As we gradually move to our new tokenomic model, the first use-case for vePERP will be to overhaul the referral reward program!
As the first step for phasing out the first iteration of staking and moving to a veToken model (which will be rolled out over several stages), we’ll be distributing referral rewards as vePERP tokens on Optimism in place of mainnet PERP tokens.
Effective as of August 8th, 2022, referral rewards will be paid out as vePERP. Another important change to the referral program: a non-zero amount of PERP must be locked for at least 4 weeks here to claim any rewards.
Everything else regarding the referral program will remain the same as before, where the rewards you receive will depend on how much staked PERP (sPERP) you hold. At a later stage, the referral program will utilize vePERP for determining the tiers and rewards.
How to Claim vePERP Rewards
Start claiming referral rewards as vePERP by locking PERP!
Locking PERP
Visit the tokenomics page, connect your wallet and click on “Lock”.
The first step is to approve access to your PERP for the locking contract. After clicking on “Lock” from the tokenomics page, you’ll see the following pop-up:
After confirming the transaction and granting approval for the locker contract, you’ll then be able to enter the amount of PERP you want to lock and select the expiry in weeks. Click on “Lock PERP” and confirm the transaction in your wallet.
Note that you must lock for at least 4 weeks to claim any referral rewards!
After locking some tokens, you can only lock more PERP or extend the duration. There’s no partial locking, so all of your tokens will have the same time lock.
If you try to claim your referral rewards without locking any PERP, you’ll be prompted to lock some tokens before claiming. A faucet will provide 0.10 PERP for free so you can claim your rewards right away.
Once the lock expires, you cannot extend the expiry or lock more tokens without unlocking first. At expiry, click on “Unlock PERP” button, confirm the transaction in your wallet and then you can lock again (for at least 4 weeks) to be able to claim your rewards.
Extending the Lock
If you already have locked PERP, but do not meet the minimum requirement for the lock time, head over to the locker and extend the lock time so that it is 4 weeks or higher.
For example, if you have PERP which is currently locked for 1 week, you’ll need to extend the lock by another 3 weeks to meet the minimum requirement for referral rewards.
If you try to claim referral rewards when your lock time is less than 4 weeks, you’ll be prompted to extend the lock.
The lock time can also be extended from the tokenomics page. Click on the “+” symbol on the right-hand side, next to the date that shows the expiry date.
The tokenomics page displays when your PERP is locked through until and vePERP rewards are claimable when the countdown timer displays 4 weeks (or more), i.e., “locked through (4w0d)”. You can hover over the countdown timer to see the exact duration.
If your PERP is currently locked for 1 week, you can extend it by 3 weeks by using the slider, as shown below:
Once the lock time is up, you cannot lock more PERP or extend it. In this case, you’ll have to unlock and then lock again.
Claiming vePERP Rewards
Once you have locked some PERP for at least 4 weeks, the vePERP rewards can be claimed after they are paid out on each Monday.
Underneath “Your Rewards”, you’ll see the amount of locked PERP you have earned as referral rewards and the “Claim” button:
Once you click the “Claim” button, you’ll see something like this:
Check all of the week’s rewards that you want to claim. Once you click on the “Claim PERP” button at the bottom, sign the transaction and your locked PERP balance will be credited with the rewards claimed.
Note that only 10 weeks worth of rewards can be claimed at once to ensure that the transactions never hit the gas limit of a block.
The vePERP tokens that are earned as rewards will be locked for the same amount of time as your locked PERP. For example, if your time lock is 4 weeks, then the vePERP rewards will also be locked for the same amount of time.
When returning the tokenomics page, the balance of locked PERP will have increased. Locked PERP is shown on the UI for simplicity, as the amount of vePERP decays over time (similar to other veToken models) depending on the lock duration. For example, 100 locked PERP for a maximum lock time of 52 weeks returns 400 vePERP, which declines over time to eventually reach 100 vePERP at the moment the lock expires.
The Future of vePERP
We have got exciting plans for vePERP and we are just getting started, with the overhaul to our referral rewards being just the first step.
Find out more about the next steps for vePERP here.
At a later stage, USDC fee sharing will be introduced, meaning vePERP holders can earn a share of the trading fees generated by Perpetual Protocol. Once the insurance fund hits a certain threshold, 10% of all trading fees will start to accrue to vePERP holders.