Skip to main content
TOKENRADAR
Login | Sign up
  • Tokens

    • Synthetix (SNX)

    10/14/2025 16:00 UTC

    $1.91

    % Today
    -16.66%
    Large Price Change: +68.18% in 7 days.

    Unlock Schedule

    Synthetix (SNX) Token Unlock & Vesting Schedule

    The unlock chart above provides a clear visual overview of the Synthetix (SNX) token release schedule, showing when and how tokens enter circulation across investor, team, treasury, and community allocations. Understanding these tokenomics dynamics is critical for evaluating potential supply pressure, inflation impact, and market liquidity over time — key factors that can influence SNX price performance.

    Each color segment in the chart corresponds to a specific allocation group described in the Allocations section below. Underlying assumptions and data models used to reconstruct this schedule are explained in detail under Assumptions, while broader utility insights and token use cases are covered in Tokenomics & Utility.

    Tokenomics & Utility

    Synthetix tokenomics at a glance

    The “Synthetix tokenomics” model has shifted meaningfully since launch. In December 2023, SIP‑2043 ended SNX inflation, moving rewards away from new token issuance. Instead, Synthetix now emphasizes fee‑based incentives: protocol fees fund staking rewards and, on certain deployments, ongoing SNX buyback‑and‑burn. This transition aligns long‑term value with usage rather than emissions. (sips.synthetix.io)

    Under the Andromeda plan, a share of protocol fees is allocated to purchase SNX on the open market and burn it, while stakers receive the other portion as fee rewards. Combined with zero inflation, this can make the system net deflationary when activity is strong. An additional change is a formal 20% base fee share for Perps V3 integrators on Base, encouraging high‑quality front‑ends to attract more traders and deepen liquidity. (blog.synthetix.io)

    Utility of the SNX token

    • Collateral and liquidity: In V2, SNX primarily collateralized sUSD. In V3, SNX remains a strategic collateral, while the core system supports multiple assets and routes credit from pools to markets. This makes SNX part of a broader collateral mix backing Synthetix markets. (docs.synthetix.io)
    • Governance: SNX staking provides voting power in Spartan Council elections and on key proposals. (docs.synthetix.io)
    • Value alignment: With inflation off and buyback‑and‑burn in play, protocol activity can translate more directly into value for long‑term holders, rather than relying on emissions. Many participants track SNX price over time, but the drivers increasingly center on fees and market adoption. (sips.synthetix.io)

    sUSD and the 2025 peg episode

    In early–mid 2025, sUSD experienced a notable depeg during the transition to a new pooled‑debt staking model (SIP‑420). The change lowered collateralization requirements and shifted debt management to a “420 Pool,” which contributed to an oversupply of sUSD relative to demand. The community responded with targeted incentive programs, including dedicated sUSD staking rewards and Infinex deposit campaigns, to absorb supply and stabilize the system. (coinspectator.com)

    Assumptions

    • Investor sub-allocations within the 60M sale are reconstructed from official sale structure but require approximations for exact token splits.

      EOI vs main sale dollars and discount tiers are known; exact per-tier purchasing power and token allotments by tranche were not fully published. We proportioned totals using documented amounts (EOI $26m, token sale $4m, seed $0.5m), applied equal-average purchase assumption for token sale escrow mix, and used official no-lock and EOI-escrow rules. We ensured sums exactly equal 60,000,000 SNX.

    • Quarterly vesting events (EOI and token sale escrows) are modeled as cliff unlocks on 2018-06-13, 2018-09-13, 2018-12-13, 2019-03-13, etc.

      Official posts specify quarterly vesting cadence and first vesting date; monthly series can be interpolated by the client if needed.

    • Team and Foundation vesting modeled as monthly linear across two years.

      Official sources specify 2-year escrow with quarterly vesting. We model monthly linear for charting simplicity while noting quarterly cadence in notes.

    • Inflationary issuance total equals current Etherscan max total supply minus 100M genesis supply.

      SNX was genesis 100M; all supply above 100M was minted via inflationary policy from 2019-03-06 until SIP-2043 set inflation to 0 in Dec 2023. Etherscan ‘Max Total Supply’ provides authoritative current figure.

    • Inflation unlock window shifted by ~12 months to reflect escrow before transferability.

      Inflationary rewards were escrowed for ~1 year; exact weekly/monthly unlock profile is complex after SCCP adjustments. We convert to a single linear monthly schedule from 2020-03-13 to 2024-12-13 to approximate circulation entry.

    • Treasury-funded programs (e.g., 2025 Simple SNX Staking 5M SNX, sUSD staking) are not modeled as new issuance.

      These distributions are funded from treasury-held SNX (already part of unlocked supply from genesis/treasury allocations) and do not mint additional SNX. They are downstream transfers, not supply creation; included implicitly within treasury allocations.

