ApeCoin, Aptos and Optimism set for $100 million in token unlocks this month

Quick Take

  • Optimism, ApeCoin and Aptos are set for the most significant token unlocks in September, worth more than a combined $100 million.
  • ApeCoin will see the largest increase in the circulating supply of its APE token at 11%, with Optimism’s OP and Aptos’s APT increasing by 3% and 2%, respectively.

Crypto projects Optimism, Aptos and ApeCoin are set for significant token unlocks this month, releasing more than a combined $100 million worth of tokens into circulating supply.

ApeCoin, the governance token of the ApeCoin DAO and connected to the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT community, will see the largest unlock, according to Token Unlocks. ApeCoin will release 40.6 million APE tokens on Sept. 17 — 11% of its circulating supply, worth $58.1 million. 

The majority ($38 million) of the unlocks will go to the project's launch contributors, with $10.5 million going to its treasury, $6 million to developer Yuga Labs and $3.2 million to its founder. The remaining $397,000 will go to charity.

Following the release of 15.6 million APE tokens ($22.3 million) at its last unlock in August, the price of APE fell around 16% from $1.80 to $1.51, according to CoinGecko data. It is currently trading at $1.43.

APE/USD price chart. Image: CoinGecko.

Optimism and Aptos unlock $59 million worth of tokens

Ethereum Layer 2 Optimism (OP Mainnet) is releasing 24.2 million OP tokens on Sept. 30. Representing 3% of its circulating supply, the unlock is currently worth $33.3 million. Some $17.6 million will go to core contributors, with $15.7 million set for investors.

The OP token is trading down 12% at $1.37 since Optimism's last unlock on Aug. 30 released the same amount of tokens. OP's circulating supply more than doubled at the end of May, seeing the token's price drop 25% before recovering.

OP/USD price chart. Image: CoinGecko.

Layer 1 blockchain Aptos rounds out the top three, releasing 4.5 million tokens on Sept. 12, equivalent to 2% of its circulating supply and worth $25.2 million. Around $17.8 million will go to the community, with $7.4 million allocated to the Aptos Foundation.

Aptos also released 4.5 million tokens in August. That unlock saw the APT token drop 23% from $7.20 to $5.51. APT is currently trading at $5.54.

APT/USD price chart. Image: CoinGecko.

In total, more than $175 million worth of tokens are set for release in September. Other notable unlocks this month include Sui ($17.4 million), dYdX ($14 million) and ImmutableX ($10.2 million).


© 2024 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

About Author

James Hunt is a reporter at The Block and writer of The Daily newsletter, keeping you up to speed on the latest crypto news every weekday. Prior to joining The Block in 2022, James spent four years as a freelance writer in the industry, contributing to both publications and crypto project content. James’ coverage spans everything from Bitcoin and Ethereum to Layer 2 scaling solutions, avant-garde DeFi protocols, evolving DAO governance structures, trending NFTs and memecoins, regulatory landscapes, crypto company deals and the latest market updates. You can get in touch with James on Telegram or 𝕏 via @humanjets or email him at [email protected].

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