📖TokenUnlocks Methodologies

Explanation of TokenUnlocks methodologies and details

Supply metrics

Token Unlocks' goal is to resolve the issue of unstructured token supply data. To solve the problem, we have developed methodologies and defined metrics that are displayed on our token unlocks website. These methodologies are designed to establish standards for tokenomics data and ensure transparency in the industry, enabling everyone to understand and utilize these metrics to make informed decisions.

Metrics Definition Formula

Metrics	Definition	Formula
Fully Diluted Value (FDV)	This term refers to the total value of a cryptocurrency project, considering the total token supply in circulation. It provides an estimate of the project's potential for growth and future value.	`FDV = Current Price * Total Supply`
Stakeholder Wallet	This is a wallet that holds tokens with special conditions or benefits agreed upon by involved parties. These wallets are usually meant to hold tokens without plans to sell them in the public market. Stakeholder wallets can include investors, team members, treasury holdings, or wallets that are explicitly designated as non-circulating supply. Tokens in stakeholder wallets are classified as non-circulating supply.
Circulating Supply	This term refers to the number of tokens transferred to non-stakeholder wallets and available for open market trading. It excludes tokens that are locked or held by stakeholder addresses. This supply quantity represents the number of tokens that can be publicly traded and circulate in the market. Even if these tokens have not been traded in the secondary market yet, they are considered readily available for trading once transferred out from stakeholder wallets. We collect this supply data from multiple sources.
Locked Supply	This refers to the quantity of tokens that have been restricted to prevent trading in the public market and transfer to non-stakeholder wallets. The lock token process encourages long-term stakeholder participation in projects. The duration of the lock time and type of vesting (cliff or linear) are also specified. This metric does not include the locked token in the re-lock mechanism.
TBD Locked supply	This refers to the amount of tokens that have not yet been assigned a release timing. These tokens are usually set aside for specific purposes and are released when certain conditions are met, such as DAO treasury, reserves and unallocated fund. Once the project provides data about the lock-up period and the unlocking mechanism (cliff or linear), the TBD locked supply will decrease and change to a locked supply with a known lock-up period.
Unlocked Supply	This refers to the amount of a token that is unlocked and tradable on the public market. It is not necessary to transfer the token out to a non-stakeholder wallet. The token can be unlocked and still held by the stakeholder's wallet. Therefore, the unlocked supply is not the same as the circulating supply. It's used to gauge the actual amount of tradable tokens in the public market.
Available Supply	The total quantity of tokens that are immediately accessible and tradable on the public market. It consists of the 'Unlocked Supply,' which is freely tradable, and the 'TBD Locked Supply,' which becomes available as specific conditions are met, indicating the potential impact of additional tokens entering circulation.	`Available supply = Unlocked Supply + TBD Locked`
Untracked supply	This refers to the amount of tokens that we have not assigned to a specific allocation due to data uncertainty.
Max Supply	This refers to the theoretical maximum number of tokens that could possibly exist in the future. This number is either reported by the project or set as a condition on the smart contract. In some cases, this number may be infinite, which indicates there is no limit to token issuance.
Inflation	An increase in unlock supply caused by unlocking or issuance mechanisms (like cliffs and linear releases).
Deflation	A decrease in unlocked supply due to burning mechanism.
Emission	Emission refers to the net change in the unlocked supply of a cryptocurrency over a set time. It increases due to inflation and decreases due to deflation. This metric helps estimate future token supply dilution.	`Emission = Inflation - Deflation`

Fully Diluted Value (FDV)

This term refers to the total value of a cryptocurrency project, considering the total token supply in circulation. It provides an estimate of the project's potential for growth and future value.

FDV = Current Price * Total Supply

Stakeholder Wallet

This is a wallet that holds tokens with special conditions or benefits agreed upon by involved parties. These wallets are usually meant to hold tokens without plans to sell them in the public market. Stakeholder wallets can include investors, team members, treasury holdings, or wallets that are explicitly designated as non-circulating supply. Tokens in stakeholder wallets are classified as non-circulating supply.

Circulating Supply

This term refers to the number of tokens transferred to non-stakeholder wallets and available for open market trading. It excludes tokens that are locked or held by stakeholder addresses. This supply quantity represents the number of tokens that can be publicly traded and circulate in the market. Even if these tokens have not been traded in the secondary market yet, they are considered readily available for trading once transferred out from stakeholder wallets. We collect this supply data from multiple sources.

Locked Supply

This refers to the quantity of tokens that have been restricted to prevent trading in the public market and transfer to non-stakeholder wallets. The lock token process encourages long-term stakeholder participation in projects. The duration of the lock time and type of vesting (cliff or linear) are also specified.

This metric does not include the locked token in the re-lock mechanism.

TBD Locked supply

This refers to the amount of tokens that have not yet been assigned a release timing. These tokens are usually set aside for specific purposes and are released when certain conditions are met, such as DAO treasury, reserves and unallocated fund. Once the project provides data about the lock-up period and the unlocking mechanism (cliff or linear), the TBD locked supply will decrease and change to a locked supply with a known lock-up period.

