Avalanche (AVAX) tokenomics

Avalanche (AVAX) is designed with a capped-supply model and a multi-faceted economic structure that balances network security, user incentives, and long-term sustainability. The native token, AVAX, serves as the primary unit of account and utility within the ecosystem, facilitating transactions, securing the network through staking, and providing a base for governance.

Issuance Mechanism

Avalanche has a hard cap of 720 million AVAX tokens. The issuance is divided into two main parts:

• Initial Supply: 360 million AVAX were minted at the mainnet launch.
• Staking Rewards: The remaining 360 million AVAX are allocated to be distributed as staking rewards for validators and delegators.

The emission rate of these rewards is designed to be distributed over at least ten years, though this timeline and the specific rate are subject to future governance changes. A unique aspect of Avalanche's issuance is that it is highly sensitive to the staking duration; for example, staking for the maximum period of one year can result in an additional 11.11% of tokens minted compared to continuous two-week staking.

Allocation Mechanism

The initial 360 million AVAX tokens were allocated across several key stakeholder groups to bootstrap the network and ensure long-term development.

Usage and Incentive Mechanism

AVAX serves several critical functions that drive demand and incentivize participation:

• Network Security (Staking): To secure the network, validators must self-stake a minimum of 2,000 AVAX. Users who do not meet this requirement can delegate their tokens to existing validators with a minimum of 25 AVAX.
• Transaction Fees: All transaction fees on the Primary Network (P-Chain, X-Chain, and C-Chain) are settled in AVAX. Crucially, 100% of these fees are burned, creating a deflationary pressure that benefits all token holders by increasing scarcity.
• Staking Rewards: Validators earn rewards for maintaining high uptime (at least 80%) and responsiveness. Delegators earn a share of these rewards, minus a delegation fee (minimum 2%) paid to the validator. As of late 2024, the advertised staking APY was approximately 7.60%.
• Ecosystem Incentives: The Avalanche Foundation has launched several programs to bootstrap liquidity and development, such as Avalanche Rush (a $180 million DeFi incentive program), Avalanche Multiverse (focused on Subnet growth), and Retro9000 (a $40 million retroactive funding program for developers).
• Governance: While not yet fully live, the protocol intends to implement on-chain governance. This will allow validators to propose and all token holders to vote on changes to network parameters, such as emission rates, staking minimums, and fee mechanisms.

Locking and Unlocking Mechanism

Avalanche employs both protocol-level staking locks and contractual vesting schedules for allocated tokens.

Staking Locks

For active participants in network security, the minimum staking duration is two weeks, and the maximum is one year. Once tokens are staked or delegated, they are locked for the chosen duration and cannot be moved until the period expires.

Vesting and Unlocks

Tokens allocated to the team, foundation, and strategic partners are subject to multi-year vesting schedules to align interests with the long-term health of the network. For instance, the team's allocation is subject to a four-year vesting period, while the Foundation's allocation follows a ten-year schedule.

Upcoming Unlock Schedule

The following table outlines the projected upcoming "cliff" unlock events for the Avalanche Foundation as of early 2026:

These recurring quarterly unlocks for the Foundation are part of the long-term 10-year vesting plan designed to support ongoing ecosystem development and operations.