# Sablier Blog — Full Corpus
> Engineering, research, and announcements from the Sablier team.
Site: https://blog.sablier.com
Posts: 77
Each section below is one post, separated by `---`, including its frontmatter and full markdown body.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Managing onchain token distribution used to mean navigating contract ABIs,
calculating unlock schedules by hand, and copy-pasting deployment scripts or
using ve
ghostUuid: a900c5f6-e784-4241-bd17-9ff38b4ea9be
publishedAt: '2026-05-06'
slug: sablier-agent-skills-onchain-token-vesting-powered-by-ai
tags: []
title: 'Sablier Agent Skills: Onchain Token Vesting — Powered by AI'
updatedAt: '2026-05-06'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/03/feature-csv--1-.png
---
Managing onchain token distribution used to mean navigating contract ABIs, calculating unlock schedules by hand, and copy-pasting deployment scripts or using vesting UIs. With Sablier agent skills, you can do it all in plain English.
Sablier Agent Skills bring the full power of the Sablier Protocol, token vesting, payment streaming, and Merkle airdrops, to AI coding agents. Describe what you need, and the agent handles the rest: validating inputs, selecting the right contracts, and executing transactions onchain.
### What Are Agent Skills?
[Agent skills](https://agentskills.io) are structured instructions that give AI coding agents domain-specific capabilities. Instead of prompting a general-purpose model and hoping it gets the details right, skills encode protocol knowledge, guard rails, and execution logic directly.
The Sablier skills catalog ships four skills:
**Create Vesting Streams** — Set up fixed-schedule token vesting with linear unlocks, cliff periods, or tranched releases. Supports 27+ EVM chains and Solana.
_"Create a 4-year vesting stream with a 12-month cliff on Arbitrum for 0xABC..."_
**Create Payment Streams** — Open continuous payment streams with no end date. Ideal for vesting with top ups, and salaries.
_"Stream 1000 USDC per month on Base to 0xDEF..."_
**Create Merkle Airdrops** — Distribute tokens to thousands of recipients using gas-efficient Merkle trees. Supports instant claims, linear vesting, and tranched unlocks post-claim.
_"Create an instant Merkle airdrop on Ethereum from this CSV."_
**Protocol Context** — An advisory skill that explains how Sablier works, compares modules, and helps you pick the right product for your use case.
_"Explain the difference between Lockup, Flow, and Airdrops."_
### How It Works
Install the full catalog with a single command:
```text
npx skills add sablier-labs/sablier-skills
```
Or install only the skill you need:
```text
npx skills add sablier-labs/sablier-skills --skill sablier-create-vesting
```
Once installed, your agent automatically routes requests to the right skill. Ask it to create a vesting schedule, and it will:
1. Confirm the right Sablier module for your use case
2. Ask for any missing details — chain, token address, schedule, recipients
3. Open the browser to let you sign the transaction using your extension of choice (e.g. MetaMask)
4. Execute the onchain transaction on your behalf
No Solidity required. No scripts to maintain.
### Built-In Guard Rails
The skills don't just execute blindly. They validate inputs, flag unsupported features before wasting gas, and guide you through decisions like campaign type selection or funding timing.
If something doesn't fit, say, you're trying to vest a native token, the agent tells you to wrap it first rather than failing silently.
### Who Is This For?
- **COOs setting up contributor vesting** who want to skip the deployment boilerplate
- **Treasury managers distributing tokens** to large recipient sets via airdrops
- **CFOs running onchain payroll** with continuous token streams
- **Developers exploring Sablier** who want protocol guidance without digging through docs
### Open Source
Sablier Agent Skills are open source under the MIT license. Contributions, issues, and feedback are welcome on [GitHub](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier-skills).
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Sablier airdrops now have a billing model, making them more flexible than
ever. When you create an airdrop campaign on Sablier, you can now sponsor the
entire c
ghostUuid: d4c78d4c-f5aa-4550-9398-1476c23cd2b1
publishedAt: '2026-04-10'
slug: airdrop-billing-is-live
tags: []
title: Airdrop Billing Is Live
updatedAt: '2026-04-10'
featureImage: >-
/content/images/2026/04/data-src-image-af8e5036-a67c-44f4-9246-e7566d4676c1-1.png
---
Sablier airdrops now have a billing model, making them more flexible than ever.
When you create an airdrop campaign on Sablier, you can now sponsor the entire campaign upfront. You pre-pay for every recipient’s claim fees and their fees are waived. No half-measures, the full campaign is covered in a single transaction.
### How It Works
1. Open the Buy Credits modal in the [Sablier app](https://app.sablier.com/billing?open=buy-credits)
2. Select Airdrop campaign
3. Choose the campaign you want to sponsor and the payment chain
4. Pay with USDC — one transaction covers all recipients
Once a campaign is sponsored, anyone claiming from it pays zero protocol fees. Only gas.
### Why Pre-Pay?
Airdrops are about distribution. If recipients hit a fee wall at the point of claim, some won't bother, especially for smaller allocations. By shifting the cost to the campaign creator, every recipient gets a clean claiming experience.
This also simplifies accounting. One transaction, one receipt, one line item. The credit history in the app tracks every purchase with the cost, chain, date, and onchain transaction hash.
### Pricing
Campaign sponsorship uses volume-based pricing with an exponential decay discount:
- **First 500 recipients**: flat rate of $1.99 per claim
- **501–50,000 recipients**: the per-claim cost decreases following a power-law curve
- **Beyond 50,000 recipients**: each additional claim costs $0.10
The larger your campaign, the lower your average cost per recipient. A few examples:
| Recipients | Total cost | Avg. per claim |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 100 | $199.00 | $1.99 |
| 500 | $995.00 | $1.99 |
| 1,000 | $1175.14 | ~$1.18 |
| 5,000 | $1881 | ~$0.38 |
| 10,000 | $2518.01 | ~$0.25 |
| 50,000 | $6035.13 | ~$0.12 |
| 100,000 | $11035.13 | ~$0.11 |
Note: individual claim fees (for non-sponsored campaigns) are dynamic: 20% of the claimed token value, floored at $0.05 and capped at $1.99.
Planning a large-scale airdrop? [Reach out](https://forms.gle/8r7iWTqXJCnxd6rJ7), we offer personalized pricing for high-volume campaigns.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Pendle Principal Tokens hold billions in deterministic, asset-backed fixed
yield. The problem: none of it is usable until maturity. The yield exists, but
it doe
ghostUuid: 2694f479-95d3-4e38-aed3-2dfc8123abb0
publishedAt: '2026-03-27'
slug: turning-fixed-yield-into-collateral-with-sablier-streams
tags: []
title: Turning Fixed Yield Into Collateral With Sablier Streams
updatedAt: '2026-03-27'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/03/Partnership.png
---
Pendle Principal Tokens hold billions in deterministic, asset-backed fixed yield. The problem: none of it is usable until maturity. The yield exists, but it doesn't have a form you can use.
[OVRFLO](https://overflow.finance/) changes that. And Sablier streams are the primitive that makes it work.
## The Protocol
OVRFLO accepts Pendle Principal Tokens and produces two things:
1. **Liquid OVRFLO tokens:** returned immediately, representing your principal
2. **A Sablier stream NFT:** delivering your fixed yield over time until PT maturity
That stream NFT is the innovation. It's a non-cancellable, transferable, deterministic cash-flow instrument. You can hold it, sell it, or borrow against it.
Fixed yield is now collateral.
## How It Works
Say you buy 100 PT-stETH at 0.95 ETH each with a one-year maturity. That's 95 ETH for a claim worth 100 ETH at maturity.
Deposit them into OVRFLO:
- You receive 95 OVRFLO tokens immediately: your principal, liquid and usable
- The remaining 5 ETH of yield becomes a Sablier stream NFT, paying out tokens on a fixed schedule matching PT maturity
Your yield is now a standalone instrument. The stream pays whether you hold it or someone else does.
## Why Sablier
OVRFLO needed a streaming primitive with specific properties:
- **Non-cancellable:** the yield must flow regardless of what happens to the depositor
- **Transferable:** the stream NFT must be sellable and usable as collateral
- **Deterministic:** any protocol must be able to evaluate and price the cash flow
- **Composable:** the instrument must work with lending protocols, DEXs, and structured products
> OVRFLO needed a streaming primitive that was non-cancellable, transferable, deterministic and battle tested. Sablier was the only protocol that delivered all of these. — [ayeslick](https://x.com/aye_shilck), Founder at OVRFLO
Sablier's lockup linear streams deliver all of this. Each deposit creates a stream via createWithDurations() with zero cliff and duration calculated as expiry - block.timestamp. The stream NFT is owned by the user and can be withdrawn from or transferred at any time.
## The House With No Mortgage
Here's what this enables:
1. Flash loan $5M worth of ETH (free, repaid same transaction)
2. Buy Pendle PTs at 10% annual yield — face value ~$5.5M at maturity
3. Deposit PTs into OVRFLO
4. Receive $5M in OVRFLO tokens immediately + a Sablier stream NFT worth ~$500k
5. Sell the OVRFLO tokens to repay the flash loan
6. Sell the stream NFT for ~$490k
7. Buy a $450k house. Cash. No mortgage. No bank. No interest. $40k left over.
The buyer of the stream NFT gets a deterministic cash-flow instrument paying $500k over 12 months for $490k. Both sides win. No intermediary required.
## A New Collateral Type
Traditional DeFi lending asks: what if the price drops? Liquidation engines, health factors, overcollateralization ratios, all exist to manage price volatility.
Stream-backed lending asks a different question: does the cash flow cover the loan?
A lender evaluating a Sablier stream NFT from OVRFLO doesn't need price oracles or liquidation thresholds. The payments over the loan term either exceed the debt or they don't. The math works at origination.
The loan services itself. The stream pays the lender directly on schedule. No position management. No liquidation risk from market movements.
## What This Means for Sablier
OVRFLO demonstrates what happens when streaming becomes infrastructure rather than just a payment method:
- **Streams as collateral:** not just cash flow, but a pledgeable asset
- **Streams as instruments:** tradeable, priceable, composable
- **Streams as primitives:** building blocks for protocols we haven't imagined yet
The Sablier stream NFT isn't a receipt. It's a financial instrument with its own creditworthiness.
## Try OVRFLO
OVRFLO is currently in beta. Visit [OVRFLO's website](https://overflow.finance) to join the waitlist and read the documentation.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Price-lock ETH at your target. No date guessing, only price execution. What
Are Bobs? Bobs are onchain ETH timelocks with a market trigger. Instead of
unlocking
ghostUuid: 453d1bf6-4f6d-45d2-b01f-89474fe6dbab
publishedAt: '2026-03-26'
slug: introducing-bobs-price-gated-eth-timelocks
tags: []
title: 'Introducing Bobs: Price-Gated ETH Timelocks'
updatedAt: '2026-03-26'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/03/introducing-bob.png
---
Price-lock ETH at your target. No date guessing, only price execution.
## What Are Bobs?
[Bobs](https://bob.sablier.com) are onchain ETH timelocks with a market trigger. Instead of unlocking at a date, they unlock when price crosses a pre-selected target.
You pick one of the available unlock prices, deposit ETH into the pool, and permissionless smart contracts enforce the unlock condition (we use Chainlink oracles).
Think of it as a conviction trade, enforced by the Ethereum blockchain.
## How It Works
1. **Create a price-gated timelock** — Deposit ETH into a Bob pool and choose a target unlock price.
2. **Set up email notifications** — set up email notifications via the Sablier Bob UI to receive an email update when the Chainlink oracle feed updates the ETH price.
3. **Exit when the market hits** — you can unlock your position automatically once the target is reached.
Funds remain locked until the target condition is satisfied onchain.
## The Bob Vault Lifecycle
Each Bob pool operates as an immutable vault with four phases:
### 1\. Vault context
Sablier deploys a Bob vault with immutable settlement conditions tied to a Chainlink oracle feed. The target price and expiry date are set at creation and cannot be changed.
### 2\. Deposit + mint
You deposit the token (e.g. ETH), Bob mints vault shares, and your position follows share accounting until settlement.
