Emergent Outcomes of the veToken Model

[2311.17589] Emergent Outcomes of the veToken Model Skip to main content Search Submit Donate Log in Search arXiv Press Enter to search · Advanced search Computer Science > Computer Science and Game Theory arXiv:2311.17589 (cs) [Submitted on 29 Nov 2023 ( v1 ), last revised 15 Aug 2026 (this version, v2)] Title: Emergent Outcomes of the veToken Model Authors: Thomas Lloyd , Daire O'Broin , Martin Harrigan View a PDF of the paper titled Emergent Outcomes of the veToken Model, by Thomas Lloyd and Daire O'Broin and Martin Harrigan View PDF HTML (experimental) Abstract: Decentralised organisations use blockchains for governance: on-chain transactions allocate voting weight, publish proposals, cast votes, and enact the results. A key challenge is aligning the short-term outlook of pseudonymous voters with the long-term success of the organisation. The Vote-Escrowed Token (veToken) model attempts to resolve this tension by requiring voters to lock tokens of value for an extended period in exchange for voting weight. In this paper we describe the veToken model and analyse its emergent outcomes. We describe its implementation by Curve, a popular automated market maker for stablecoins, and the ecosystem of protocols built on top. We show that voting outcomes are strongly associated with the bribes set by higher-level protocols, and that the cost per vote varies depending on how it is acquired. The outcomes of the fortnightly votes held by Convex Finance closely track the distribution of bribes through voting markets such as Votium. Frax Finance, a stablecoin issuer, plays a central role even though it directly locks relatively few tokens with Curve; instead, it indirectly locks tokens through yield aggregators and purchases voting weight through voting markets. Although the veToken model in isolation is straightforward, it leads to complex and emergent outcomes. Decentralised organisations should consider these outcomes before adopting the model. Comments: 11 pages, 6 figures Subjects: Computer Science and Game Theory (cs.GT) ; Cryptography and Security (cs.CR) Cite as: arXiv:2311.17589 [cs.GT] (or arXiv:2311.17589v2 [cs.GT] for this version) https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2311.17589 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite Submission history From: Martin Harrigan [ view email ] [v1] Wed, 29 Nov 2023 12:33:45 UTC (2,204 KB) [v2] Sat, 15 Aug 2026 11:16:08 UTC (662 KB) Full-text links: Access Paper: View a PDF of the paper titled Emergent Outcomes of the veToken Model, by Thomas Lloyd and Daire O'Broin and Martin Harrigan View PDF HTML (experimental) TeX Source view license Current browse context: cs.GT < prev | next > new | recent | 2023-11 Change to browse by: cs cs.CR References & Citations NASA ADS Google Scholar Semantic Scholar export BibTeX citation Loading... BibTeX formatted citation × loading... Data provided by: Bookmark Bibliographic Tools Bibliographic and Citation Tools Bibliographic Explorer Toggle Bibliographic Explorer ( What is the Explorer? ) Connected Papers Toggle Connected Papers ( What is Connected Papers? ) Litmaps Toggle Litmaps ( What is Litmaps? ) scite.ai Toggle scite Smart Citations ( What are Smart Citations? ) Code, Data, Media Code, Data and Media Associated with this Article alphaXiv Toggle alphaXiv ( What is alphaXiv? ) Links to Code Toggle CatalyzeX Code Finder for Papers ( What is CatalyzeX? ) DagsHub Toggle DagsHub ( What is DagsHub? ) GotitPub Toggle Gotit.pub ( What is GotitPub? ) Huggingface Toggle Hugging Face ( What is Huggingface? ) ScienceCast Toggle ScienceCast ( What is ScienceCast? ) Demos Demos Replicate Toggle Replicate ( What is Replicate? ) Spaces Toggle Hugging Face Spaces ( What is Spaces? ) Spaces Toggle TXYZ.AI ( What is TXYZ.AI? ) Related Papers Recommenders and Search Tools Link to Influence Flower Influence Flower ( What are Influence Flowers? ) Core recommender toggle CORE Recommender ( What is CORE? ) Author Venue Institution Topic About arXivLabs arXivLabs: experimental projects with community collaborators arXivLabs is a framework that allows collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on our website. Both individuals and organizations that work with arXivLabs have embraced and accepted our values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only works with partners that adhere to them. Have an idea for a project that will add value for arXiv's community? Learn more about arXivLabs . Which authors of this paper are endorsers? | Disable MathJax ( What is MathJax? ) We gratefully acknowledge support from our major funders , member institutions , , and all contributors. About · Help · Contact · Subscribe · Copyright · Privacy · Accessibility · Operational Status (opens in new tab) Major funding support from

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