{"id":98472,"date":"2023-09-05T12:22:52","date_gmt":"2023-09-05T12:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.techopedia.com\/?post_type=definition&p=98472"},"modified":"2024-02-22T21:16:57","modified_gmt":"2024-02-22T21:16:57","slug":"token-lockup","status":"publish","type":"definition","link":"https:\/\/www.techopedia.com\/definition\/token-lockup","title":{"rendered":"Token Lockup"},"content":{"rendered":"

What Is Token Lockup?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Token lockup (or vesting period) is a specific time frame when cryptocurrency tokens<\/a> cannot be traded or transferred.<\/p>\n

During this lockup period, holders of such tokens are restricted from selling tokens received either from airdrops<\/a>, presales, or after an initial coin offering<\/a> (ICO) in the open market.<\/p>\n

Token lockups are often enforced using escrows or smart contracts<\/a>, which are pieces of code capable of executing commands autonomously.<\/p>\n

These lockups serve as a preventive strategy intended to stop token sales shortly after their launch into the market. This step is taken because most investors tend to offload their tokens as soon as they acquire them.<\/p>\n

In the event of such a mass sell-off, the token price can experience a steep decline due to increased sales with minimal demand. Hence, token lockup prevents this from happening and instills a level of confidence in the minds of token holders.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, it incentivizes both the project founders and participants to focus on building the project for the long term.<\/p>\n

With a token lockup, a blockchain protocol can craft an appropriate support base for the token before it goes live in the market. This way, they can reduce the potential volatility of the digital asset<\/a> in the long run.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, locked-up tokens are often not considered part of an asset’s circulating supply<\/a>, thereby often disregarded in technical analyses conducted by asset traders.<\/p>\n

Token Lockup Structures<\/span><\/h2>\n

Given the rising prevalence of rug pulls<\/a> and scams, investors usually require crypto projects to initiate vesting periods for their digital coins. This offers a level of confidence that project founders won’t make off with the funds.<\/p>\n

Below, we consider some of the popular strategies employed by blockchain protocols for token vesting:<\/p>\n