Curve DAO (CRV)
CRV is the utility token of Curve Finance, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol that operates as a decentralized exchange (DEX) for stablecoins.
History
The native governance token of Curve, CRV, was initially set to launch on August 14, 2020. However, an anonymous developer using the Twitter handle @0xc4ad announced on August 13, 2020, that they had deployed the Curve DAO smart contracts. This deployment cost the developer 19.9 ETH in fees on the Ethereum network. The Curve Finance team was initially unaware of this deployment, which led to some users staking yCRV tokens to earn CRV tokens. This resulted in a pre-mine of over 80,000 CRV tokens before the Curve team could confirm the smart contract deployment. Upon verification of the correct deployment, the Curve team embraced the launch on August 14, 2020, acknowledging the interest and activity it had generated.
Overview
The Curve DAO token, CRV, aims to incentivize liquidity providers on the Curve Finance platform and encourage user participation in protocol governance. CRV serves three main purposes: voting, staking, and boosting. To participate in these activities, users must engage in the process of vote locking CRV tokens to obtain veCRV.
| Ticker | CRV |
| Category | Decentralized Exchange (DEX) |
| Website | https://www.curve.fi/ |
| @curvefinance | |
| Telegram | curvefi |
| Contract Addresses | |
|---|---|
| ethereum | 0xd5...52 Copied! |
| optimistic-ethereum | 0x09...53Copied! |
| polygon-pos | 0x17...afCopied! |
| fantom | 0x1e...8bCopied! |
| arbitrum-one | 0x11...78Copied! |
| energi | 0xd3...9eCopied! |
| sora | 0x00...d0Copied! |
Staking
Users who stake CRV tokens can earn trading fees generated by the Curve protocol. A community proposal introduced a 50% administrative fee on all trading fees, which is distributed among veCRV holders. These fees are used to purchase 3CRV, the LP token for the TriPool, and are subsequently distributed to veCRV holders.
Boosting
CRV token holders can enhance their rewards by providing liquidity. By vote locking CRV tokens, users gain voting power and can actively participate in the DAO's decision-making process. This mechanism allows them to earn a boost of up to 2.5 times on the liquidity they contribute to the Curve platform.
Voting
Once CRV holders vote-lock their veCRV tokens, they can participate in voting on various DAO proposals and pool parameters. This voting capability gives them influence over the DAO's decisions and future directions.
Tokenomics
Initial supply
The initial distribution was approximately 1.3 billion CRV tokens, accounting for about 43% of the total supply. Five percent of the tokens were allocated to pre-CRV liquidity providers, with a one-year vesting period. Shareholders, including the team and investors, received 30% of the tokens with vesting periods ranging from two to four years. Three percent was set aside for employees, with a two-year vesting period, and an additional 5% was reserved for the community. At launch, there was no circulating supply, and the initial release rate was estimated at around 2 million CRV tokens per day.
Supply distribution
- Liquidity Providers: 62% of the total supply, with 5% allocated to pre-CRV liquidity providers with a one-year vesting period.
- Shareholders (team and investors): 30% of both the total and initial supply, with vesting periods of two to four years.
- Employees: 3% of both the total and initial supply, with a two-year vesting period.
- Community Reserve: 5% of both the total and initial supply.