### 3\. Settle + redeem
Settlement happens when the target price is hit or the expiry date is reached. Afterwards, redemptions are available for all share-holders.
## Fee Model
Redeem includes a native execution fee. If an adapter yield exists (e.g., Lido staking), Bob applies a vault yield fee only on positive staking yield — Sablier takes a cut from staking rewards as service compensation, not from your principal.
All deposits in ETH vaults are deposited to Lido.
## Pool Stats at a Glance
Each Bob pool shows real-time data:
- **Progress to target** — how close the current price is to the unlock price
- **Potential gain** — how much you will earn if the target price is hit
- **Status** — active, settled, or expired
- **TVL** — total value locked in the pool
- **Recent activity** — live feed of locks and unlocks
## Why Bobs?
- **No date guessing** — your thesis is about price, so your lockup should be too.
- **Oracle-enforced** — Chainlink feeds, not trust assumptions.
- **Fully onchain** — immutable conditions, transparent state, no intermediaries.
- **Yield-compatible** — adapter support means your locked ETH can still earn staking rewards.
## Live Now
[Bobs](https://bob.sablier.com) are live in beta on Ethereum. Connect your wallet and start locking ETH at your target price.Please note certain pools do not expire and cannot be redeemed as long as the target price isn't hit. We have no control over user funds.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Two releases that expand what's possible with onchain token distribution.
ghostUuid: 792de071-6f69-4de4-bec5-396057b6e4b5
publishedAt: '2026-03-23'
slug: introducing-vcas-and-lockup-v4-0
tags: []
title: Introducing VCAs and Lockup v4.0
updatedAt: '2026-03-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/03/q3-launch--1-.png
---
## Variable Claim Airdrops
A new airdrop primitive by Sablier.
### The Problem with Traditional Airdrops
Most airdrops today fall into two camps:
- **Instant airdrops** — recipients get everything at once and dump immediately.
- **Vesting airdrops** — tokens unlock over time, but most users dump as soon as the unlock period is over.
Neither rewards loyalty. Neither gives recipients a meaningful choice.
### How VCAs Work
Variable Claim Airdrops introduce a simple tradeoff: claim anytime, but the earlier you claim, the fewer tokens you receive. The rest are forfeited and redistributed to the other users who haven’t claimed yet.
Here's what a 1-year VCA looks like in practice:
| Claim timing | Tokens received | Tokens forfeited |
| --- | --- | --- |
| After 3 months | 25% | 75% |
| After 6 months | 50% | 50% |
| After 12 months | 100% + portion of tokens forfeited | 0% |
Wait longer, earn more. Claim early, get less — instantly.
### What Happens to Forfeited Tokens?
This is the best part. Forfeited tokens don't disappear. After the campaign expires, the admin can clawback all forfeited tokens and:
- **Reward the patient** — create a second campaign for users who waited until the end, as a loyalty bonus.
- **Fund staking rewards** — use forfeited tokens as incentives in a staking campaign.
- **Replenish the treasury** — send them back as a future fund.
- **Buy back tokens** — use them for market buybacks.
This creates a built-in, onchain, game-theoretic incentive to wait.
### Under the Hood
VCAs are powered by the Merkle distribution system. Campaign admins call createMerkleVCA() through the factory contract, which deploys a new MerkleVCA contract. Recipients claim through claimTo() — they receive only the vested portion, and the remainder stays in the campaign for the admin to reclaim later.
Everything is fully onchain and transparent. Claimed vs. forfeited amounts are visible as onchain stats at any time.
### Current Limitations
VCAs currently support linear unlocks only. If you need custom curves, email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com) — more unlock shapes are on the roadmap.
---
## Lockup v4.0
Alongside VCAs, we're shipping Lockup v4.0 with two headline features: **Granularity** and **Price-Gated Unlocks (LPG)**.
### Granularity: Fixed-Period Unlocks in Linear Streams
The LockupLinear model now accepts a **granularity parameter** that enables fixed-period token unlocks — daily, weekly, or any constant interval.
Previously, achieving fixed unlock schedules required the Tranched model. But Tranched has practical limits: creating a 3-year daily unlock means 1,095 tranches, which runs into Ethereum block size constraints and costs a lot of gas.
With the new granularity field, you set a period on a Linear stream and the protocol handles the rest. The behavior is equivalent to Tranched but dramatically more efficient.
#### What you can do now
- **Daily unlocks** for multi-year vesting schedules — impractical with Tranched, trivial with Granularity.
- **Weekly unlocks** with exact 7-day periods (unlike "monthly" which varies between 28–31 days).
- **Any fixed interval** that divides evenly into the stream duration.
### LPG: Price-Gated Unlocks
LPG (Lockup Price Gated) brings price-based unlock conditions into lockup streams. Tokens unlock when a target price — verified by Chainlink oracles — is reached.
#### The Tesla analogy
Tesla's board famously incentivized Elon Musk with compensation tranches tied to market cap milestones, not calendar dates. LPG enables the same pattern onchain:
- A DAO sets up a vesting stream for a core contributor.
- Unlock milestones are tied to the token's price.
- Chainlink oracles verify the condition.
- No trust assumptions, no manual intervention.
This is ideal for **market-cap-based compensation plans** where teams want to align contributor incentives with protocol growth.
### Other Changes in v4.0
- **Batch support** — LPG streams can be created in batch via createWithTimestampsLPG on SablierBatchLockup.
- **LockupHelpers** — the Helpers library has been renamed for clarity.
---
## Get Started
If you're planning a token distribution and want to reward long-term holders over quick flippers, VCAs give you a new tool that aligns incentives without locking anyone out.
If you need vesting schedules with fixed unlock periods or price-based milestones, Lockup v4.0 has you covered.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Buy Sablier credits directly in the Sablier UI.
ghostUuid: 63f65bd2-a598-40ab-ac73-638d2cb93ecb
publishedAt: '2026-03-13'
slug: introducing-usdc-self-checkout-payments
tags: []
title: Introducing USDC Self-Checkout Payments
updatedAt: '2026-03-13'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/03/staking-rewards-with-sablier--1-.png
---
We're excited to announce a new feature that makes managing your Sablier streams even easier: USDC-enabled self-checkout is now live in the Sablier UI.
## What's New
Stream creators can now purchase stream withdrawals credits directly from the app, no need to contact our team or go through a manual process. Simply click "Billing" in the top-right toolbar or navigate to our [billing](https://app.sablier.com/billing) page.
When you buy credits, you're covering the withdrawal fees for your recipients. This means they can withdraw from your streams for free (they only pay network gas fees). It's a great way to improve the experience for anyone receiving payments through your vesting schedules or payment streams.
## How It Works
1\. Navigate to Billing: Click the "Billing" button in the app header or go to the Fees panel and click "Buy credits"
2\. Select your chain: Credits are chain-specific and cannot be transferred between networks
3\. Purchase credits: Each credit covers one withdrawal at $0.99 per stream
4\. Track usage: Monitor your remaining credits and view your complete credit history
The minimum purchase is 200 credits ($198). If you're testing on Sepolia, the minimum is just $1.
## What's Covered
This release supports Vesting and Payment streams. Airdrop campaign claims still require a custom quote—reach out to us via the [billing page](https://app.sablier.com/billing) if you're interested.
#### Special Packages
Need something more tailored? We offer:
- Partial covers: Split fees between yourself and recipients
- Volume discounts: Better rates for high-volume users
- Unlimited actions: Flat-rate options for one-time payments
Contact us through the [billing page](https://app.sablier.com/billing) to get a quote.
---
Try it out today [here](https://app.sablier.com/billing) and let us know what you think.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
What years of onchain data reveals about how crypto projects distribute
tokens.
ghostUuid: 0cfaa90b-d422-49fd-80da-bd146bfc975d
publishedAt: '2026-02-19'
slug: analyzing-500k-vesting-streams-patterns-and-insights
tags: []
title: 'Analyzing 500K+ Vesting Streams: Patterns and Insights'
updatedAt: '2026-02-19'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/02/fair-unlocks.png
---
## Introduction
Sablier V1 has been running on mainnet since 2023. In that time, over 534,000 token streams have been created across 27+ chains, representing one of the largest datasets on real-world token distribution behavior.
We analyzed this data to answer questions that matter to anyone launching tokens:
- What vesting schedules do teams actually use?
- How long do streams typically last?
- Which chains are projects choosing?
- Are vested airdrops catching on?
Here's what we found.
## The Dataset
| Metric | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Total Streams | 534,803 |
| Total Users | 376,568 |
| Total Transactions | 783,911 |
| Airdrop Claims | 242,385 |
| Stablecoin Volume | $42.96M |
| Chains Covered | 27+ |
| Time Span | Jul 2023 – Feb 2026 |
This includes Sablier Lockup streams (vesting), Sablier Flow deposits (payroll/recurring), and Sablier Airdrops campaigns. All data is pulled directly from onchain indexers.
## Finding 1: Simple Schedules Win
Stream type distribution:
| Type | Count | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Linear | 277,651 | 51.9% |
| Dynamic | 242,158 | 45.3% |
| Tranched | 14,994 | 2.8% |
Linear streams dominate. Over half of all streams use a straightforward linear unlock. Tokens release continuously from start to end, with or without cliff.
Dynamic streams account for 45%, largely driven by a few large-scale distributions that used exponential or stepped release schedules.
Tranched streams, where tokens unlock in discrete chunks, represent just 2.8% of total volume. When teams do use tranches, they keep it simple: 71.5% of tranched streams have exactly one tranche, while only 3.6% use more than 20 tranches.
**Takeaway:** Complexity doesn't correlate with sophistication. The most successful token distributions tend to use simple, predictable schedules that recipients can easily understand.
## Finding 2: Duration Varies Widely
| Stat | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Median Duration | 63 days |
| Average Duration | 279 days (~9 months) |
| Minimum | 1 day |
The median and average tell different stories. The median of 63 days reflects a large volume of shorter-term use cases: grants, payroll, bounties, short contractor engagements, and promotional distributions.
The average of 9 months is pulled up by traditional vesting schedules: team allocations, investor lockups, and advisor tokens that typically run 1-4 years.
**The bimodal pattern:**
1. **Short-term (< 90 days):** Grants, payroll, bounties, seasonal rewards, airdrop vesting
2. **Long-term (1-4 years):** Team vesting, investor allocations, strategic partnerships
There's relatively little activity in the 3-12 month range—projects either want quick distribution or proper long-term alignment.
## Finding 3: Cancelable Streams Dominate
| Property | Count | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cancelable | 359,783 | 67.3% |
| Transferable | 198,703 | 37.2% |
| Both | 153,157 | 28.6% |
Two-thirds of all streams are cancelable, meaning the sender retains the right to stop the stream and recover unvested tokens.
This makes sense for grants and conditional distributions where continued funding depends on deliverables. If a contributor stops working, the stream can be canceled. If an advisor relationship ends early, unvested tokens return to the treasury.
Transferable streams, where recipients can sell or transfer their vesting position, represent 37% of the total. This is particularly relevant for investor allocations, where secondary liquidity is often desired.
**Takeaway:** The high cancelable rate reflects the fact that teams use vesting as an accountability mechanism
## Finding 4: L2s Are the New Home
Chain distribution by users:
| Chain | Users | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Base | 89,335 | 42.2% |
| Arbitrum | 39,104 | 18.5% |
| Ethereum | 37,254 | 17.6% |
| Polygon | 29,124 | 13.8% |
| Optimism | 5,845 | 2.8% |
| BSC | 4,882 | 2.3% |
| Other L2s | 5,024 | 2.4% |
Base leads by a wide margin. With 42% of all users, Base has become the default choice for new token distributions, driven by low fees, fast finality, and Coinbase distribution.
Arbitrum and Ethereum are nearly tied for second and third place. Ethereum still sees significant activity for high-value distributions where the mainnet security guarantees matter, while Arbitrum captures teams that want EVM compatibility with lower costs.
Polygon's 14% share is largely driven by a few large-scale airdrop campaigns. Optimism, BSC, and others each hold single-digit percentages.
