EigenLayer to Launch EIGEN Token and Conduct ‘Stakedrop’

The restaking protocol EigenLayer is set to launch its native EIGEN token in May, with 15% of the total supply to be distributed among those who have staked assets on the platform.

Introducing the Eigen Foundation, EIGEN token, and Season 1 Stakedrop! pic.twitter.com/lxEVSbRfVB

— Eigen Foundation (@eigenfoundation) April 29, 2024

According to the announcement, the token will be issued by the independent non-profit Eigen Foundation.

At launch, the total circulating supply of EIGEN will be 1.67 billion. The foundation has allocated 45% of the tokens to the community, including:

• for the “stakedrop” — 15%;
• community initiatives — 15%;
• ecosystem development — 15%.

Project investors will receive 29.5% of EIGEN, while early participants will be allocated 25.5%. Recipients will undergo a three-year vesting period with a monthly release of 4% of the tokens.

EigenLayer has also released a whitepaper detailing the token’s structure and its integration into the ecosystem.

The community distribution, referred to by developers as a “stakedrop,” will occur over several seasons. In the first season, the foundation will distribute 5% of EIGEN based on a snapshot of activity taken on March 15.

Claims will begin on May 10, with the second phase starting a month later.

The reward is calculated linearly, based on the amount of staked ETH and the duration of the stake.

According to the Dune dashboard, the largest independent staker on EigenLayer is identified as the address of the Tron founder Justin Sun’s team. The wallet is set to receive over 2 billion EIGEN.

Alongside the token, developers announced an intersubjective forking security system. This mechanism is designed to address errors from malicious behavior that cannot be immediately detected in the network, such as data concealment in oracles built on EigenLayer.

On April 9, the project team launched the main restaking platform and a beta version of the EigenDA data availability layer on the Ethereum mainnet.

Previously, experts examined the impact of restaking on Ethereum’s on-chain metrics.

Despite the service’s high popularity, DEX developer 3Jane, known as Chudnov, warned of a potential yield crisis for EigenLayer.