Coin World reported:
Compiled by: Baishui,; Source: Zeta Foundation,
Solana DeFi derivative platform Zeta Markets announced that the ZEX airdrop collection will start at 18:00 on June 27, 2024, and the collection will end at 17:45 on September 25, 2024 (90 days after TGE). Any unclaimed tokens will be returned to the community through incentive measures and activities. Organize detailed information about the ZEX airdrop for readers.
I. Introduction of ZEX
ZEX is the native token of Zeta Markets, a derivatives protocol on Solana. The staking mechanism will allow users to stake ZEX, unlock governance rights, and additional incentive measures. The token economics and utility of ZEX are strategically designed to align the interests of multiple stakeholders with the overall goals of the protocol. This alignment not only empowers the ZEX community but also incentivizes active community participation in guiding the direction of the protocol.
II. ZEX Token Economics
Total token supply: 1,000,000,000
ZEX Token Allocation
The majority of the ZEX token supply (62.5%) is reserved for the community:
10% will be distributed through airdrops.
30% will be allocated for platform incentives, specifically for traders.
22.5% will be provided to the community treasury to support multi-year growth plans, including the Zeta creator and ambassador programs. The remaining 37.5% of the $ZEX token supply is reserved for contributors and investors, following a multi-year unlocking and vesting schedule.
III. Release Schedule
TGE Release Schedule
The following unlocks will occur during the TGE and the subsequent weeks:
Airdrops: The ZEX airdrop will be distributed in 2 rounds. 8% of the supply will be airdropped to TGE traders based on Z-Score. After launch, initial ZEX stakers will be eligible for additional airdrops (2% of the supply) distributed in the form of staked ZEX.
Incentives: Following the airdrop snapshot, the platform’s incentives for traders (30% over 90 months) will begin from Epoch 1. Refer to the incentives for full details.
Treasury: Simultaneously, community treasury (22.5% unlocked over 24 months) will support multi-year growth plans, including liquidity provisioning and the Zeta creator and ambassador programs.
Long-term Release Schedule
Core protocol contributors and investors will have longer lock-up periods.
Investors: Subject to a 1-year cliff and 2-year vesting period.
Contributors: Required to adhere to a 1-year cliff and 3-year vesting period.
This structure ensures that contributors and investors remain aligned with the long-term success of Zeta.
IV. Airdrop Mechanism
10% of the total ZEX token supply will be strategically allocated through airdrops to establish a broad base of stakeholders and guide a healthy governance ecosystem. This will be achieved by rewarding past participation in Zeta while encouraging long-term commitment by staking ZEX holders through additional allocations.
The airdrop will occur in two rounds.
Round 1 – Early users and the Solana ecosystem (8% of total supply)
Upon release, 8% of the total ZEX supply will be distributed to early users to recognize their contributions to the platform:
7% of the distribution will be specifically provided to traders based on Z-Score; this distribution does not include market makers.
1% of the distribution will be allocated as a bonus to traders belonging to major community partners within the Solana ecosystem.
This means that without active trading on Zeta, no one will receive ZEX.
Recognizing the critical role of our earliest supporters in Zeta’s success, OG (pre-Season 1) and Season 1 traders will receive loyalty boosts, with OG benefiting from larger boosts.
Round 2 – ZEX Stakers (2% of total supply)
After the token generation event, ZEX token holders will have the opportunity to stake their tokens for a flexible period to earn gZEX as a reward (see the Staking section below for more details).
In addition to staking rewards, early stakers will also be eligible for a second airdrop, equivalent to 2% of the total ZEX supply, distributed proportionally based on their shares in gZEX. The airdrop will be issued in the form of staked ZEX, released after a period of one epoch (i.e., 28 days) from TGE.
This approach aims to reward and incentivize community members who are committed to the project in the long term and dedicated to helping guide the protocol and its development.
Note: The second airdrop may involve locking mechanisms. More details will be announced in the coming weeks.
V. Token Utility
Staking: Since its launch, staking will be a key function of the token. Users will be able to stake ZEX for up to 4 years to unlock governance rights and additional incentive measures.
Governance: ZEX governs the Zeta protocol, allowing stakeholders to vote on-chain for the token economy on Solana. Over time, it will empower community members to propose, discuss, and vote on the future development of the protocol.
Incentives: A significant portion of the ZEX token supply is reserved as a reward mechanism for traders to incentivize liquidity and trading activity.
VI. Staking
Governance
Zeta’s governance framework is based on the innovative voting delegation model pioneered by Curve on Ethereum, introducing two new concepts. Firstly, stakers will receive exponentially higher rewards during the lock-up period, so more power will be allocated to those who stake for longer periods. Secondly, we introduce the gradual vesting of stake and the ability to unlock their tokens – providing users with more liquidity and limiting the supply shock to the ecosystem.
To achieve this, our token economics will have two components:
ZEX: Transferable SPL tokens (Solana Program Library, i.e., Solana’s equivalent of ERC-20 tokens), distributed to users through airdrops and incentive mechanisms for protocol usage.
gZEX: The staked version of ZEX, non-transferable. gZEX represents users’ long-term commitment, thus providing corresponding governance rights and enhanced incentive measures.
Calculating ZEX
Users will be able to stake ZEX to receive gZEX during a designated period (up to 4 years). The amount of gZEX received for staking ZEX will be determined by the locked ZEX token amount and the staking period, according to the following formula:
gZEX Locking
Managing gZEX
gZEX has two different states – locked and vested – allowing users to manage the lifecycle of their governance tokens and their benefits:
Locked state: Your gZEX balance and associated rights remain unchanged in this state.
Vested state: Your gZEX gradually unlocks, converting into withdrawable liquid $ZEX.
Boosting
Boosting is another significant benefit of staking ZEX. By holding gZEX, traders will be able to earn additional incentives, amplifying their rewards based on their gZEX holdings. The goal of boosting is to allocate greater rewards to traders who also demonstrate a long-term commitment to the protocol through staking and governance participation.
The user’s share in these additional rewards will be determined based on the user’s boosting score, calculated as follows:
Where the above score refers to the user’s score across the entire incentive program – such as their Z score.
VII. Incentives
The platform incentives program will launch immediately after the airdrop snapshot and will serve two key objectives. First, it will be a mechanism for gradually distributing token supply and governance rights to users. Second, it will play a critical role in the growth strategy, incentivizing traders and market makers to achieve optimal trading conditions on the exchange.
This approach rewards those who directly enhance protocol liquidity and activity and ensures alignment between token holders and the success of the protocol.
The proposed incentive allocation is 30% of the total ZEX supply, with the release rate designed to gradually decrease. The purpose of this gradual reduction is to align with the protocol’s transition towards self-sustainability and broader supply distribution.
Trader Incentives
Traders will receive rewards proportionate to their Z score achieved in each period. The Z-Score program will operate similarly to Seasons 1 and 2, but Z-Score will no longer accumulate across seasons. Instead, Z scores will be reset at the beginning of each new stage.
The ZEX tokens allocated to users at the end of each epoch will be calculated based on their individual Z score relative to the total Z score obtained by all epoch participants. The primary driver of the Z-Score is trading activity. Additionally, gZEX holders will benefit from additional incentives in the form of Boosting.
Market Maker Incentives
For each epoch, professional market makers will receive rewards for their role in creating optimal trading conditions on the exchange. The market maker program aims to incentivize various liquidity metrics to enhance the trading experience for users. For more details, please refer to the Maker Incentives Program.
