The Nolus blockchain is run by a network of validators, contributors and infrastructure providers. NLS is the token at the centre of it: it pays for network activity, secures the chain, and gives holders a say in how the protocol develops.
Utility of the NLS token
NLS supports four core functions.
Transaction and network fees
NLS is used to pay transaction and network fees, which pass from users to the validators securing the network.
Governance participation
NLS holders take part in protocol governance. By staking NLS, they can vote on proposals ranging from parameter changes to protocol upgrades.
Incentivizing decentralization
NLS powers the network's Proof-of-Stake consensus. Validators receive NLS rewards in line with the defined network parameters.
Rewarding ecosystem contributors
NLS is also used to reward contributors who help the network grow.
Value accrual mechanisms
Two mechanisms tie protocol activity back to the token.
NLS token buyback
Revenue from interest-bearing margin positions covers the running costs of the Nolus ecosystem, and the fees the protocol earns are collected by the protocol treasury. Past protocol revenue funded buybacks of NLS: those tokens were removed from circulation and are held in a reserve, which governance can allocate to approved initiatives. No buyback runs automatically today.
Fee abstraction and staking rewards
A fee abstraction mechanism lets users pay fees on the Nolus network in any of the supported assets (NLS, cbBTC, HYPE, SOL, USDC, USDC_NOBLE and wETH), so there is no need to hold NLS or convert assets first. The fees collected this way are distributed to delegators as staking rewards.
Structure and allocation
Fifteen percent of the total token supply is allocated to staking rewards for validators and delegators. At the end of the first operational month, an initial 2.5% of the staking pool is released. Each month after that in the first year, the release percentage decreases by 0.05 p.p. month over month. In later years the reduction steps down further: 0.04 p.p. in year two, 0.03 p.p. in year three, 0.02 p.p. in year four, and 0.015 p.p. through years five to seven. From year eight the decrease is 0.0125 p.p., staying at that rate until the end of year ten.
The NLS inflation model originally followed a high-to-low emission curve over ten years, starting high and declining quickly over the first eight years before levelling off. With the passing of vote #163, the community accepted a smoother curve.
Under the current model, fewer tokens enter circulation in the early stages and emission rates increase gradually over the remaining 8.5 years. This aligns inflation more closely with ecosystem growth, so more tokens become available as the network matures. You can explore the revised curve on WolframAlpha.
Data availability
On-chain, real-time tokenomics data for NLS is public at tokenomist.ai/nolus, including circulating supply, staking participation, reward emissions, treasury inflows and value accrual to the protocol.
Where NLS lives
Network | How NLS appears there |
Nolus | The native token. Staking, rewards and governance all happen here. |
Solana | A transferred version of the same token, created when NLS is moved across the protocol's transfer channel and redeemed when it is sent back. It trades on Solana exchanges such as Raydium and Jupiter, and Jupiter marks it as verified. |
NLS held on Solana is the same value, but it is not staked and carries no voting power. To stake NLS or vote with it, move it into your Nolus account with Fund first; it lands there as native NLS, ready to stake.
Several unrelated tokens use the NLS ticker on Solana. The Nolus app recognises only the NLS issued through the protocol's transfer channel, which is the one Jupiter marks as verified, so look the token up on Jupiter and check for the badge, and confirm through the Official Nolus Channels before buying anywhere new.