LayerZero and Kaito Are Both Unlocking Tokens on May 20 Adding Over 40 Million Dollars in New Supply

[mendez]

Two notable projects are releasing new token supply on the same day this week. LayerZero, the interoperability protocol that enables cross-chain communication between blockchains without relying on traditional bridging models, will unlock 25.71 million ZRO tokens on May 20, representing 5.07% of the released supply and valued at approximately $32.65 million. The allocation breaks down as 13.42 million tokens going to strategic partners, 10.63 million to core contributors, and 1.67 million covering tokens repurchased by the team. Core contributors and strategic partners receiving unlocked tokens are among the cohorts most likely to introduce selling pressure, as these recipients often have cost bases far below current market prices.

On the same day, Kaito, the AI-powered Web3 information platform that aggregates and analyzes crypto market data from social media, governance forums, and news sources, will unlock 17.6 million KAITO tokens representing 4.7% of its released supply, valued at around $8.58 million. The breakdown includes 7.16 million tokens for ecosystem and network growth, 6.94 million for core contributions, 2.31 million for early backers, and 1.19 million for the foundation. Early backers receiving unlocked tokens are typically among the most significant sources of sell pressure given their early entry prices, though the relatively modest size of the Kaito unlock limits its potential market impact compared to the larger releases happening elsewhere in the same week.

[bonk]

$32.65M LayerZero unlock being meaningfully larger market impact than $8.58M Kaito release on same day