Token Emission and Distribution Calculation

Calculating Token Emission and Distribution

Calculating emission and distribution is a technical document that converts strategic tokenomics decisions into concrete numbers: how many tokens will be in circulation each month, when unlocks occur, what circulating supply to expect by listing.

Distribution Structure

Standard structure for utility/governance token:

Total Supply: 1,000,000,000 (1B tokens)

Team:              150,000,000  (15%)  → 12M cliff + 36M linear vesting
Investors (Seed):  100,000,000  (10%)  → 6M cliff + 24M linear vesting
Investors (A):      80,000,000   (8%)  → 3M cliff + 18M linear vesting
Public Sale / IDO:  50,000,000   (5%)  → 10-20% TGE unlock + 6-12M vesting
Ecosystem Fund:    300,000,000  (30%)  → 48M linear release
Treasury:          200,000,000  (20%)  → DAO controlled, multi-year
Liquidity:          80,000,000   (8%)  → 100% TGE for initial liquidity
Advisors:           40,000,000   (4%)  → 6M cliff + 18M linear

Calculating Vesting Schedules

import pandas as pd
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

def calculate_vesting(
    amount: float,
    cliff_months: int,
    vesting_months: int,
    tge_percent: float = 0,
    tge_date: datetime = None
) -> pd.DataFrame:
    
    records = []
    tge = tge_date or datetime.now()
    
    # TGE unlock
    if tge_percent > 0:
        records.append({
            "month": 0,
            "date": tge,
            "unlocked": amount * tge_percent / 100,
            "cumulative_percent": tge_percent
        })
    
    # After cliff — linear vesting
    monthly_unlock = amount * (1 - tge_percent / 100) / vesting_months
    
    for month in range(1, cliff_months + vesting_months + 1):
        date = tge + timedelta(days=30 * month)
        
        if month <= cliff_months:
            unlocked = 0  # cliff period
        else:
            unlocked = monthly_unlock
        
        cumulative = (tge_percent + 
                     (1 - tge_percent/100) * 100 * 
                     max(0, month - cliff_months) / vesting_months)
        
        records.append({
            "month": month,
            "date": date,
            "unlocked": unlocked,
            "cumulative_percent": min(100, cumulative)
        })
    
    return pd.DataFrame(records)

# Example calculation
team_vesting = calculate_vesting(
    amount=150_000_000,
    cliff_months=12,
    vesting_months=36,
    tge_percent=0,
    tge_date=datetime(2024, 6, 1)
)

Circulating Supply Projection

Key chart for investors — cumulative circulating supply:

Investors look at: how much supply hits the market immediately (TGE unlock), when is the first major unlock (dump potential), how long supply grows (inflation).

Signals for Model Revision

• TGE circulating supply > 20% of total supply — significant selling pressure at listing
• Team + insiders > 40% — centralization risk and confidence issues
• Too fast ecosystem release — no incentive to hold token long-term
• Ecosystem released "at team discretion" without governance — centralized risk

Calculating emission and distribution: 1-2 weeks. Includes Excel/Python model with monthly breakdown, unlock schedule visualization, and selling pressure analysis.