Unlocked Supply

This refers to the amount of a token that is unlocked and tradable on the public market. It is not necessary to transfer the token out to a non-stakeholder wallet. The token can be unlocked and still held by the stakeholder's wallet. Therefore, the unlocked supply is not the same as the circulating supply. It's used to gauge the actual amount of tradable tokens in the public market.

Available Supply

The total quantity of tokens that are immediately accessible and tradable on the public market. It consists of the 'Unlocked Supply,' which is freely tradable, and the 'TBD Locked Supply,' which becomes available as specific conditions are met, indicating the potential impact of additional tokens entering circulation.

Available supply = Unlocked Supply + TBD Locked

Untracked supply

This refers to the amount of tokens that we have not assigned to a specific allocation due to data uncertainty.

Max Supply

This refers to the theoretical maximum number of tokens that could possibly exist in the future. This number is either reported by the project or set as a condition on the smart contract. In some cases, this number may be infinite, which indicates there is no limit to token issuance.

Inflation

An increase in unlock supply caused by unlocking or issuance mechanisms (like cliffs and linear releases).

Deflation

A decrease in unlocked supply due to burning mechanism.

Emission

Emission refers to the net change in the unlocked supply of a cryptocurrency over a set time. It increases due to inflation and decreases due to deflation. This metric helps estimate future token supply dilution.

Emission = Inflation - Deflation

Precision & Assumption

At TokenUnlocks, our commitment is to deliver the most accurate and reliable information, empowering our users with knowledge while upholding clear, transparent interactions with both project teams and our community. This commitment to integrity and trust is foundational, prompting the introduction of ‘Precision & Assumption’.

The nature of crypto grants projects the flexibility to report their vesting schedules without any standardized enforcement, which while embodying the spirit of decentralization, can also breed confusion and uncertainty. To manage their vesting schedules, projects often employ mechanisms such as multi-signatures, smart contracts, or a combination of both. Each method provides different levels of precision in unlocking tokens, which can vary widely across instances.

Comprehensive vesting data sometimes requires the aggregation of information from multiple sources. For instance, specific allocation details might be disclosed through public announcements, whereas other elements might need verification directly on the blockchain. Despite these challenges, our approach remains consistent across all projects, ensuring fairness and comparability. With ‘Precision & Assumption’, our goal is to minimize these ambiguities and enhance transparency, giving control and clarity back to our users.

With the introduction of the “Precision & Assumption”, users are equipped to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of vesting schedules. This enhances users to conduct a more thorough research and make well-informed decisions with greater confidence and clarity.

Below, we provide a detailed explanation of the terminology utilized within this framework.

Assumption

The term “Assumption” refers to the methodologies employed to transform raw data from sources such as whitepapers or on-chain transactions into the user-friendly vesting charts displayed on our website.

To illustrate, when a project indicates a “Monthly vesting after TGE” schedule, we identify the TGE date and presume subsequent unlocks occur on the same day of each following month.

While we strive to confirm these details through on-chain verification whenever possible, we want to ensure that this assumption is also communicated clearly to our users.

Public Project Data & On-chain Verified

A vesting schedule has been announced by the project and TokenUnlocks verified it on chain.

Public Project Data

A vesting schedule that has been announced by the project publicly.

Vesting Contract

A vesting schedule that has been defined as a scheduled time lock in a smart contract.

Private Project Data

A vesting schedule that has been confirmed by project team privately.

(ie. the data may be provided through private channels in Telegram)

Inferred On-chain

A vesting schedule interpreted by the TokenUnlocks team from on-chain behavior in situations where there is ambiguity or incomplete information regarding unlocks data.

Precision

The concept of “Precision” is crucial for assessing the accuracy and detail of reported unlock times. Some projects specify vesting schedules broadly by month, post-TGE, without pinpointing exact unlock dates; this general timeframe necessitates estimations rather than precise dates.

Conversely, other projects that offer detailed schedules or utilize vesting contracts to manage distributions, allows us to provide an exact unlock dates. Understanding precision helps users gauge the reliability of the vesting schedule data and the level of detail provided by different protocols.

Month

The unlock could occur anytime within the labeled month.

(ie. If the next unlock event indicates 15th May this would mean that it can be unlocked anytime between 1st - 31st May.)

Week

The unlock could occur approximately +- 3 days or within the week of indicated unlock date.

(ie. If the next unlock event shows 15th May, it can be unlocked anytime between 12th - 18th May)

Day

The unlock could occur anytime that day.

Hour

The unlock could occur anytime that hour.

Block

The unlock time is derived from block number and will updated every four hours on site.

Second

The unlock time will occur precisely that second.

To be Determined

The unlock time has not yet been assigned a specific release timing. The token will be released when certain conditions are fulfilled. For more details, please refer to the TBD page.

To understand more about TokenUnlocks data precision please visit Disclaimerpage.

❗Disclaimer

To understand how TokenUnlocks update data discrepancies and tokenomics updates please visit Data Update Policy page.

⚠️Data Update Policy

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Last updated 1 month ago