💰AINC Tokenomics
Overview
AINC is the native incentive token of Ascend Lend, a fixed-supply, deflationary asset designed to align protocol usage, long-term staking, and decentralized governance.
With a total supply of 1,000,000,000 AINC, the token is distributed exclusively to lenders and borrowers who provide liquidity and demand to Ascend Lend markets. Emissions are governed by a decaying schedule, and real protocol revenue is used to buy and burn AINC or redistribute it to veAINC holders.
Token Allocation
Lender & Borrower Incentives
50.0%
500,000,000 AINC
Distributed via emissions to active users
Development
8.0%
80,000,000 AINC
Direct allocation to core contributors
Treasury / Ecosystem Fund
42.0%
420,000,000 AINC
Strategic
partnerships, liquidity
A portion of the Treasury has been allocated to the Ouroboros Universal Staking Module, a move designed to ignite adoption and growth across both ecosystems.
Emissions Schedule
AINC emission schedule over 10 years:
Initial Weekly Emission: 600,000 AINC
Decay Rate: 0.5% per week
Emission Period: 10 years (520 weeks)
Total Emitted: Gradually approaches ~1B AINC
Post-Emission Inflation: None — fixed supply, no minting beyond cap
Vault Performance Fee Split
The protocol captures revenue via a performance fee on lending activity (interest rate spread). This revenue is split as follows:
Buy & Burn AINC
50%
Permanently reduces circulating supply
veAINC Staker Rewards
50%
Used to buy AINC from the market, then distribute it to veAINC stakers as real yield
This creates a powerful cycle:
Protocol usage → Revenue → AINC demand → Supply compression
veAINC: Voting-Escrowed AINC
Users may lock AINC for up to 10 years to receive veAINC, a non-transferable governance and yield-bearing token.
Key Mechanics:
Lock Duration: Up to 10 years
⮕ The longer you lock, the more veAINC you receive. ⮕ 1 AINC locked for 10 years = 1 veAINC ⮕ Shorter durations receive proportionally less (e.g., 5 year = 0.5 veAINC)
Yield: AINC bought using performance fees is distributed to veAINC stakers
Longer locks = greater voting power + higher yield.
Gauge Voting System
veAINC holders govern the flow of emissions through a gauge voting system, choosing where AINC incentives are directed:
Market Selection
Vote to allocate emissions to specific lending or borrowing markets
Split Gauges
Allocate differently to lenders vs borrowers per asset
Weekly Vote Resets
Dynamically reallocate based on usage and market conditions
Governance Power
Shape the growth and priority of the protocol with emissions flow
This ensures incentives are aligned with value and usage.
Summary
AINC is more than just a reward, it’s the engine of growth, governance, and deflation. Protocol revenue is recycled into the ecosystem via buy and burns and AINC rewards for long-term stakers. With full alignment, AINC represents a sustainable, community-directed future for DeFi lending.
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