**Takeaway:** The L2 shift is real. In 2019-2022, Ethereum mainnet was the only option. Today, over 80% of Sablier users are on L2s or alt-L1s.
## Finding 5: Top Assets Tell a Story
The most-streamed assets reveal use case patterns:
| Asset | Chain | Streams |
| --- | --- | --- |
| GX (Grindery X) | Polygon | 225,772 |
| SOCIAL (Phavercoin) | Base | 60,116 |
| MLC (MyLovelyCoin) | Polygon | 19,302 |
| AVRK (Avarik Saga) | Arbitrum | 12,958 |
| SHELL | Arbitrum | 12,936 |
| LDY (Ledgity) | Arbitrum | 11,654 |
| ANZ (Anzen) | Base | 9,403 |
| WETH | Ethereum | 8,457 |
A few large campaigns account for outsized stream counts. Grindery's 225K+ streams represent an ambitious community distribution program. Phavercoin's 60K streams show how social tokens are using vesting to align early community members.
WETH at 8,457 streams reflects payroll, reward distributions and contractor payments, with teams paying contributors in ETH with streaming schedules.
**Stablecoin volume by protocol:**
- **EVM Lockup:** $24.4M
- **EVM Airdrops:** $13.6M
- **EVM Flow:** $5.0M
The split shows distinct use cases: Lockup for traditional vesting, Airdrops for community distributions, and Flow for recurring payments.
## Finding 6: Vested Airdrops Are Catching On
| Airdrop Type | Count | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vested | 569 | 70.4% |
| Instant | 239 | 29.6% |
70% of airdrop campaigns now use vesting. This is a significant shift from the instant-unlock airdrops that dominated 2020-2023.
The reasons are well-documented: instant airdrops create immediate sell pressure, reward short-term farming over genuine participation, and often benefit bots more than real users. Vested airdrops align recipient incentives with long-term project success.
**Additional airdrop metrics:**
| Metric | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Total Campaigns | 808 |
| Median Recipients | 97 per campaign |
| Median Claim Window | 30 days |
| Average Claim Rate | 19.1% |
The 19% claim rate is notable, roughly 80% of airdrop allocations go unclaimed. This is consistent with broader industry data and highlights why recoverable unclaimed tokens are an important feature.
Top campaigns by claims have achieved 70-90% participation rates, suggesting that well-designed campaigns with proper communication can dramatically outperform the average.
## Finding 7: Stream Complexity Over Time
For tranched streams, the distribution of tranches per stream:
| Tranches | Share |
| --- | --- |
| 1 (cliff only) | 71.5% |
| 2 | 1.1% |
| 3-5 | 5.8% |
| 6-10 | 11.1% |
| 11-20 | 6.9% |
| 21-50 | 3.4% |
| 51+ | 0.2% |
Most tranched streams are simple cliffs—a single unlock event. This is often used for "TGE unlock" scenarios where a portion releases at token generation, with the rest vesting linearly.
Streams with 6-20 tranches typically represent quarterly or monthly unlock schedules over 1-3 years. Very few streams exceed 50 tranches, the operational complexity rarely justifies it.
**For dynamic streams (custom curves):**
- Median segments: 2
- Average segments: 2.19
- Max segments: 40
Even "dynamic" streams tend toward simplicity. Two segments usually means a cliff followed by linear vesting, the most common pattern for investor and team allocations.
## What This Means for Your Token Distribution
**1\. Default to linear vesting.**
Unless you have a specific reason for complexity, linear schedules are easier to communicate, easier to model, and easier for recipients to understand. The data shows most successful distributions use them.
**2\. Match duration to purpose.**
Short-term grants and rewards: 30-90 days. Team and investor vesting: 2-4 years. Don't overthink the middle ground—it's rarely used for good reason.
**3\. Consider cancelability for grants.**
If funding is conditional on deliverables, cancelable streams provide accountability. For investor allocations where lockup is the point, non-cancelable makes sense.
**4\. Evaluate L2s seriously.**
Base and Arbitrum now handle the majority of token distributions. Lower fees mean you can create more streams, cover recipient gas costs, or run larger airdrop campaigns.
## Methodology
This analysis covers all Sablier Lockup, Flow, and Airdrop activity across EVM chains and Solana from July 2023 through February 2026. Data is sourced from Sablier's onchain indexers.
Testnets are excluded. Stream duration statistics filter out streams under 1 day to exclude test transactions. Stablecoin volume includes USDC, USDT, DAI, and other major stablecoins normalized to USD.
The dataset represents over 534,000 streams from 376,000+ unique addresses—one of the largest samples of real-world token distribution behavior available.
---
Ready to start your own token distribution? Visit [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com) or read the [documentation](https://docs.sablier.com).
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Over the past several months, we've shipped dozens of user-facing improvements
to the Sablier interface—new wallet support, gas estimations, cross-chain
activit
ghostUuid: 016415b4-9dec-46d2-9eeb-c43ed80b9795
publishedAt: '2026-01-28'
slug: q1-2026-release-notes
tags: []
title: Q1 2026 Release Notes
updatedAt: '2026-01-28'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/01/q1-release.png
---
Over the past several months, we've shipped dozens of user-facing improvements to the Sablier interface—new wallet support, gas estimations, cross-chain activity feeds, native asset wrapping, and more. But behind the scenes, something far more ambitious was underway.
We call it the Metamorphic Refactor—a ground-up restructuring of the Sablier codebase designed to eliminate accumulated technical debt, reduce code repetition, and establish patterns that make us dramatically faster at shipping. This isn't the kind of work that makes for flashy demos, but it's the kind of work that compounds. Every feature we build from here on out will be easier, faster, and more reliable because of it.
The refactor also has a second purpose: making our codebase AI-agent friendly. We've adopted structured patterns, explicit error typing, and modular architecture that allow AI-assisted development tools to reason about and contribute to the Sablier codebase effectively. More on that below.
Let's walk through everything that shipped this quarter.
## Wallet & Connectivity
### Cross-Chain Activity
The app now surfaces your Sablier activity across other chains and displays total stream counts in both the personal and search tabs. One place to see everything.
### Migration from RainbowKit to AppKit
We've migrated from RainbowKit to AppKit, unlocking support for a much wider range of web3 wallets. More wallets means fewer barriers to streaming.
### Create in Safe
New "Create in Safe" buttons make it seamless to initiate streams directly from your Safe multisig. If you're managing treasury or team vesting through a multisig, this one's for you.
## Transaction Experience
### Gas Estimation
You can now see estimated gas costs in both USD and ETH before confirming transactions. No more guesswork—you know exactly what you're spending before you sign.
### Wrap & Unwrap Native Assets
Wrap and unwrap ETH, POL, or any native asset without leaving Sablier. This removes friction when you need WETH (or equivalent) for streaming.
### Pending Transactions Modal
A new modal gives you full visibility into in-flight transactions, so you always know what's pending.
## Dashboard & Discovery
### Stream Filters
Filter your streams—e.g., hide canceled ones—directly in the dashboard. Long overdue, now live.
### New Pages
- **Pricing page:** A clear breakdown of what Sablier costs.
- **Popular Airdrops page:** Showcases highly active airdrop campaigns.
### Quality of Life
A collection of improvements that individually seem small but collectively transform the daily experience:
- Form state persistence: Form state is saved to local storage—an accidental refresh won't lose your progress.
- Pagination: Stream tables and action history modals are now paginated.
- ERC-20 balances: Token balances are displayed directly in the UI.
- Native balance in account dropdown: See your ETH/POL/native balance at a glance.
- Keyboard bindings: Esc now closes modals, among other bindings.
- Better vesting curve previews: Improved visualizations for understanding distribution shapes.
- CSV upload error messages: Clearer error reporting when uploading large CSV files for bulk stream creation.
## Under the Hood
### Tailwind CSS Migration
We've fully migrated from Styled Components to Tailwind CSS. The result: faster iteration cycles, a smaller bundle size, and more maintainable styles across the entire application.
### Adoption of Effect-ts
We've adopted [Effect-ts](https://effect.website/), a functional programming framework for TypeScript. This is a long-term bet on code quality that compounds over time. Here's why it matters:
- **Robust error management:** Errors are typed and explicit, not swallowed silently. When something goes wrong, we know exactly what and where.
- **Cleaner async composition:** Complex async workflows—like multi-step transaction flows—are now easier to reason about and maintain.
- **Fewer edge cases:** Fewer silent failures means fewer lost customers and more revenue. The type system catches entire categories of bugs before they reach production.
### The Metamorphic Refactor
The biggest investment this quarter was invisible to end users but transformative for the team. Our codebase had grown fast, and with that growth came patterns that were slowing us down: repeated code across modules, deep nesting, and implicit error handling that made debugging costly.
The Metamorphic Refactor addressed all of this systematically:
- **Eliminated code repetition:** The single largest source of friction. Shared patterns are now properly abstracted and reusable.
- **Flattened deep nesting:** Improved readability and reduced cognitive load for contributors.
- **Made errors explicit:** Combined with Effect-ts, our error paths are now first-class citizens in the codebase.
- **AI-agent readiness:** The new architecture is structured so that AI development tools can understand, navigate, and contribute to the codebase effectively.
This refactor is why we can ship faster from here. Every feature we build in Q2 and beyond benefits from these foundations.
### Open-Source AI Plugin Marketplace
We've open-sourced our [plugin marketplace](https://github.com/sablier-labs/plugin-marketplace) for Solidity, Foundry, TypeScript, Next.js, Effect-ts, and more. If you're building with AI-assisted development, these plugins encode Sablier's patterns and best practices directly into your workflow.
### What's Next
This quarter was about laying the groundwork. The Metamorphic Refactor, the migration to Tailwind, and the adoption of Effect-ts are all investments that pay dividends on every feature we ship going forward. Expect the pace of visible improvements to accelerate significantly from here.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Every significant crypto event of the past two years was visible onchain
before it hit the news. The German government selling 50,000 BTC. The FTX
hacker moving
ghostUuid: 18ed6cd0-463b-494d-8f66-11cea77e9874
publishedAt: '2026-01-16'
slug: onchain-analytics-platforms-for-crypto-teams-2026
tags: []
title: Onchain Analytics Platforms for Crypto Teams (2026)
updatedAt: '2026-01-16'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/01/5.webp
---
Every significant crypto event of the past two years was visible onchain before it hit the news.
The German government selling 50,000 BTC. The FTX hacker moving $477 million. UST's Curve pools draining hours before the depeg. Mt. Gox finally distributing to creditors. In each case, someone watching the right dashboard knew first.
Onchain data has shifted from a nice-to-have for researchers to operational infrastructure for any serious crypto team. Protocol teams use it to understand user behavior and automate workflows. Investors use it to validate narratives and track smart money. Security teams use it to detect exploits in real-time.
But the tooling landscape is fragmented. Each platform takes a different approach to the same underlying data—and choosing the wrong one means either building dashboards that already exist elsewhere or missing signals that could cost millions.
This guide covers the four platforms that matter most for professional crypto teams in 2026:
- [**Dune**](https://dune.com/)**:** The community-driven query platform where anyone can analyze raw onchain data across 100+ chains
- [**Nansen**](https://www.nansen.ai/)**:** The smart money intelligence layer with 500M+ labeled addresses and real-time alerts
- [**Arkham**](https://intel.arkm.com/)**:** The blockchain investigation platform with an AI-powered entity identification engine
- [**Token Terminal**](https://tokenterminal.com/)**:** The financial metrics standard, bringing income statements and balance sheets to protocols
These aren't interchangeable products. They solve different problems for different users. A trading firm's stack looks nothing like a protocol team's. The goal here is to help you understand what each platform actually does well—and where it falls short—so you can build the right analytics stack for your needs.
## Dune
Dune is where most onchain analysis happens. It's a community-driven platform that lets anyone query blockchain data using SQL, build visualizations, and share dashboards publicly. If you've seen an onchain chart on Twitter, there's a good chance it came from Dune.
The core proposition is simple: raw blockchain data is messy and hard to access. Dune indexes it, decodes smart contract interactions, and makes it queryable through a web-based SQL editor. No infrastructure to manage. No RPC nodes to run. Just write a query and get results.
