Avalanche (AVAX) tokenomics

The token economics of Avalanche (AVAX) are designed to secure the network through a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) mechanism, incentivize participation, and introduce deflationary pressure through transaction fee burning. The total supply of AVAX is capped at 720 million tokens.

Issuance Mechanism

The issuance of AVAX is primarily driven by staking rewards, which are inflationary but capped by the total supply limit.

• Capped Supply: The total supply of AVAX is fixed at 720 million tokens.
• Staking Rewards: A total of 360 million AVAX (50.00% of the initial total token supply) is allocated for staking rewards to validators and delegators.
• Reward Distribution: These rewards are planned to be distributed over at least ten years, although the rate and timeline are subject to potential changes via on-chain governance proposals.
• Incentive for Long-Term Staking: The issuance mechanism is designed to incentivize longer staking periods. Staking for the maximum duration of one year (52 weeks) results in an additional 11.11% of tokens minted compared to staking continuously for the minimal duration of two weeks.

Allocation Mechanism

The initial total token supply was distributed across several categories, with varying vesting schedules and lockup periods.

• Public Sale Details: The public sale in July 2020 included three options:
  • Option A1: ~7.20 million AVAX sold at $0.50, subject to a one-year vesting schedule with quarterly unlocks (10.00% available at mainnet launch).
  • Option A2: ~60.00 million AVAX sold at $0.50, subject to an 18-month vesting schedule with quarterly unlocks (10.00% available at mainnet launch).
  • Option B: ~4.80 million AVAX sold at $0.85, with no vesting schedule.

Usage and Incentive Mechanism

AVAX serves multiple utility functions within the Avalanche ecosystem, primarily focused on security, transaction settlement, and ecosystem growth.

Core Utility and Incentives

1. Security (Staking): AVAX is used to secure the network via Proof-of-Stake on the P-Chain.
   • Validators must self-stake a minimum of 2,000 AVAX and meet hardware requirements.
   • Delegators can participate by delegating a minimum of AVAX to an existing validator.
   • Validators receive staking rewards (paid in AVAX) if their node is online and responsive at least 60% of the time.
   • Validators are entitled to a delegation fee of at least 2.00% of the associated delegators’ staking rewards.
2. Transaction Fees (Burning): Network transaction fees on Avalanche are settled in AVAX. All of these fees are burned, which introduces a deflationary mechanism to the token supply, driving value to all token holders through increased scarcity.
3. Governance (Future): Avalanche intends to establish an on-chain governance feature where validators and stakers can propose and execute changes to network parameters, such as the rate of AVAX token emissions, minimum staking amounts, and the fee mechanism. As of November 25, 2024, this governance system is not yet live.
4. Subnet Economics: Avalanche Subnets rely on Primary Network validators for economic security. Subnet validators must also validate the Avalanche Primary Network and stake at least 2,000 AVAX. Subnets can, however, have their own token economics, native tokens, fee markets, and incentives determined by the Subnet deployer.

Ecosystem Incentive Programs

The Avalanche Foundation actively uses AVAX to bootstrap ecosystem growth through various incentive programs:

• Avalanche Rush: A liquidity mining program launched in August 2021 to incentivize DeFi applications to launch on the C-Chain and bootstrap liquidity. The foundation allocated $180 million in AVAX (approximately 8 million AVAX at the time) to this program.
• Avalanche Multiverse: A Subnet growth fund launched in March 2022, allocating 4.00 million AVAX to users of eligible Subnets.
• Memecoin Rush: A phase-based incentive program launched in March 2024 focused on promoting participation within the memecoin ecosystem.
• Grant Programs: Initiatives like the infraBUIDL() program and the Community Grants program (in partnership with Gitcoin) provide funding and matching grants in AVAX to developers building infrastructure and foundational tools.
• Airdrops: The Avalanche Foundation allocated 18.00 million AVAX (2.50% of the initial total token supply) for airdrops to incentivize the user base, including an ongoing airdrop for users of the Avalanche Bridge.

Locking Mechanism and Unlocking Time

Locking Mechanism

The primary locking mechanism for AVAX is associated with staking and initial token allocations:

• Staking Lockup: AVAX staked by validators and delegators is subject to a minimum lockup period of two weeks and a maximum lockup period of one year.
• Vesting Schedules: Tokens allocated to the Project Team, Avalanche Foundation, Strategic Partners, Airdrops, and certain public sale options were subject to multi-year vesting schedules (e.g., one-year, four-year, or ten-year periods) with quarterly unlocks.

Future Unlocking Events

Based on the vesting schedules for the Avalanche Foundation's allocation, a series of quarterly unlocks are scheduled for the coming years. These unlocks represent a small percentage impact on the circulating supply.

The following table details the scheduled AVAX token unlocks starting in 2026: