time

Kaspa's token economics do not feature traditional locking, staking, or liquidity provisioning mechanisms.

• Staking/Liquidity: The network does not have a staking or liquidity provision mechanism. Participating in Kaspa consensus, such as running a node or mining KAS, does not involve staking.
• Locking/Vesting: There is no information available regarding a locking mechanism or vesting schedule for KAS, consistent with its fair-launch model that had no pre-mine or pre-allocated coins.
• Token Emission Completion: The full emission of the 70 billion KAS maximum supply is expected to be completed around the year 2057.

Token Supply and Distribution Snapshot

As of February 26, 2024, the circulating and maximum supply figures were as follows:

The distribution of the circulating supply shows a concentration in the top addresses, with the top 10 wallet addresses collectively holding approximately 3.93 billion KAS (about 13.69% of the maximum token supply). This includes significant holdings by exchange wallets, such as the "Gate.io Wallet" and "MEXC Wallet."