### Key Features
- **Query any onchain data**: Dune supports 100+ chains—every major EVM network, Solana, Bitcoin, and more. Data is indexed and available through a unified query interface. Want to compare DEX volumes across Ethereum, Arbitrum, and Base? One query.
- **60,000+ decoded contracts:** Smart contract data is notoriously hard to parse. Dune automatically decodes contract ABIs, turning raw transaction logs into human-readable tables. Instead of parsing hex data, you query uniswap\_v3.swaps directly.
- **Materialized views and scheduling:** For teams that need production-grade data pipelines, Dune supports materialized views that refresh on a schedule. Build a dashboard once, and it stays current without manual intervention.
- **AI query generation:** Dune's AI tools let you describe what you want in natural language and generate SQL. Useful for non-technical team members or for speeding up exploratory analysis. The generated queries are editable, so you can refine them.
- **Data upload:** Bring your own data into Dune and join it with onchain data. CoW Protocol uses this to combine internal database records with onchain transactions for solver reward calculations—a workflow that would be painful to build from scratch.
- **Community dashboards:** This is Dune's moat. Thousands of analysts have published dashboards covering nearly every protocol, token, and trend. Before building something custom, search Dune—someone has probably already done the work.
### Best For
- Protocol teams building transparency dashboards and tracking KPIs
- Analysts doing custom research that requires flexible queries
- Investors who want to verify claims with primary data
- Anyone who needs a specific analysis that doesn't exist elsewhere
### Real-World Example: CoW Protocol
CoW Protocol, a DEX aggregator, uses Dune as core infrastructure for both analytics and operations.
**User analytics.** They built dashboards tracking active users by segment, retention rates, and lifetime value. The entire team reviews a monthly report dashboard together to understand performance and plan strategy.
**Automated payments.** CoW's solver reward system runs on Dune. They upload internal data, join it with onchain settlement data, calculate rewards, and export the results for distribution. This happens weekly, automatically.
**Fraud detection.** Solvers in CoW's system could theoretically game the protocol. Dune queries power an alert system that monitors for suspicious behavior and pings Slack when thresholds are breached.
**The key insight.** Dune isn't just for charts. It's programmable infrastructure that protocol teams can build workflows on top of.
| Tier | Cost | What You Get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free | $0 | Public queries and dashboards, community access |
| Plus | $349/mo | Private queries, faster execution, CSV exports |
| Pro | $390/mo | Priority execution, more private queries, team features |
| Enterprise | Custom | Dedicated support, SLAs, custom integrations |
The free tier is genuinely useful. Most individual analysts never need to upgrade. Teams typically need Plus or Pro for private dashboards and faster query execution.
### Limitations
- **Requires SQL knowledge:** The AI tools help, but serious analysis still requires understanding how to write and debug queries. Non-technical users will hit a wall.
- **No pre-built smart money labels:** Unlike Nansen, Dune doesn't tell you which wallets belong to funds, whales, or known entities. You're working with raw addresses unless the community has labeled them.
- **Query performance varies:** Complex queries on large datasets can be slow, especially on the free tier. Production dashboards need careful optimization.
- **Data freshness:** Dune isn't real-time. Depending on the chain, data can lag by minutes to hours. Not suitable for time-sensitive trading signals.
## Nansen
Nansen's core insight is that not all wallets are equal. Some addresses belong to top-performing funds, early token accumulators, or known smart money operators. If you can identify and track those wallets, you can see where capital is flowing before it shows up in price.
The platform has indexed and labeled over 500 million addresses—tagging them by entity type, historical performance, and behavior patterns. This labeling layer sits on top of raw blockchain data and turns anonymous addresses into actionable intelligence.
### Key Features
- **500M+ labeled addresses:** This is Nansen's moat. Years of work identifying which wallets belong to funds, exchanges, whales, smart money operators, and specific entities. When a wallet moves, you don't just see an address—you see "Paradigm" or "Smart Money Early Accumulator" or "CEX Hot Wallet."
- **Smart Alerts:** Set conditions and get notified when they trigger. Track when a specific wallet moves tokens, when smart money accumulates a position, or when liquidity pools see unusual outflows. Alerts go to email, Telegram, or Slack.
- **Token God Mode:** Deep analysis for any token: who holds it, how concentrated ownership is, what smart money is doing, recent large transactions, and DEX trading patterns. The standard starting point for token due diligence.
- **Nansen AI:** A conversational interface for onchain research. Ask questions in natural language—"What are the top wallets accumulating ETH this week?"—and get answers pulled from Nansen's data. The mobile app leans heavily on this for quick research on the go.
- **In-app trading:** Spot a signal, execute a trade, without leaving Nansen. The platform is evolving from pure analytics toward an integrated research-to-execution workflow.
- **Smart Segments:** Create custom wallet groups based on criteria you define. Track a basket of addresses as a cohort—useful for monitoring competitor protocols, investor behavior, or your own power users.
### Best For
- Traders looking for smart money signals and early accumulation patterns
- Funds doing due diligence on token holdings and whale concentration
- Protocol teams tracking how specific investor cohorts interact with their product
- Anyone who needs real-time alerts on wallet movements
### Real-World Example: Valkyrie and the UST Depeg
In May 2022, Valkyrie's team had Nansen alerts configured to monitor Curve pool balances. When UST's pools started draining—hours before the depeg made headlines—the alerts fired.
The team exited their positions early. In their words: "Nansen's Smart Alerts helped us detect early that the UST Curve pools were getting drained. As a result, we saved tens of millions of dollars by being able to exit early."
This is Nansen's value proposition in a sentence: see what's happening before the market prices it in.
### Pricing
Nansen doesn't publish pricing publicly. The platform operates on a subscription model with tiered access:
| Tier | Access Level |
| --- | --- |
| Free | Limited dashboard access, basic features |
| Standard | Core labeling, alerts, Token God Mode |
| VIP | Full feature access, priority support |
| Enterprise | Custom integrations, dedicated support, API access |
Expect to pay in the low hundreds per month for meaningful access. Enterprise deals are negotiated. The free tier exists but is heavily limited—it's a trial, not a product.
### Limitations
- **Proprietary labels, opaque methodology:** Nansen doesn't fully explain how they identify and categorize wallets. You're trusting their classification. When they label something "Smart Money," you can't independently verify the criteria.
- **Trading-focused:** The product is optimized for identifying short-to-medium term signals. Less useful for protocol teams doing operational analytics or long-term research.
- **Price:** Nansen is expensive relative to free alternatives like Dune. The value is in the labeling layer—if you don't need smart money tracking, you're paying for something you won't use.
- **Signal vs. noise:** 500M labels sounds impressive, but most wallets aren't interesting. The challenge is filtering down to the signals that actually matter for your strategy. Takes time to configure alerts that aren't spammy.
- **Less flexibility than Dune:** You're working with Nansen's pre-built views and dashboards. Custom queries and novel analysis require their team's help or aren't possible at all.
## Arkham
Arkham takes a different approach than the other platforms on this list. Where Dune gives you query tools and Nansen gives you labeled dashboards, Arkham is built for investigation—tracing funds, identifying entities, and following money across chains.
The platform combines an AI-powered identification engine (called Ultra) with a marketplace where analysts can buy and sell intelligence. It's part analytics tool, part bounty platform, part investigative infrastructure.
### Key Features
- **AI-powered entity identification:** Arkham's Ultra engine analyzes onchain behavior patterns to identify wallet owners. It cross-references transaction timing, interaction patterns, and known entity behaviors to make educated guesses about who controls an address. The result: 350 million labels across 200,000+ entity pages.
- **Entity pages:** Each identified entity gets a dedicated page showing all associated wallets, transaction history, portfolio holdings, balance changes over time, P&L, and exchange usage. Search "German Government" and you get a complete view of their BTC holdings and movements.
- **Visualizer:** Trace fund flows visually. Select a transaction or wallet and see where money came from and where it went, rendered as an interactive graph. Essential for following complex transaction chains—the kind that appear in hacks, exploits, or suspicious activity.
- **Multi-chain coverage:** Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tron, BNB Chain, Polygon, Arbitrum, and more. Cross-chain tracing is where Arkham shines—following funds that hop between networks to obscure their origin.
- **Intel Exchange:** This is Arkham's novel contribution: a marketplace for blockchain intelligence. Anyone can post a bounty ("Identify the wallet behind this hack") and analysts compete to solve it. Payouts happen through smart contracts. You can also auction intelligence you've gathered.
The Intel Exchange creates an economic incentive for onchain investigation. Instead of doing research for free or keeping it private, analysts can monetize their work.
### Best For
- Security teams investigating hacks, exploits, or suspicious activity
- Compliance and legal teams doing due diligence or supporting litigation
- Journalists and researchers tracking fund flows for stories
- Funds evaluating counterparty risk or verifying claims about wallet ownership
- Onchain analysts who want to monetize their investigation skills
### Real-World Examples
**FTX collapse (November 2022)**. When $477 million moved out of FTX during the bankruptcy, Arkham tracked the hacker in real-time. Their analysts identified behavioral patterns: the attacker operated between 08:00-10:00 UTC and created new wallets for each operation. They also tracked $1.7 million in fund movements tied to Sam Bankman-Fried himself. This data was later used by prosecutors in the Southern District of New York.
**German government BTC sales (July 2024)**. When Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office started liquidating 50,000 BTC seized from Movie2k operators, Arkham had already tagged the wallets. Users watched in real-time as billions in Bitcoin moved to Coinbase, Kraken, and Bitstamp over several weeks.
**Mt. Gox repayments (2024)**. Arkham tagged Mt. Gox trustee wallets holding 140,000 BTC. When repayments to creditors finally began—a decade after the exchange collapsed—the crypto world tracked every movement through Arkham's dashboards.
**Celsius bankruptcy (2022)**. During Celsius's collapse, Arkham identified that the company owed over $500 million to Aave, Compound, and other DeFi lenders—information that wasn't publicly disclosed at the time.
### Pricing
| Tier | Cost | Access |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free | $0 | Basic entity pages, limited visualizer, search |
| Arkham Pro | Subscription | Full visualizer, alerts, advanced features |
| Intel Exchange | ARKM token | Post bounties (requires staking), earn from solving |
The free tier is surprisingly functional for basic research. Pro unlocks the full investigation toolkit. The Intel Exchange operates on the ARKM token—you stake tokens to post bounties, and analysts earn tokens for solving them. Paying with ARKM gets up to 60% discounts on platform fees.
### Limitations
- **The "doxxing" debate:** Arkham's entire value proposition is identifying who controls wallets. Some in crypto see this as legitimate transparency; others see it as a surveillance tool that undermines privacy. The platform has drawn criticism for enabling anyone to put a bounty on identifying wallet owners—including potentially malicious actors.
- **Investigative focus, not operational:** Arkham is built for answering "who did this?" and "where did the money go?"—not for building dashboards or tracking protocol metrics. If you need ongoing analytics rather than investigation, look elsewhere.
- **Label accuracy varies:** AI-powered identification is probabilistic. Arkham's labels are educated guesses, not verified facts. High-confidence identifications (exchanges, known funds) are reliable. Edge cases and smaller entities may be wrong.
- **Intel Exchange is niche:** The marketplace is interesting but thin. Most users won't post or solve bounties—it's a power-user feature for dedicated investigators.
- **Entity pages can lag:** New wallets and recent activity may not be immediately reflected. The platform prioritizes depth over real-time coverage.
## Token Terminal
Token Terminal asks a simple question: what if you could analyze protocols the way you analyze companies?
Traditional finance has standardized metrics—revenue, expenses, P/E ratios, margins. Crypto has... TVL, maybe. Token Terminal is building the accounting standards for onchain protocols, translating raw blockchain data into financial statements that institutional investors actually know how to read.
The platform doesn't give you raw query access or wallet labels. Instead, it gives you curated, standardized metrics: fees, revenue, expenses, active users, and more—calculated consistently across hundreds of protocols and chains.
### Key Features
- **Financial statements for protocols:** Token Terminal presents protocol data in familiar formats: income statements showing fees, revenue, and expenses over time. This isn't just labeling—the platform makes opinionated decisions about what counts as revenue vs. supply-side fees, how to categorize expenses (token emissions), and how to calculate margins.
