Glossary

The market value if every single token in the max supply were already circulating. Formula: max supply × current price. Tells you the "ceiling" market cap.

Current circulating supply × current price. Reflects what the market values the live, tradable portion of the token at right now.

Number of tokens that have ever been minted, minus any burned. Includes locked tokens.

The hard cap , the highest number of tokens that can ever exist. Bitcoin's is 21M. Some tokens have no cap (uncapped).

Tokens that are actually live and tradable in the market right now. Excludes locked, vesting, treasury, and team allocations.

A schedule that gradually releases (unlocks) tokens to recipients over time, instead of giving everything at once. Used to align long-term incentives.

An initial waiting period during which no tokens unlock. After the cliff ends, tokens start releasing. Example: 12-month cliff = nothing for first year, then unlock begins.

After the cliff, tokens release in equal portions over time (per day, week, or month) instead of all at once.

A period during which tokens cannot be sold or transferred. Common for team, advisor, and private-sale allocations.

The full economic design of a token: total supply, distribution, vesting, utility, and how value flows. A clean tokenomics is a key factor in listing decisions.

The moment the token is first generated and made live on-chain. Usually coincides with the first public availability.

The phase before TGE: token is not live yet, but the project is already raising, building community, and preparing the launch.

A platform that helps new projects launch tokens to the public, often with vetting, allocation, and marketing support. Listing on a launchpad gives early-stage exposure.

Stake an existing token to earn the new project's tokens for free during a launch period. Different from buying , you keep your staked tokens.

The token is listed for spot trading without a special launch program (no launchpad, no launchpool). Simplest path.

A market for trading tokens before the official TGE , usually OTC or futures-style. Examples: Whales Market, Aevo points/pre-launch.

An exchange operated by a company that custodies user funds and matches orders. Examples: Binance, OKX, Bybit, Ecobit.

An on-chain exchange where users trade peer-to-peer via smart contracts. Examples: Uniswap, PancakeSwap, Raydium.

The total order-book volume within ±2% of the current price (one side). Used to measure liquidity. Higher = better liquidity.

On a DEX, the total value of paired tokens in the liquidity pool (e.g., USDC + your token). Higher pool = lower slippage.

The price difference between when you place a trade and when it actually executes. Lower liquidity = higher slippage.

A party that places both buy and sell orders on the order book, providing liquidity. For listing, exchanges expect projects to engage one. Examples: GSR, Wintermute, Flowdesk.

The fungible token standard on Ethereum and EVM-compatible chains. Most stablecoins and DeFi tokens follow this standard.

BNB Chain's equivalent of ERC-20. Same interface, just on BNB Chain instead of Ethereum.

Solana's token standard, equivalent to ERC-20 but on Solana.

The live, production blockchain network. Real value, real transactions. Opposite of Testnet.

A test network where developers try things without using real money. Tokens have no value here.

Financial services (lending, trading, derivatives, etc.) running on blockchain via smart contracts, without traditional banks.

Game + DeFi. On-chain games where in-game assets are NFTs/tokens that can be traded for real value (P2E = Play-to-Earn).

Tokenizing off-chain assets (real estate, gold, T-bills, art) to bring them on-chain and make them tradable as tokens.

Networks where contributors run physical hardware (storage, GPU, wireless, sensors) and earn token rewards. Examples: Helium, Filecoin, Render.

Social media + tokens. On-chain social platforms where engagement, content, or influence can be tokenized.

A trusted voice in the crypto community (Twitter, YouTube, TikTok). Many projects do a "KOL round" , selling tokens to KOLs at a discount in exchange for promotion.

The earliest investment round, usually before the product is built. Investors take the highest risk and typically get the best price.

An investment round bringing in partners that add strategic value beyond money , exchanges, funds with networks, MMs, infra providers, etc.

A security review of smart contract code by a specialized firm. Required by most exchanges. Common firms: CertiK, SlowMist, PeckShield, Halborn, Trail of Bits.

A short presentation (~10-20 slides) summarizing the project: problem, solution, team, traction, tokenomics, roadmap. Used for fundraising and listings.

A longer technical document explaining the project in detail: architecture, tokenomics, governance, math, etc. Often published as a PDF or GitBook.

How many unique users actually use the product per day or per month. A core traction metric.