Ethereum scaling protocol Optimism is gearing up for a scheduled token unlock scheduled for May 31.
Thus, over 386 million OP tokens, worth over $587 million at the current price, will be released, representing 9% of the total supply.
- The upcoming event also marks the first unlock for major contributors and investors, which is expected exactly one year after the launch of the native token.
Optimism will unlock 9% of the total $OP deliver tomorrow
This is the 1st release for major contributors and investors
At current token price, potential selling pressure ~$600m pic.twitter.com/g7sg1vXMkM
— Token Terminal (@tokenterminal) May 29, 2023
- Optimism’s second major airdrop went live on February 9 this year, during which it distributed over 11 million OP tokens to 307,000 unique addresses. The OP’s price plummeted shortly after the fact.
- The influx of tokens into the open market this time around could lead to increased selling pressure and also trigger a potential downward price move.
- It is also important to note that early OP investors are currently sitting on sizable gains. Therefore, if this cohort of holders starts unloading their tokens for quick gains, such a move could further contribute to selling pressure.
- OP is already trading under tremendous pressure and is down more than 30% in the past month. Ahead of the event, OP slid to $1.52 after falling more than 6% in the past 24 hours, dragging the asset to a four-month low.
- The scaling protocol’s TVL has also seen a 21% decline since setting an all-time high of $2.18 billion in mid-April to $1.72 billion currently.
- Despite these setbacks, Optimism’s outmoded its rival Arbitrum in terms of revenue generation this month.
- Meanwhile, Optimism is set to undergo its highly anticipated Bedrock upgrade on June 6 at a time when competition in the Layer 2 space has intensified. The move should result in lower transaction fees, greater network security, and better compatibility with Ethereum.
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