For example, Ethereum's income statement shows monthly fees, what portion goes to validators (supply-side), what remains as protocol revenue, and token issuance as an expense. You can compare it directly to Solana or Arbitrum using the same framework.
- **Standardized metrics across protocols:** The value is in consistency. "Daily active users" means the same thing whether you're looking at Uniswap or Aave. "Fees" are calculated the same way for every DEX. This lets you make apples-to-apples comparisons that would take hours to construct manually.
- **Multi-chain coverage:** Fees, users, volume, and TVL across all major chains.
- **Bloomberg Terminal integration:** Token Terminal is available on the Bloomberg Terminal App Portal. This signals who the target user is.
- **API and data infrastructure:** For teams that need programmatic access:
- Sheets integration for analysts who live in spreadsheets
- API for data scientists building models
- Data Room for technical teams that need raw data pipelines
### Best For
- Institutional investors doing fundamental analysis and valuation
- Research analysts who need standardized metrics for reports
- Protocol teams benchmarking against competitors
- Anyone who thinks in P/E ratios and wants to apply that lens to crypto
### Pricing
| Product | Target User | Cost |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Explorer | Everyone | Free |
| Sheets | Analysts, researchers | Subscription |
| API | Data scientists, developers | Subscription |
| Data Room | Technical teams | Enterprise |
The free Explorer tier provides access to dashboards and basic metrics. Paid tiers unlock export capabilities, API access, and raw data. Enterprise pricing for Data Room is negotiated.
### Limitations
**Opinionated metrics.** Token Terminal makes decisions about what counts as revenue, how to handle token emissions, and which fees matter. These choices are reasonable but debatable. If you disagree with their methodology, you can't easily change it.
**Less raw data access.** This isn't a query platform. You can't write custom SQL or explore arbitrary onchain data. You get Token Terminal's curated views, not the underlying tables.
**Metrics-focused, not investigation.** No wallet tracking, no smart money labels, no entity identification. Token Terminal answers "how is this protocol performing?" not "who is using it?" or "where did these funds come from?"
**Coverage gaps.** Not every protocol is indexed. Newer or smaller projects may not have data. The platform prioritizes depth on major protocols over breadth across the long tail.
**Traditional finance lens has limits.** Some crypto-native dynamics don't map cleanly to income statements. Token emissions as "expenses" is a reasonable convention, but it's not how most crypto participants think about tokenomics. The TradFi framing is a feature for institutional users and a limitation for crypto-native analysis.
## Which Platform for Which Job?
Skip the analysis—here's what to use for common tasks.
### By Use Case
**"I need to build a public dashboard for my protocol"**
→ Dune. Community expects it, embeds work everywhere, free tier is sufficient.
**"I want to track what smart money is buying"**
→ Nansen. This is their entire product. 500M labeled addresses, pre-built smart money segments.
**"Someone hacked us and we need to trace the funds"**
→ Arkham. Visualizer for fund flows, cross-chain tracing, entity identification. Post a bounty on Intel Exchange if you need help.
**"I need to compare protocol fundamentals for an investment memo"**
→ Token Terminal. Standardized metrics, income statements, apples-to-apples comparisons.
**"I want real-time alerts when a specific wallet moves"**
→ Nansen or Arkham. Both offer wallet alerts. Nansen better for trading signals, Arkham better for investigative monitoring.
**"I need to automate a workflow with onchain data"**
→ Dune. Materialized views, scheduling, data upload. CoW Protocol runs their entire solver rewards system on it.
**"I want to verify a project's claimed metrics"**
→ Dune for raw data verification. Token Terminal if you want pre-calculated metrics to sanity-check against.
**"I need data for a Bloomberg Terminal workflow"**
→ Token Terminal. Literally integrated into Bloomberg. Run APPS TOKEN GO.
**"I want to understand who's behind a wallet"**
→ Arkham for investigation and entity identification. Nansen if you just need to know if it's smart money.
**"I need to export data to a spreadsheet"**
→ Token Terminal (Sheets integration) or Dune (CSV export on paid tiers).
**"I'm non-technical and can't write SQL"**
→ Token Terminal or Nansen. Both offer pre-built dashboards. Dune's AI helps but still assumes some technical comfort.
## By Team Type
### Protocol team (building a product)
| Need | Platform |
| --- | --- |
| User analytics, retention, LTV | Dune |
| Public transparency dashboard | Dune |
| Competitive benchmarking | Token Terminal |
| Incident response / hack investigation | Arkham |
| Whale watching on your token | Nansen |
### Trading firm / Fund
| Need | Platform |
| --- | --- |
| Smart money flow tracking | Nansen |
| Real-time wallet alerts | Nansen |
| Entity identification / due diligence | Arkham |
| Fundamental analysis | Token Terminal |
| Custom alpha signals | Dune (if you can write SQL) |
### VC / Research analyst
| Need | Platform |
| --- | --- |
| Protocol valuation metrics | Token Terminal |
| Investment memo data | Token Terminal |
| Verify team wallet holdings | Arkham |
| Token holder analysis | Nansen |
| Custom deep-dive analysis | Dune |
### Security / Compliance team
| Need | Platform |
| --- | --- |
| Hack investigation | Arkham |
| Fund tracing | Arkham |
| Counterparty due diligence | Arkham + Nansen |
| Wallet screening | Arkham |
## Conclusion
No single platform does everything. That's the main takeaway.
Dune is the open layer—flexible, community-driven, free to start. If you can write SQL (or prompt an AI to write it for you), you can analyze almost anything. Best for protocol teams and analysts who need custom views.
Nansen is the smart money layer—500M labeled addresses, real-time alerts, trading signals. Best for funds and traders who need to know what whales are doing before everyone else does.
Arkham is the investigation layer—entity identification, fund tracing, bounty marketplace. Best for security teams, compliance, and anyone who needs to answer "who's behind this wallet?"
Token Terminal is the institutional layer—standardized financials, Bloomberg integration, apples-to-apples comparisons. Best for investors who think in income statements and VCs writing investment memos.
### The Minimum Stack
If you're just getting started:
1. Dune (free) for custom queries and exploring community dashboards
2. Token Terminal (free tier) for quick protocol comparisons
Add Nansen when you need smart money tracking. Add Arkham when something goes wrong and you need to trace funds.
### The Broader Point
Onchain data used to be a research curiosity—something for crypto-native analysts to play with. That era is over.
Today, protocol teams run production workflows on Dune. Funds make allocation decisions based on Nansen alerts. Prosecutors build cases using Arkham data. Institutions pull Token Terminal into Bloomberg.
The underlying blockchain data is public and permissionless. But the tools to make sense of it—to query, label, standardize, and act on it—are now critical infrastructure.
The teams that figure out how to use this infrastructure well have an edge. Everyone else is trading blind.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Payroll is one of the most overlooked but critical functions for any
organization. In crypto, it’s also one of the most painful ones. Startups and
DAOs often fi
ghostUuid: 4423754c-1af6-4b3b-ba0e-5d6b77066a38
publishedAt: '2026-01-02'
slug: crypto-payroll-tools-compared-sablier-vs-traditional-solutions
tags: []
title: 'Crypto Payroll Solutions Compared: Sablier vs Traditional Tools'
updatedAt: '2026-01-02'
featureImage: /content/images/2026/01/Untitled.png
---
Payroll is one of the most overlooked but critical functions for any organization. In crypto, it’s also one of the most painful ones. Startups and DAOs often find themselves using spreadsheets, losing hours dealing with multisig approvals, and wasting time on delayed token transfers. And on the other side, contributors are left waiting, unsure whether they will actually get paid, lacking autonomy when it comes to their income, etc.
Traditional payroll tools—like Deel, Rippling, or Remote—were built for fiat employees in legacy corporations, not thriving modern companies and organizations.
Sablier changes this by introducing real-time, programmable payroll streams that live entirely onchain. Instead of monthly lump-sum payments, funds flow continuously to contributors, enforced directly by smart contracts. But how does this model actually compare to the tools most teams use today?
In this article, we’ll break down the differences between Sablier and traditional payroll systems—cost, transparency, automation, flexibility, and trust—so you can decide which model fits your organization best.
### What Is Crypto Payroll?
Instead of routing payments through banks, wires, or fiat payroll processors, compensation happens entirely onchain with crypto payroll, enforced by smart contracts and settled in real time.
Payments are made in stablecoins like USDC, DAI or even yield-generating stablecoins like sDAI, for example.
Teams need crypto payroll because the old model doesn’t fit modern organizations. Organizations with remote workers located all around the world, for example, face many logistical problems with traditional payroll providers who only support certain jurisdictions. Employees also expect to be paid in certain currencies. And what about contractors?
To actually work at scale, crypto payroll must satisfy a few non-negotiable requirements:
- **Transparency:** Contributors and treasury managers should see exactly how much has been earned, what remains, and when payments settle—without chasing an ops team.
- **Scalability:** A system should support dozens or hundreds of contributors across chains without drowning in manual overhead.
- **Compliance:** Teams need the flexibility to integrate with legal entities and reporting when required, without losing the efficiency of onchain execution.
- **Trust:** Payroll should not depend on one person holding keys or a SaaS provider’s uptime. The system itself should enforce the agreement.
### Traditional Solutions
Most teams today rely on one of two payroll setups: **multisig + spreadsheets** or **centralized SaaS payroll tools**. Both approaches are serviceable at small scale, but neither is designed for the realities of modern orgs.
**1\. Multisig + spreadsheets**
The default “onchain payroll system” is a Safe multisig combined with Google Sheets. Once a month, treasury managers calculate payouts, prepare transactions, and chase signers for approval. This works for a handful of contributors but quickly becomes a recurring nightmare:
- Errors creep in from manual data entry.
- Contributors wait for multisig approvals and reminder pings.
- There’s no real-time visibility—only trust in whoever maintains the sheet.
The result is high operational overhead and frustrated contributors.
**2\. Centralized SaaS payroll tools**
Platforms like Deel, Remote, or Rippling are great for old and boring corporations, but they’re a poor fit for modern teams. These systems are:
- **Fiat-centric**: They pay in local currencies, do not support yield-bearing assets.
- **Costly**: They layer on subscription fees, FX spreads, and per-employee charges.
- **Offchain**: Transactions happen through custodial intermediaries, not directly onchain.
This setup undermines transparency, adds friction, and introduces dependencies on corporate infrastructure that doesn’t align with decentralized operations.
Traditional payroll systems weren’t built for fast-moving organizations. They introduce delays, complexity, and trust assumptions that innovative companies increasingly find unacceptable.
### Sablier’s Approach
Sablier reimagines payroll as a continuous, onchain process rather than a series of monthly transactions. Instead of lump-sum payouts or delayed multisig approvals, funds flow in real time—second by second—directly to contributors’ wallets.
**Streaming payroll in real time**
With Sablier, compensation is no longer tied to arbitrary pay cycles. Contributors earn continuously, with their balance accruing transparently every second. They can withdraw at any time, removing the friction and uncertainty of waiting for end-of-month transfers.
**Native to crypto, built for DAOs**
Sablier was designed from the ground up for fast-moving organizations. Streams can be funded in stablecoins or native tokens, managed from a Safe multisig, and deployed across multiple EVM chains. The system is non-custodial and enforced entirely by smart contracts: no reliance on SaaS middlemen, no single points of failure.
**Programmable and composable**
Because streams live onchain, they can plug into the broader DeFi ecosystem. Payroll can be combined with vesting, grants, staking rewards, or automated treasury strategies. Teams can configure cliffs, cancelability, or even integrate with other smart contracts to extend payroll into fully programmable compensation systems. Yield-bearing stablecoins like sDAI are fully supported, and allow organizations to generate yield while their payroll program is running.
**The benefits**
- **Speed:** Set up once and streams run autonomously, without monthly approvals.
- **Transparency:** Every transaction is verifiable onchain in real time.
- **Automation:** Smart contracts enforce payroll logic, eliminating manual overhead.
- **Lower cost:** Fewer transactions, fewer ops hours, and no SaaS fees.