    Allocations

    Investors & Public Sale (Seed, EOI, Main Token Sale) 17.45%
    75%
    How certain we are about this information
    60,000,000 tokens
    Cliff: Mar 15, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Immediate unlocks at/just after distribution for: (a) seed round (no vest, $500k at 60% disc.), (b) EOI strategic allocation ($15m at 30% discount, explicitly no lockup), and (c) ~84.88% of main sale purchasers who chose no escrow. Immediate distribution completed mid-March 2018.
    Cliff: Jun 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    EOI (non-strategic) tranche 1/4; EOI purchasers had 12-month escrow vesting every 3 months at 25% per tranche.
    Cliff: Sep 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    EOI (non-strategic) tranche 2/4.
    Cliff: Dec 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    EOI (non-strategic) tranche 3/4.
    Cliff: Mar 13, 2019 — NaN% of allocation
    EOI (non-strategic) tranche 4/4 (vest complete at 12 months).
    Cliff: Jun 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale purchasers who selected 3-month escrow (5% discount): 100% unlock at 3 months.
    Cliff: Jun 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 6-month escrow (10% discount): tranche 1/2 (50%).
    Cliff: Sep 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 6-month escrow (10% discount): tranche 2/2 (50%).
    Cliff: Jun 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 12-month escrow (15% discount): tranche 1/4 (25%).
    Cliff: Sep 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 12-month escrow: tranche 2/4.
    Cliff: Dec 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 12-month escrow: tranche 3/4.
    Cliff: Mar 13, 2019 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 12-month escrow: tranche 4/4.
    Cliff: Jun 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 18-month escrow (20% discount): tranche 1/6 (~16.67%).
    Cliff: Sep 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 18-month escrow: tranche 2/6.
    Cliff: Dec 13, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 18-month escrow: tranche 3/6.
    Cliff: Mar 13, 2019 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 18-month escrow: tranche 4/6.
    Cliff: Jun 13, 2019 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 18-month escrow: tranche 5/6.
    Cliff: Sep 13, 2019 — NaN% of allocation
    Main token sale 18-month escrow: tranche 6/6 (adjusted last tranche to reconcile rounding).
    Team & Advisors (Core Contributors + Advisors) 5.82%
    90%
    How certain we are about this information
    20,000,000 tokens
    Linear vesting: Mar 13, 2018 - Mar 13, 2020 (monthly)
    Two-year escrow with quarterly vesting per token sale terms; modeled as monthly linear for charting. Core contributor + advisory allocation fully vested by 2020-03-13.
    Foundation (Havven/Synthetix Foundation Treasury) 3.49%
    90%
    How certain we are about this information
    12,000,000 tokens
    Linear vesting: Mar 13, 2018 - Mar 13, 2020 (monthly)
    Foundation controlled 12% of the network; two-year escrow with quarterly vesting; modeled monthly linear.
    Partnership Incentives (Ecosystem/Partnerships Reserve) 1.45%
    60%
    How certain we are about this information
    5,000,000 tokens
    Linear vesting: Mar 13, 2018 - Mar 13, 2020 (monthly)
    Reserve for partnership incentives per initial tokenomics; no precise vesting cadence disclosed publicly; modeled as monthly linear over first 24 months.
    Bounties & Marketing (incl. Airdrop) 0.87%
    80%
    How certain we are about this information
    3,000,000 tokens
    Cliff: Mar 15, 2018 — NaN% of allocation
    Havven/SNX airdrop of 2,000,000 tokens distributed within a week of token sale completion (mid-March 2018).
    Linear vesting: Mar 13, 2018 - Mar 13, 2019 (monthly)
    Remaining bounties/marketing incentives modeled as linear over first year; exact campaign timings varied.
    Inflationary Issuance (Staking & Protocol Incentives) 70.92%
    85%
    How certain we are about this information
    243,889,850.097 tokens
    Linear vesting: Mar 13, 2020 - Dec 13, 2024 (monthly)
    Modeling unlock of inflationary SNX minted weekly from 2019-03-06 through 2023-12 (SIP-23 smoothing from 2019-12; various SCCPs adjusted weekly base; SIP-2043 set weekly inflation to 0 in Dec 2023). Inflationary staking rewards were escrowed ~12 months before becoming transferable; schedule shifted by ~1 year to approximate when escrowed rewards entered circulation.

    Description

    #134

    Synthetix is a DeFi protocol that allows users to create and trade synthetic assets that track the price of real-world assets. It uses a native token called SNX to collateralize and govern the protocol, and a range of synthetic tokens called Synths to represent different assets.

    Sector: Perpetuals
    Blockchain: Ethereum
    2018
    Bluechip
    Last Updated: 10/13/2025 00:51 UTC
    Resources
    About
    Socials
    Disclaimer: Content provided on our site is for general information only and comes from third party sources. We make no warranties regarding accuracy or completeness. Nothing constitutes financial or legal advice. Use of our content is at your own risk - conduct your own research and verify before relying on it. Trading carries high risk of losses - consult a financial advisor.