NEAR (NEAR) tokenomics

The NEAR Protocol token ($NEAR) is the native asset of the NEAR network, designed to secure the network, facilitate transactions, and incentivize participation. The token economics are characterized by a fixed annual inflation rate combined with a deflationary mechanism through transaction fee burning, aiming for long-term sustainability and network security.

Issuance Mechanism

The NEAR token was launched with an initial total supply of 1 billion NEAR at the Token Generation Event (TGE) in April 2020.

The issuance mechanism is based on a fixed annual inflation rate, which is dynamically offset by transaction fee burning:

• Annual Inflation: The protocol has a fixed annual inflation rate of approximately 5.00% of the total token supply. As of December 18, 2024, this inflation has resulted in a total token supply of approximately 1.23 billion NEAR.
• Inflation Allocation: Of the newly issued tokens from inflation, 90.00% are allocated toward validator staking and delegator rewards, while the remaining 10.00% is allocated to the protocol’s treasury.
• Deflationary Mechanism: All transaction fees (gas) collected by the network are burned, introducing a deflationary pressure. The actual issuance of NEAR is calculated as the 5% fixed inflation minus the transaction fees burned. This design means that if network usage increases significantly, the burning of fees could potentially offset the inflation, leading to a net-zero or even deflationary token economy over time.

Allocation Mechanism

The initial token supply was distributed across various categories, including allocations controlled by the project team for ecosystem growth and operations.

The project team controls the following major allocations (based on the initial token supply of 1 billion NEAR):

In addition to these, a public token sale (Community Sale) was conducted in August 2020, where approximately 120 million NEAR (~12.00% of the initial supply) were sold.

The NEAR Community Treasury, launched in March 2023 to serve as a decentralized treasury, initially held about 5.66 million NEAR (~0.57% of the initial supply). As of December 18, 2024, the Treasury wallet holds approximately 3.49 million NEAR (~0.29% of the total supply).

Usage and Incentive Mechanism

The NEAR token serves multiple utility functions within the network, primarily focused on security, transaction processing, and ecosystem development.

1. Network Security and Rewards (Staking)

NEAR operates on a Thresholded Proof-of-Stake (TPoS) consensus mechanism.

• Validator Staking and Delegation: Token holders can stake NEAR to run a validator node or delegate their tokens to existing validators to secure the network.
• Validator Rewards: Validators who earn a "seat" through the TPoS auction mechanism receive proportional inflationary NEAR rewards.
  • Reward Source: 90.00% of the fixed 5.00% annual inflation is allocated to validator staking and delegator rewards.
  • Reward Distribution: Rewards are distributed per epoch, which occurs approximately twice per day.
  • Delegation: Token holders can delegate NEAR to validators via staking pools, and validators use custom smart contracts to manage commission fees and reward distributions for their delegators.
  • Seat Price: The minimum amount of NEAR required to become a validator (the "seat price") is dynamically calculated based on the total stake in the network. As of December 18, 2024, the seat price was 11,110.00 NEAR.

2. Network Usage and Fees

NEAR is used to pay for network resources, with a portion of fees being burned to manage supply.

• Transaction Fees (Gas): NEAR tokens are charged as fees (gas) for processing transactions, deploying smart contracts, storing data, and state changes.
• Fee Distribution: The network burns 70.00% of collected transaction fees. The remaining 30.00% is allocated to the creators of the smart contracts called by each individual transaction, incentivizing developers.
• Storage Staking: Smart contract deployers must stake NEAR tokens to cover the cost of data storage on the blockchain. As of December 18, 2024, the cost is set at 100kb per NEAR token. These storage-staked tokens are unavailable for other uses like paying for transactions or staking to validators.

3. Ecosystem Funding and Grants

NEAR tokens are used to fund ecosystem growth through grants and decentralized initiatives.

• Ecosystem Funding: In October 2021, NEAR announced an $800 million funding initiative for ecosystem growth, allocated to areas like DeFi development (Proximity Labs), existing projects, startup grant pools, and regional funds.
• Decentralized Allocation: The protocol is transitioning toward a more decentralized capital allocation model involving entities like the DeveloperDAO, MarketingDAO, and CreativesDAO.

Locking Mechanism and Unlocking Time (Future Proposal)

While current staking mechanisms involve locking tokens for at least three days to participate in the TPoS auction, a more formal, long-term locking mechanism is currently under discussion as part of a proposed new governance framework called the "House of Stake."

Proposed veNEAR Locking Mechanism

A proposal introduced in July 2024 suggests implementing a vote-escrow NEAR (veNEAR) mechanism, which would involve locking NEAR tokens to gain voting power and rewards.

• Locking Duration: The proposed lock-up period would range from a minimum of three months to a maximum of 48 months.
• Voting Power: Locking NEAR would grant the non-transferable veNEAR token, with voting power proportional to the lock duration. For instance, locking 1.00 NEAR for 12 months would result in 1.50 veNEAR, while locking 1.00 NEAR for 48 months would result in 3.00 veNEAR.
• Rewards: veNEAR holders would receive an Annual Percentage Yield (APY) reward paid in NEAR, sourced from the project's treasury (which receives 10% of the annual inflation) and potential additional funds. The APY would be set by a proposed "Screening Committee."

As of December 18, 2024, this proposal remains under discussion on the project's forum and is not yet implemented.

Information regarding the specific vesting schedules and unlocking times for the initial token allocations (e.g., Foundation Endowment, Early Ecosystem) was not available.