For companies and organizations, Sablier’s approach turns payroll from a recurring operational burden into a trustless, self-sustaining system: scalable, auditable, all with an incredible user experience.
### Direct Comparison: Sablier vs Traditional Payroll
When choosing a payroll system, the real differences come down to cost, transparency, automation, flexibility, and trust. Here’s how Sablier compares to traditional solutions.
**Cost**
Traditional payroll platforms charge SaaS subscriptions, per-employee fees, and hidden FX spreads. Even the “DIY” multisig + spreadsheet model racks up recurring gas costs and ops hours every month. With Sablier, streams are deployed once onchain and run autonomously. Aside from a one-time creation gas fee and minimal withdrawal fees, there are no ongoing costs—making it significantly more efficient at scale.
**Transparency**
Legacy systems operate as black boxes: contributors see funds only after they arrive, and treasury managers juggle private spreadsheets. Sablier flips this model. Every stream is public, auditable, and visible in real time. Contributors can check their accrual at any moment, and auditors can verify payouts without requesting special access.
**Automation**
SaaS tools and multisigs depend on recurring approvals, manual uploads, and constant reminders. Each cycle introduces human error and delays. Sablier eliminates these workflows: once created, a stream executes continuously, second by second, without manual intervention. Payroll becomes a process you “set and forget.”
**Flexibility**
Traditional payroll is fiat-heavy, rigid, and tied to local regulations. Crypto-native teams often end up working around these systems rather than with them. Sablier is token-native and multi-chain by design. Whether you’re paying in USDC on Ethereum, DAI on Optimism, or your own native token on Base, the process is identical. Streams can be configured for ongoing employees or fixed-term contracts, with parameters like cliffs or cancelability baked in.
**Trust**
Centralized SaaS platforms require trusting a vendor’s infrastructure, uptime, and custodial risk. Even multisig-based systems still depend on a handful of signers. With Sablier, trust is minimized. Payroll logic is enforced directly by audited smart contracts, not intermediaries. Contributors don’t need to trust an ops team, and employers don’t risk overpaying—streams release funds exactly as specified.
### Conclusion
Traditional payroll tools work well for fiat-heavy organizations with legal employees and local banking requirements. They cover compliance and tax reporting but fall short when it comes to crypto-native teams. Multisigs and spreadsheets, while serviceable at small scale, quickly collapse under the weight of manual approvals, delays, and errors.
Sablier solves payroll for the onchain economy. By streaming payments in real time, it eliminates operational overhead, removes trust dependencies, and gives contributors full transparency over their income. Whether you’re running a DAO, a global startup, or a tokenized community, payroll becomes a self-sustaining onchain process rather than a monthly headache.
Looking forward, real-time payments will become the standard—not the exception. Just as Spotify replaced CDs with streaming, Sablier is replacing lump-sum payroll with continuous flows. Teams that adopt this model today will set the benchmark for efficiency, trust, and scalability in onchain finance.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'Token sales are back, but not like 2017.'
ghostUuid: 87c0fb32-e4a2-4bc0-8f6f-546e14c2af91
publishedAt: '2025-12-29'
slug: the-state-of-token-sale-platforms-in-2025
tags: []
title: The State of Token Sale Platforms in 2025
updatedAt: '2025-12-29'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/12/unknown.png
---
## Introduction
Token sales are back.
But this time, they look very different from 2017's ICOs. The days of chaotic sales, crazy Telegram groups, and shady raises are gone.
The new generation of fundraising platforms has matured into a professional industry. From Echo’s Coinbase-backed launchpad, to Fjord Foundry’s fair-launch Liquidity Bootstrapping Pools, to Uniswap’s Continuous Clearing Auctions, token sales in 2025 are finally starting to resemble real financial markets. They are efficient, structured, and increasingly transparent.
New entrants like MetaDAO even experiment with prediction-market-based governance, where communities help steer projects by betting on outcomes, on top of funding them.
## The Three Pillars of Modern Launch Platforms
### Exchange Launchpads
The first pillar of modern token launches remains the exchange launchpad. Platforms like Binance Launchpad, OKX Jumpstart, and KuCoin Spotlight dominate fundraising by combining massive user bases with direct access to secondary liquidity. They’re the crypto equivalent of IPO desks: centralized, structured, and highly visible.
With Binance Launchpad, tokens are distributed via lottery or subscription, and for smaller users, Launchpool adds an airdrop-style staking model: staking BNB, FDUSD, or other tokens allows users to earn allocations passively.
OKX Jumpstart mirrors that model. Its _Mining_ and _On-Sale_ events let users stake BTC, ETH, or OKB to earn or buy new tokens, blending staking rewards with discounted access.
KuCoin Spotlight takes a more selective route. Once live, Spotlight sales use a guaranteed pro-rata model instead of lotteries, distributing allocations based on user holdings of KCS or USDT. Its relaunch in 2025 tightened fairness and transparency rules while keeping the core model intact.
Across all three, it's pretty clear a pattern of scale and safety emerges. Exchange launchpads bring regulatory clarity, distribution, and post-sale liquidity that decentralized models can’t yet match. But they also trade away openness. Participation is gated, mechanics are standardized, and experimentation is minimal.
Still, for teams seeking instant reach and predictable execution, these launchpads remain a solid option.
### Community-Driven Launch Platforms
If exchange launchpads are crypto’s IPO desks, community-driven launch platforms are its open markets. They bring price discovery, transparency, and composability to the center of fundraising.
Fjord Foundry has become the default hub for permissionless token sales. Its signature mechanism, the Liquidity Bootstrapping Pool (LBP), inverts the logic of early ICOs: instead of setting a fixed price and hoping the market catches up, prices start high and decay until real demand establishes equilibrium. This approach curbs front-running and rewards genuine participation. Fjord now supports multiple sale models, from fixed-price and tiered rounds to cross-chain sales, but the ethos remains constant: community access, transparent pricing, and immediate post-sale liquidity.
Uniswap’s Continuous Clearing Auctions (CCA) push this concept further into mechanism-design territory. Built on top of Uniswap v4, the CCA framework generalizes the uniform-price auction into continuous time. Projects commit supply, bidders place orders, and each block clears at a uniform market price. When the auction ends, proceeds automatically seed a Uniswap pool at the discovered price, bootstrapping deep liquidity from day one. The result is a launch that is fully onchain, auditable, and resistant to timing games or insider allocation.
MetaDAO experiments with what comes next: fundraising as governance. Projects raise USDC from their communities over a few days and if the minimum isn’t met, funds are refunded. Once live, spending and token issuance are governed by prediction markets that trade on whether a proposal will increase project value.
Together, these platforms form a new class of onchain financial primitives. They treat token issuance not just as a marketing moment but as a verifiable open market process.
### Dedicated Compliant Fundraising Platforms
A new generation of platforms, like Legion, Echo, and CoinList, are bridging the gap between decentralized capital formation and compliance. These platforms aim to preserve crypto’s open ethos while meeting the standards of traditional finance.
Legion leverages the Legion Score: an onchain and offchain reputation system that quantifies an investor’s credibility, experience, and contribution potential. Projects can filter participants by their scores, inviting only high-reputation backers to their sales. The result is a curated, merit-based investor base rather than a frenzy of speculative wallets.
Echo, now part of Coinbase, connects verified investors to early-stage deals shared by top crypto funds and syndicate leads. Each deal is executed fully onchain, with smart contracts holding funds until allocation. Echo’s secondary product, Sonar, lets projects host public token sales under a standardized identity framework, extending compliant access to broader communities. It’s effectively a hybrid between private-round infrastructure and public launchpad.
CoinList, meanwhile, remains one of the most established names in compliant token offerings. Since 2017 it has launched many of the industry’s major public sales, from Filecoin to Solana, under full KYC/AML oversight. Its advantage lies in reputation and process: CoinList’s strict vetting, custody integration, and investor safeguards make it a reliable platform for token launches.
Together, these three platforms mark the rise of a compliance layer for onchain fundraising.
## Design Trade-Offs and Platform Philosophies
Every launch platform encodes a philosophy about what token sales should optimize for. The trade-offs between liquidity, alignment, decentralization, and assurance define not only how tokens are distributed, but what kind of ecosystems they go on to build.
### Liquidity vs. Alignment
Exchange launchpads like Binance and OKX maximize instant liquidity. Tokens list within hours, markets form immediately, and capital flows freely. But this same liquidity often dilutes alignment: tokens are dumped, not held, and price discovery happens under speculative pressure. By contrast, platforms like Fjord and Uniswap’s CCA slow the process down: liquidity is earned through a price discovery process.
### Decentralization vs. Assurance
Community-driven platforms favor openness. Anyone can participate, every transaction is onchain. The result is transparency and accessibility, but also exposure to legal gray zones and participant risk. Dedicated compliant platforms like Legion or CoinList invert this trade-off: permissioned access, KYC, and disclosure replace permissionless entry. These constraints buy something valuable: regulatory clarity, consumer protection, and institutional participation. Each model defines its own trust surface: smart contracts versus compliance officers.
### Flexibility vs. Standardization
Fjord and Uniswap embrace experimentation: LBPs, CCAs, and composable auction modules that can evolve with DeFi’s design space. Legion and CoinList instead standardize: fixed templates, vetted disclosures, predictable flows. Standardization scales, flexibility innovates. Both are necessary.
Ultimately, each platform archetype represents a point on the same spectrum: from markets that move fast to markets that last..
## The New Stack for Onchain Capital Formation
Fundraising no longer ends at the sale. It’s now the entry point into an interconnected system of tools that handle what happens after capital is raised — vesting, custody, liquidity, governance, and analytics. The result is a full-stack onchain financial lifecycle.
### Streaming and Vesting
Platforms like Sablier have turned token distribution into programmable cash flow. Instead of cliff unlocks or manual payouts, funds and team allocations stream in real time, auditable by anyone.
### Custody and Treasury Infrastructure
Post-sale assets increasingly move directly into multisig or institutional custody systems like Safe and BitGo, bridging operational security with transparency. Teams no longer rely on opaque foundation wallets. They manage capital through programmable, shared custody that aligns with DeFi-native controls and compliance expectations alike.
### Analytics and Transparency
Investor relations have gone onchain. Dashboards powered by Nansen, Dune, or custom analytics give real-time visibility into treasury health, vesting schedules, and trading activity. This turns passive communities into informed stakeholders and reduces information asymmetry.
### Composable Capital Formation
What began as token sales has evolved into modular market design. Fundraising connects directly to liquidity provisioning, governance, and incentive systems, forming a continuous feedback loop: sale → liquidity → governance → iteration. Tokens are no longer static fundraising instruments — they’re programmable primitives that connect funding to function.
In this sense, token sales have finally become infrastructure. They are the first block in a composable financial stack that automates not only how projects raise money, but how they govern, spend, and grow: all transparently, onchain, and in real time.
## Outlook for 2026
The token launch landscape is set to diverge along two clear paths. On one side, regulated, institutional-grade platforms like Legion, Echo, and CoinList will continue to professionalize access: fully compliant, jurisdiction-aware, and integrated with existing financial rails. On the other hand, DeFi-native systems like Fjord, Uniswap’s CCA, and MetaDAO will keep pushing the frontier of open experimentation: permissionless, composable, and community-driven.
At the same time, sale mechanics are converging. The chaos of bespoke token launches is giving way to standardized primitives: auctions that discover fair prices, streaming contracts for vesting, and transparent liquidity deployments that replace private market makers. These patterns are becoming as fundamental as AMMs or staking once were, a shared language for onchain capital formation.
By 2026, token launches will resemble onchain IPOs: transparent, programmable, and continuous. Teams will no longer “launch a token” as a one-time event; they’ll initiate an ongoing, auditable relationship with their holders.
## Conclusion
The token sale has evolved from spectacle to system. What began as chaotic fundraising experiments has matured into a structured, composable layer of capital formation.
