business@nmkr.io
NMKR Token 2023: Part 1 of 2 - Stake Pool Offering
Outlining the NMKR Token Strategy in 2023
Zürich
January 11, 2023
The NMKR Utility Tokens goal is to connect our ecosystem
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Introduction
2023 is shaping up to be a fantastic year for Cardano, the future of NFTs and NMKR. Last year we launched our utility token NMKR. In this article series, we will explore the future of NMKR.
This article is the first of a two-part series shedding light on the future of the NMKR Token:
1. NMKR Token 2023: Stake Pool Offering
2. NMKR Token 2023: Utility
Before we get started with the Stake Pool Offering, here’s a hint about the future utility of NMKR: Our approach to Software as a Service.
You’ll learn more very soon!
By introducing NMKR, our ecosystem & governance utility Token, we’ve created a way for all our products & projects to be bound tightly together. When writing our whitepaper and defining our tokenomics for it, one thing was always clear to us:
To make this Token successful, we need to spread it to as many people as possible.
Distribution Events
Because of this, we’ve thought carefully about our Token Distribution mechanisms. It all started with a Private Presale for larger investors, followed by a public ICO through LCX, our trusted Exchange Partner, eventually leading to a direct public sale via NMKR Pay for everyone not willing to register on the exchange.
All of these distribution events have been planned carefully to create a steady influx of NMKR Tokens without crashing the market due to any sudden influx of Tokens.
Let’s take a look at each Token event in detail:
1. ICO Presale: We brought in private investors, giving NMKR (our company) the liquidity it needed to grow.
Vesting: 12 months with daily unlock.
2. Public ICO: To open it up to the public in a legally compliant way, we had our lawyers create independent Statements that classify NMKR as a Utility Token and not a security and did an ICO with KYC through LCX, which saw a lot of interest from the Cardano community.
Vesting Period: 6 months with daily unlock.
3. Public Sale: To make NMKR as accessible as possible, we finished the sales with a public sale.
No Vesting
4. Airdrop: In order to spread the Token to as many users as possible, we’ve created a 3-Phase Airdrop.
5. Phase 1: Delegators to the NMKR or retired Babel pool & holders of any NFT minted using NMKR are eligible to receive some NMKR Tokens. This is a way of rewarding users of our system & community members.
6. Phase 2: Holders of Partner NFTs that NMKR has a close relationship with. The goal here is to widen the acceptance of NMKR in the overall NFT community.
7. Phase 3: Everyone having a Cardano Wallet will be able to claim a small amount of NMKR Tokens. Here the goal is really to reach as many people as possible.
8. Stake Pool Offering: The idea of the stake pool offering is to give users the opportunity to “invest” into NMKR without actually having to purchase the Token with the ADA they have.
Stake Pool Offering
So, now let's dig deeper into the topic of this article: The SPO.
In our initial Whitepaper, we have outlined the following:
“We also are allocating 4.8% as rewards for staking with the NFT-MAKER stake pool. Each month for 4 years, 0.1% will be distributed to delegates. These rewards will be distributed in size relative to the stake by each participant, a higher stake will mean a higher portion of the rewards in a similar style to Cardano Staking Rewards as a whole.”
Multiple difficulties arise with this initial plan, which is why in this article, we will be introducing a few alternatives, discussing them and explaining clearly why we’re choosing one option over the other.
Earlier last year, we were discussing the possibility of introducing a public vote using the NMKR Governance platform, but in order to focus our resources on improving our core products, we have decided to hold off until further notice.
We will be using the NMKR Governance platform more in the near future for relevant decisions in terms of product and future NMKR Utility. More about that in part 2 of this article series.
But first, let's define the questions that we want to answer in this blog post:
- How do we avoid an influx of Tokens on the market and having a big impact on the price?
- How can we ensure that delegators to the NMKR SPO receive enough rewards so that it's monetary viable for them to stake?
- Is it possible to create an SPO model that does not limit the potential price per token?
- How do we reward delegators that staked to NMKR before the SPO was officially launched?
- How can we ensure future funding for NMKR development using this ISPO?
Fixed or Variable Rewards
The first big topic that needs to be settled is if we should continue with the variable reward scheme that we’re currently using or we should switch to a fixed reward scheme instead. There are pros and cons to both of these options.
If we go with a variable reward, it will create an incentive for delegators to keep the pool as small as possible because you will effectively receive more NMKR per ADA delegated if the pool is smaller. This will create a particular reward sweet spot of saturation, where users will receive the amount of NMKR worth the exact same amount of ADA they’d receive if they staked on a regular pool. This hinders our ability to distribute the token to as many people as possible.