The sale isn’t the end of the story anymore. It’s only just the beginning.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Lessons from shipping Sablier Lockup and Merkle Instant on Solana
ghostUuid: a6db492d-363d-455d-94fc-c7f540e4c26a
publishedAt: '2025-12-04'
slug: building-solsab
tags: []
title: Building SolSab (Sablier on Solana)
updatedAt: '2026-04-21'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/12/solana-timelock.webp
---
> **Update:** [our Solana deployment has entered maintenance mode](https://x.com/Sablier/status/2046186339612144116) and creating streams/airdrops on Solana is now deprecated.
_Written by_ [_Iaroslav Mazur_](https://x.com/IaroslavMazur)_, Smart Contract Engineer at Sablier Labs_
---
Ever since 2019, [Sablier](https://sablier.com/) has been the go-to protocol for token streaming and vesting on Ethereum. And for many of these years, we kept getting the same question from our users: "Wen Solana?"
"Fair enough!", we thought. Solana's high speed, low costs and growing ecosystem made it an obvious next step for us. So, we set out to build [SolSab](https://solana.sablier.com/) - two production-ready Anchor programs that'd bring token streaming to Solana.
Now, after many months of dedicated glass-chewing, we'd like to go over the challenges we've faced and the things we've learned shipping **Lockup** (streaming/vesting) and **Merkle Instant** (instant airdrops) to Solana.
## The Tech Stack
First, the basics. SolSab has been built with the **Anchor framework**, using the latest version of the Solana toolchain. Its tech stack also includes:
- **Dual token standard support**: Both SPL Token and Token2022 are supported by the Lockup and Merkle Instant programs.
- **NFT-based stream identification**: Each Lockup stream is represented via an NFT implementing the Metaplex Token Metadata standard. We considered ditching NFTs for Solana, but decided that it's best to maintain the same UX our users like in the EVM ecosystem.
- **Chainlink oracle integration** for price feeds.
- **Vitest + anchor-bankrun** for comprehensive testing of the programs.
- **BiomeJS, Prettier, and just** for code quality and task automation.
## Technical Challenges
Now, let's go over some of the challenges we've faced while developing SolSab.
### Multiple Streams Created in a Single Transaction
The elegant, deterministic seed generation for the stream-related PDAs we've initially implemented was, sadly, incompatible with the batch-creation of streams. Therefore, in order to always generate unique PDAs, we've introduced a random "salt" into our PDA seeds. As a result, you can now create an entire team's vesting schedule in a single transaction!
### Wrestling with Metaplex
Integrating NFT functionality using Metaplex Token Metadata was... quite an experience. Documentation gaps, edge cases, unexpected behaviors - you name it. However, thanks to persistence and experimentation, we've successfully completed this integration - and are now working on upgrading our NFTs to the MPL Core standard for an even cleaner and more efficient UX.
### Fee mechanism design
Because Solana doesn't allow transferring value `SOL` **and** executing a program function in the same instruction, we had to rethink our approach to fee charging - and come up with a new one, from scratch.
### Instruction Stack Limit
Solana's instruction stack limit hit us hard. We couldn't fit all the necessary accounts into several of our instructions - and had to split the corresponding logic into more instructions with a smaller size.
The good news? Anchor fixed this problem in a later release (shoutout to the Anchor team!) - and we could, ultimately, go back to a simpler instruction architecture.
### Testing via TypeScript, Instead of Rust
Having to write our tests in TypeScript, rather than Rust (which is the language of the tested programs), was a real bummer. While Rust tests were, theoretically, possible, documentation- and feature-wise, TypeScript was the pragmatic choice for testing.
### Fuzz Testing with Trident
Striving to offer the safest UX to our users, we didn't think twice when we heard about [`Trident`](https://ackee.xyz/trident/docs/latest/) - a cutting-edge fuzzing framework for testing Solana programs. Its fast-paced development, breaking changes and poor documentation didn't scare us, as we eagerly became one of their early users - and used the framework to develop a Fuzz test suite of our own.
The fuzzer found zero bugs in our programs, transforming this challenge into a real achievement for Sablier!
## Contributing back
While developing SolSab, we've actively reported issues and submitted PRs to the open-source tools we depend on, including `Trident` and `anchor-bankrun`, because a rising tide lifts all boats!
## Testing Philosophy
Our testing strategy centers around `anchor-bankrun`'s time travel capability. When you're testing vesting schedules that unlock over months or years, fast-forwarding time is non-negotiable!
We also use:
- **Chainlink mocks** for deterministic price feed testing
- **External program fixtures** (Metaplex, Chainlink binaries) downloaded during the test setup
- **Trident** for fuzz testing and invariant checking
## Security Audit
For DeFi protocols handling user funds, third-party security review isn't optional - it's a must!
Therefore, we're pleased to share that we've successfully passed a security audit by **Cantina**. You can read the full [audit report on GitHub](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits/tree/main/solsab/v1.0).
## What's Next
We're not done! Our Solana roadmap for the near future includes:
- **LockupTranched**: More flexible vesting curves beyond linear streaming
- **MPL Core upgrade**: Cleaner NFT integration with the latest Metaplex standard
## Try It!
Check out the SolSab dApp at [solana.sablier.com](https://solana.sablier.com/), our open-source repo at [github.com/sablier-labs/solsab](https://github.com/sablier-labs/solsab) - or reach us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com) or on [Twitter](https://x.com/sablier) if you have any questions!
For the full technical breakdown of the SolSab programs, check out our [Solana documentation](https://docs.sablier.com/solana/sablier-on-solana).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
OTC Boxes are EARN'M way of turning long-term token allocations into liquid,
tradeable assets. Each Box is an NFT that represents the holder’s right to
later ac
ghostUuid: 0b9beebb-4288-4eb1-9dfd-d5829cdac1fc
publishedAt: '2025-11-26'
slug: how-earnm-uses-sablier-to-power-liquid-programmable-token-rights
tags: []
title: 'How EARN’M Uses Sablier to Power Liquid, Programmable Token Rights'
updatedAt: '2025-11-26'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/11/Sablier.webp
---
OTC Boxes are [EARN'M](https://www.earnm.com/) way of turning long-term token allocations into liquid, tradeable assets. Each Box is an NFT that represents the holder’s right to later activate a project-defined vesting schedule. EARN'M needed a way to convert a tradeable pre-vesting NFT into a controlled vesting stream only after activation, with enforced withdrawal rules and no possibility for users to bypass their logic.
They chose Sablier to provide secure, efficient, and programmable token vesting that could integrate cleanly with a custom ERC-721C-style NFT design
## **Challenge**
EARN'M’s product team wanted each user’s “right to tokens” to behave like an NFT:
- Each NFT represents a different claim amount (e.g., 1,000 tokens).
- NFTs can be traded on secondary markets with creator royalties. After a 2-month cliff, users must be able to forfeit the right to trade, then start unlocking tokens over time.
- Once the user chooses to access the tokens, the NFT becomes non-transferable and must obey custom withdrawal restrictions enforced by EARN'M’s logic.
Implementing a secure vesting system from scratch would have been a slow anderror-prone process, and it would have required ongoing maintenance.
EARN'M wanted a battle-tested solution but with full control over custom logic.
## **Solution**
EARN'M integrated Sablier Lockup directly into their custom NFT contract. The key pieces of the system are the following.
### **1\. Stream = NFT**
Each OTC Box NFT corresponds to a vesting schedule provided by the project.
Before activation:
- NFT is tradeable
- Vesting has not started
- No tokens are in the stream yet
When the user activates (“opens”) the Box:
- Transferability is permanently removed
- A Sablier Lockup stream is instantiated
- Tokens begin to unlock according to the vesting schedule
Before activation it's a liquid asset; after activation it becomes a non-transferable Sablier-powered vesting stream.
### **2\. Custom Withdraw Logic via Hooks**
EARN'M uses Sablier’s onSablierLockupWithdraw hook to gate withdrawals.
If the NFT is “frozen” (user opted to access tokens), EARN'M’s contract allows withdrawal.If not, the hook reverts, preventing users from bypassing EARN'M’s rules by calling Sablier directly.
### **3\. Restricting Direct Calls**
EARN'M enforces that only their custom contract can trigger withdrawals:
if (caller != address(this)) revert CallerNotCustomNFTContract();
This ensures users cannot claim tokens until EARN'M’s conditions are met.
### **4\. Clean UX**
When assigned as the stream recipient, users still see their stream in the [Sablier UI](https://app.sablier.com), preserving full transparency while EARN'M’s contract controls permissions.
**Results**
- Secure, audited streaming handled by Sablier
- No need to build a streaming system from scratch
- Seamless integration validated jointly between EARN'M and Sablier engineering teams
[EARN'M](https://www.earnm.com/) is now preparing a public example repository to help other teams integrate similar custom logic on top of Sablier.
## **What’s Next**
Sablier will continue supporting EARN'M as they refine their mirror-NFT contract and release a more polished integration example for the broader ecosystem.
EARN'M’s design shows how flexible, composable, and highly programmable token streaming can unlock new financial primitives.
If you’d like to build something similar, reach out! We’re always excited to support ambitious teams pushing onchain UX forward. Check out the Sablier Lockup codebase [here](https://github.com/sablier-labs/lockup).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Overview The Ethereum Community Fund (ECF) launched Pensieve, a decentralized,
community-powered knowledge base for crypto projects. Built to strengthen
account
ghostUuid: bda8d1aa-b9c9-41ac-b1f7-f84ea5fb667d
publishedAt: '2025-10-17'
slug: case-study-how-ecf-uses-sablier-to-power-transparent-accountable-web3-grants
tags: []
title: 'Case Study: How ECF Uses Sablier to Power Transparent, Accountable Web3 Grants'
updatedAt: '2025-10-17'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/10/Partnership.webp
---
### **Overview**
The [Ethereum Community Fund](https://ecf.network/) (ECF) launched [**Pensieve**](https://pensieve.ecf.network/), a decentralized, community-powered knowledge base for crypto projects. Built to strengthen accountability and transparency across the ecosystem, Pensieve enables communities to record, verify, and track project histories.
To complement this mission, ECF introduced a 10-week open grant campaign that rewards the most accountable projects validated through Pensieve. To make this process fully onchain and continuous, ECF chose Sablier as its streaming infrastructure for real-time payouts.
### **Challenge**
Traditional grant disbursements are opaque, slow, and prone to coordination inefficiencies. ECF wanted a way to:
- **Reward projects gradually** based on measurable accountability,
- **Increase transparency** for both funders and recipients,
- **Align incentives** between project milestones and payments.
### **Solution**
Using **Sablier Lockup**, ECF now streams funds directly to weekly grant winners — providing:
- **Automated onchain disbursement**: funds are streamed continuously, no manual payouts.
- **Instant visibility**: anyone can verify ongoing funding streams onchain.
- **Incentive alignment**: projects earn over time, encouraging sustained accountability.
> "Public goods deserve sunlight. Too often, early projects — the ones without tokens, hype, or venture backing — are left unfunded and unseen. The Perennial Grant Experiment aims to change that by putting every decision, profile, and payout in the open via Sablier. No hidden judges. No closed-door committees. Just an ecosystem that learns together and funds in public." — Cathy, Researcher, Lead of Operation and Comms at ECF
The most validated projects receive a Sablier stream from ECF’s treasury, visible to both community members and auditors. This setup turns the grant process into a **living, transparent ledger of trust**.
### **Results**
- **Radical transparency**: Each grant stream is publicly verifiable, aligning perfectly with Pensieve’s ethos of open accountability.
- **Improved efficiency**: No more batch payments — Sablier automates everything.
- **Community engagement**: Sablier’s integration encouraged stronger participation from ECF’s network and Web3 builders.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'Securely lock supply, allocations, or treasury funds — without writing code.'
ghostUuid: 06562383-7827-4985-bc97-bcd901cbec4b
publishedAt: '2025-10-15'
slug: how-to-timelock-tokens-on-solana
tags: []
title: How to Timelock Tokens on Solana
updatedAt: '2026-04-21'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/10/solana-timelock.webp
---
> **Update:** [our Solana deployment has entered maintenance mode](https://x.com/Sablier/status/2046186339612144116) and creating streams/airdrops on Solana is now deprecated.
**TL;DR:**
- Token timelocks prevent transfers before a fixed date, a simple way to prove credibility.