If we go with a fixed reward, we will essentially be limiting the price discovery of the Token because there will be a set ADA/NMKR ratio at which the Token is given out on the stake pool. We can work against this using multiple methods, one of them being a vesting period and the second one being the use of a previous price average instead of a fixed price from a certain date. A third method is the introduction of a possible multiplier for the stake pool offering, which we will be talking about in one of the next paragraphs.
So, we’ve made the decision that we’ll be switching to a fixed reward system. Each month this reward will be based on delegated ADA, the expected stake pool rewards in ADA of a 0% pool fee, divided by the average price of the Token in the previous month + a bonus of 15% to incentivize staking over purchasing NMKR Tokens with the ADA rewards.
Vesting
As mentioned in the previous paragraph, vesting is an effective way to prevent a price-discovery limitation for the Token when going with a fixed price.
As the NMKR token, we are proud to be a part of a project that is dedicated to the long-term success and growth of our community. In order to align the interests of our token holders with the goals of the project, we have settled on a 3-month vesting period for our token.
One of the main reasons for introducing this vesting period is to discourage short-term speculation and encourage long-term holding. By requiring our token holders to hold their tokens for a set period of time, we can ensure that our tokens are distributed among individuals who are genuinely interested in the success of our project rather than those who are just looking to make a quick profit.
Additionally, the vesting period also helps to stabilize the price of our token. By slowing the rate at which tokens enter the market, we can help to reduce volatility and stabilize the price. This, in turn, can attract more long-term investors who are looking for a stable investment.
Gamification and Incentivizing
In order to further incentivize participation in the stake pool offering, we will be introducing a multiplier-functionality for delegators. The way this works is through a 10 000 piece NFT collection that we will be offering before the official start of the ISPO and will keep offering during the period of the stake pool offering until it's sold out.
This NFT collection serves as a use-case of working as a multiplier of the NMKR Token Stakepool offering. The NFTs will be available for free as a reward to early delegators of the stake pool.
Everyone else will be able to purchase the NFTs for 60 ADA a piece.
The way it works is that by simply keeping the NFTs in your staking wallet, it will automatically multiply the rewards earned from staking the NMKR tokens. The more NFTs you have, the higher the multiplier effect on your staking rewards. Stacking these NFTs, meaning having a higher number of them, will result in even bigger rewards.
This collection is a way to drive engagement in the staking ecosystem, as well as recognizing and rewarding early adopters. The NFTs themselves also hold value as unique and limited digital assets, adding an extra layer of utility and value to token holders.
This NFT Collection will be called: NMKR Seaplane SPO NFTs and will feature a variety of unique seaplanes in NMKR style.
Minimum Staking Period
We have decided to implement a minimum 1-month staking period before delegators are eligible to receive rewards from the NMKR Stake pool offering. This decision was made with the goal of aligning the interests of delegators with the long-term growth and development of the NMKR ecosystem.
A 1-month staking period ensures that delegators are committed to the success of the project and the ecosystem rather than just seeking short-term gains. By requiring a minimum staking period, we can ensure that rewards are distributed among those who are genuinely interested in supporting the project and seeing it grow in the long run.
Additionally, by implementing a minimum staking period, we can also increase the security and stability of the stake pool. By having a larger number of long-term delegators, the stake pool will become less susceptible to fluctuations caused by short-term delegators coming and going.
Furthermore, it also aligns with the idea of providing a more attractive reward rate for staking compared to buying tokens on the open market and encouraging long term holding.
Rewards for previous delegators
The Stake Pool was first announced in February 2022. We never specified a date on when the Stake Pool Offering would begin. We also did not do any explicit marketing for the Stake Pool Offering.
Unfortunately, because of this lack of communication from our side, multiple of our community members decided to stake on the NMKR pool with the expectation of receiving NMKR Tokens.
We do see this as something falling into our field of responsibility, and first of all, would like to apologize for this.
Now, we need to figure out a way to reward early delegators while also not flooding the market with new NMKR Tokens, dropping the price massively for regular holders.
We will allocate 3 months worth of Tokens from our initial distribution plans (so 0.3% of all Token Supply) to delegators from 2022 based on how long they delegated to NMKR & how large their share of the pool was. These 3 months worth of Tokens will be distributed under a 6 month vesting period.
In addition, every delegator that delegated in 2022 will receive 1 NMKR Booster NFT.
Strategy in case of a fully saturated stake pool
We want to inform you that in the event that the NMKR Stake Pool becomes saturated and is unable to satisfy the demand, we may consider opening up a temporary new stake pool to accommodate the high demand. While this is not our preferred course of action, we want to ensure that all members of our community who are interested in participating in the stake pool offering have the opportunity to do so.
It is important to note that this temporary new stake pool will only be opened for the duration of the stake pool offering, and once the offering ends, the new stake pool will be closed down and all delegations will be transferred back to the main stake pool.
This approach allows us to ensure that everyone who is interested in participating in the stake pool offering has the opportunity to do so, without compromising the integrity and sustainability of the main stake pool. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and we will communicate clearly any updates about this situation if necessary.
We want to remind our community to stay updated with the latest information and follow our official channels for accurate and timely information about the stake pool offering.
Activity in NMKR Ecosystem
We are excited to start distributing the NMKR token in addition to the stake pool offering for participation in the NMKR NFT ecosystem. The goal of this plan is to incentivize the creation and trade of NFTs and in turn, increase the reach and utility of the NMKR token.
We will be distributing the NMKR token to those who mint and trade NFTs using our tools. The number of tokens received will be proportional to the number and value of NFTs minted and traded. This plan is meant to reward creativity and encourage the use of our tools, helping to build and grow the NMKR NFT ecosystem.
By distributing the token in this way, we hope to attract a wide range of participants and increase the overall adoption of the NMKR token in the NFT space. This is an exciting opportunity for the community to be a part of the NFT ecosystem using their NMKR tokens and helping shape the future of the platform.
NMKR Token Dashboard
We are excited to announce that we will be introducing an NMKR Token Dashboard to our ecosystem. This dashboard will give you an overview of your activity in the NMKR ecosystem, including your delegation, your holdings of NMKR Seaplane SPO NFTs, and the multiplier you receive from them. The dashboard will also provide an overview of the utilities of the token and how you can use it within the ecosystem.
The dashboard will also include a feature that will allow you to claim your eligible tokens, which means it will serve as a one-stop shop for all your staking-related needs. In addition to that, we will also have a stake pool offering calculator on the dashboard that will help you estimate your rewards and understand how different variables, such as the duration of staking, the number of tokens staked, etc., affect your rewards.
More detailed information about the features and functionalities of the NMKR Token Dashboard will be released in the second part of the article series, where we will go more in-depth on the technical aspects of the dashboard and how you can use it to optimize your experience within the ecosystem.
We believe this dashboard will provide added value to our community, and we are excited to see how it will enhance the overall user experience by making it more accessible and user-friendly to interact with the staking mechanism and manage your tokens and NFTs.
Incentive for Staking to the NMKR Stake Pool Offering
The idea behind the NMKR Stake pool offering is to provide a unique opportunity for our community to participate in the growth and development of the NMKR token. By staking your ADA with our stake pool, you are demonstrating your belief in the long-term positive price development of the token.
As a reward for your belief, we offer an attractive reward rate for our delegators, which means that by staking your ADA with us, you will receive more tokens in return than you would receive for buying tokens for the current ADA price on the market for the expected ADA return-rate from staking on a 0% stake pool. This creates an incentive for delegators to delegate their ADA to our stake pool rather than staking on other pools.
The stake pool acts as a way for our community to come together and collectively support the growth and development of the NMKR token. By participating in the stake pool, delegators are not only earning rewards, but they are also playing an active role in the growth and development of the token and its ecosystem.
Overall, our stake pool offering is a unique and rewarding opportunity for our community to support the long-term success of the NMKR token and gain an attractive return on investment.
Success for all interested parties
We believe that we have successfully balanced the interests of all parties involved with the NMKR Stake pool offering in terms of value gain. Our goal is to create a win-win situation for everyone involved, where all parties can benefit from the stake pool offering while ensuring that the current token holders are not negatively impacted.
For delegators, the stake pool offers an opportunity to earn a higher return on their investment than they would receive by holding or selling their tokens on the open market. This is achieved through the attractive reward rate that we offer for delegators without the risk of crashing the price for current token holders.
For the project, the stake pool generates additional revenue that can be used to finance the development of new features and utilities for the ecosystem, which will ultimately increase the token's adoption and value.
Finally, for the ecosystem, the stake pool acts as a way for our community to come together and support the growth and development of the NMKR token, helping to drive its adoption and create a sustainable ecosystem in the long term.
By balancing these different interests and creating a mutually beneficial situation for all parties involved while also taking into account not negatively impacting the current token holders, we believe that the stake pool offering will help to drive the growth and development of the NMKR ecosystem and increase the value of the token for all stakeholders.
Thank you for reading, and we wish you a wonderful day
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