- On Solana, the easiest and safest way to do it is with **Sablier Lockup’s Timelock** curve.
- This guide explains how to lock tokens step-by-step using [**solana.sablier.com**](/sablier-launches-on-solana/).
### **Why Lock Tokens**
Locking tokens isn’t just for vesting teams. It’s how projects show commitment. Whether you’re a memecoin creator locking LP tokens or a DAO safeguarding treasury funds, a timelock ensures no one can move tokens until the unlock date.
Before Sablier, Solana teams had to rely on custom programs or opaque third-party tools — risky, unverified, and often impossible to audit.Sablier changes that: audited code, transparent onchain records, and a clean and beautiful interface.
### **Timelock on Sablier**
Sablier Lockup is our onchain vesting and token distribution protocol for Solana. It supports five curves at the moment: Linear, Cliff, Timelock, Unlock Linear, and Unlock Cliff.
The Timelock curve is the simplest: it locks tokens fully until a chosen date, after which the recipient can withdraw the entire balance in one transaction.
### **How It Works**
1. Go to [**solana.sablier.com**](https://solana.sablier.com).
2. Select **Create Stream → Timelock**.
3. Choose the token (SPL or Token-2022).
4. Enter the recipient address, amount, and unlock date.
5. Create the stream and sign the transaction.
Until that date, the tokens remain fully locked inside a program-owned vault. Once the unlock time arrives, the recipient can claim instantly — all onchain, fully transparent.
### **Security and Trust**
We take security extremely seriously:
- **Bug bounty:** up to $100K, see [this](https://sablier.notion.site/bug-bounty)
- **Audits:** conducted [with Cantina](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits/tree/main?tab=readme-ov-file&ref=blog.sablier.com#solsab).
- **Source-available:** our [codebase](https://github.com/sablier-labs/solsab) is open for anyone to review.
- **Extensive testing:** comprehensive [test suite](https://github.com/sablier-labs/solsab/tree/main/tests) to back our programs.
### **When to Use Timelock**
- **LP or treasury locks:** funds stay inaccessible until a set date.
- **DAO grants:** tokens remain frozen until program criteria are met.
- **Community or marketing allocations:** transparent commitment to fair distribution.
If you need gradual releases (for example, team or investor vesting), use Linear or Unlock Linear instead.
### **Start Locking in Seconds**
Timelocking tokens on Solana is now effortless. Create your first timelock today at [**solana.sablier.com**](https://solana.sablier.com).
No code. No risk. Just trust made programmable.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'Secure lockups and scalable airdrops, wherever your users are.'
ghostUuid: 3fd9847c-5c25-4155-b89d-a3f086d62eaa
publishedAt: '2025-09-30'
slug: sablier-launches-on-solana
tags: []
title: Sablier Launches on Solana
updatedAt: '2026-04-21'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/09/--I-INTRODUCING.webp
---
> **Update:** [our Solana deployment has entered maintenance mode](https://x.com/Sablier/status/2046186339612144116) and creating streams/airdrops on Solana is now deprecated.
### **TL;DR**
- **What’s live today:** Linear Vesting and Instant Airdrops on Solana.
- **How we’re launching:** Dedicated Solana interface at [](https://solana.sablier.com)[**solana.sablier.com**](http://solana.sablier.com), while [](https://app.sablier.com)[**app.sablier.com**](http://app.sablier.com) continues to serve EVM users.
- **Security first:** [Fully audited](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits/tree/main?tab=readme-ov-file#solsab) and extensively tested. Sablier has never been hacked in over six years of powering vesting for EVM protocols like Uniswap DAO, Immutable, and ShapeShift.
- **Pricing:** Same as EVM deployments — $1 withdrawal fee, $2 claim fee, charged in SOL alongside gas (fees can also be sponsored by the sender - [fill out this form](https://forms.gle/fmD4i2Pm3DwKarMi6) if you are interested)
**Call to action:** Teams and builders planning vesting or airdrops on Solana → [**reach out**](https://forms.gle/8r7iWTqXJCnxd6rJ7).
## Introduction
We live in a multi-chain world. Treasuries, vesting schedules, and community distributions stretch across ecosystems, and the tools need to follow. Whether a project is Ethereum-native, Solana-native, or anywhere in between, token distribution should just work.
That wasn’t the case so far on Solana. Today, we’re changing that.
## **Why Solana?**
A lot of this started with requests from Solana builders. Teams wanted the same vesting and airdrop tools they already trust and love on EVM, but on Solana. The reality was, the choices weren’t great: building custom contracts (expensive and risky) or using half-baked products with bad UX and questionable security.
Solana itself is a great fit. Fast finality and low fees make it perfect for things like large-scale airdrops, ecosystem incentives, and community rewards, meaning use cases where thousands or even millions of recipients might claim at once.That’s why we’re starting here.
With linear vesting and instant airdrops, we’re covering the essentials first. More will come later once we’ve had the chance to see how the community uses Sablier on Solana.
## **What’s Launching Today**
We will first be launching a limited release of Lockup, our vesting protocol, and Instant Airdrops. More vesting curves for Lockup, vested airdrops, CSV support and Flow (open-ended streams) will come later on based on user feedback.
As of now, Sablier on Solana supports five vesting curves: Linear, Cliff, Timelock, Unlock Linear and Unlock Cliff. These cover the core needs for team and investor vesting, grant programs, cliff schedules, and timelocked allocations.
## **Pricing**
No subscription fees and no outrageous registration fees, we’re keeping things simple: the same model we use on EVM. Every withdrawal costs $1, every claim costs $2. Both are charged in SOL alongside the network fee. Fees can also be covered by the sender if they choose. Network fees include rent fees, as well as [Metaplex](https://www.metaplex.com/)\-related fees, which we are using to power the stream NFTs.
If you’re planning a large-scale airdrop, [reach out](https://forms.gle/8r7iWTqXJCnxd6rJ7). We’re happy to discuss personalized pricing.
## **Product**
Your Ethereum and EVM streams stay on [app.sablier.com](http://app.sablier.com). To manage vesting or airdrop campaigns visit [solana.sablier.com](http://solana.sablier.com), or use the ecosystem toggle in the top-right corner.
## **Security**
Security has always been our core priority at Sablier. In over six years of powering vesting and distributions for protocols like Uniswap DAO, Immutable, ShapeShift, and Venice AI, with hundreds of thousands of total users, the Sablier protocol has never been hacked.
For Solana, we’re applying the same level of care:
- **Bug bounty:** up to $100K, see [this](https://sablier.notion.site/bug-bounty)
- **Audits:** conducted [with Cantina](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits/tree/main?tab=readme-ov-file#solsab).
- **Source-available:** our [codebase](https://github.com/sablier-labs/solsab) is open for anyone to review.
- **Extensive testing:** comprehensive [test suite](https://github.com/sablier-labs/solsab/tree/main/tests) to back our programs.
Sablier’s track record speaks for itself, and we intend to keep it that way.
## **License**
Just like our EVM deployments, our Solana programs are licensed under the Business Source License (BUSL 1.1). Think of it as a time-delayed GPL: for the first four years until 2029-10-01, commercial production use of the source code is restricted. After that, it automatically transitions into GPL v3.0-or-later indefinitely.
This approach protects the work we’ve put into building Sablier on Solana (nearly a year of engineering), while still guaranteeing that the code becomes fully open source over time.
Importantly, the BUSL license does not affect integrations. All code needed for external integrations—interfaces, data types, and more, is licensed under GPL. That means any protocol, web interface, mobile app, or other project can integrate with Sablier seamlessly.
If you require a BUSL exemption, please reach out [here](https://forms.gle/fmD4i2Pm3DwKarMi6)
## **FAQ**
**Are you abandoning EVM?** No, not at all. This is an expansion to help us better serve our users. We have several projects in the pipeline coming in the medium-term to EVM land!
**Why not only build on Ethereum?** Teams are multi-chain, we meet users where they are.
**How secure is Sablier?** Our codebase has been extensively audited, tested, is source-available, and we offer up to $100K in bounties for vulnerabilities. We’ve never had a vulnerability in six years while having users like Uniswap DAO and Axie Infinity. We intend to keep it that way.
**What’s your pricing?** $1 withdrawal fee, $2 claim fee. Both are charged in SOL alongside the network fees (i.e. transaction fee and rent fee). The fees we charge can also be covered by the sender if they choose. [Reach out](https://forms.gle/8r7iWTqXJCnxd6rJ7) if you’re organizing a large-scale airdrop.
## **Links**
- **Website:** [sablier.com](http://sablier.com)
- **Solana app:** [solana.sablier.com](http://solana.sablier.com)
- **EVM app:** [app.sablier.com](http://app.sablier.com)
- **X:** [x.com/sablier](http://x.com/sablier)
- **Email:** [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com)
- **Reach out to sales:** [https://forms.gle/8r7iWTqXJCnxd6rJ7](https://forms.gle/8r7iWTqXJCnxd6rJ7)
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Introduction Launching a token is about managing the long game, it's not just
about getting short-term hype and many exchange listings. And speaking of
token la
ghostUuid: 679a8a25-55c3-4a41-a30a-29dc7729f067
publishedAt: '2025-09-04'
slug: designing-fair-token-unlock-schedules-without-killing-your-price-chart
tags: []
title: Designing Fair Token Unlock Schedules (Without Killing Your Price Chart)
updatedAt: '2025-09-29'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/09/fair-unlocks.png
---
### Introduction
Launching a token is about managing the long game, it's not just about getting short-term hype and many exchange listings. And speaking of token launches, one of the biggest mistakes teams make is mishandling token unlock schedules. A poorly designed unlock can tank your price chart overnight, trigger backlash on [CT](http://crypto-twitter.urbanup.com/17680833), and undermine years of work.
Why? Because markets react violently to sudden increases in circulating supply. If insiders or contributors all receive their tokens at once, the inevitable sell pressure can overwhelm liquidity, crash the price, and destroy trust. Worse, these events often look like “insider dumps,” even if that wasn’t the intention. And retail hates nothing more than insiders dumping on them.
What’s really at stake goes far beyond the price:
- **Team trust**: contributors want confidence that their work translates into long-term value.
- **Investor confidence**: backers need assurance that their capital won’t be undercut by reckless unlocks.
- **Community alignment**: your users and token holders expect transparency and fairness in how supply enters circulation.
Designing unlock schedules isn’t just a small operational task, it's of major strategic importance. Done right, it keeps incentives aligned, markets stable, and your community engaged for the long haul.
## The Anatomy of a Token Unlock
Before designing a fair unlock schedule, it’s crucial to understand the moving pieces. Every project has different stakeholders, timelines, and pressures, but the underlying mechanics are always the same.
### Key Players
- **Team:** core contributors and founders, whose tokens represent both reward and long-term commitment.
- **Investors:** angels and VCs, who need liquidity but shouldn’t outpace actual project progress.
- **Advisors and Partners:** typically smaller allocations, meant to incentivize network effects or strategic value.
- **Community:** the broadest and most critical group. Users, LPs, and governance participants who expect fairness and visibility.
Each group has different expectations, but they all share one reality: their unlocks will hit the market eventually.
### Types of Unlocks
- **Cliffs:** tokens remain fully locked until a set date, then release in bulk. Simple, but risky: when the cliff ends, markets can face a sudden flood of supply.
- **Linear Vesting:** tokens unlock gradually over time (e.g., monthly over four years). Smoother than cliffs, but still creates periodic release events.
- **Milestone-Based Unlocks:** tokens unlock when goals are achieved (product launches, user milestones, or governance thresholds). Highly aligned, but harder to communicate clearly.
### The Trade-Off Triangle
Every unlock schedule must balance three forces:
- **Liquidity:** investors and contributors want access to capital.
- **Incentives:** unlocks should reward long-term builders, not short-term mercenaries.
- **Stability:** the market needs predictable, gradual supply to avoid volatility.
Push too hard on liquidity, and you risk dumps. Overemphasize stability, and you demoralize contributors who feel locked out of their rewards. Fair token design means finding the balance point where all three forces are respected.
## Common Mistakes (and Their Consequences)
Most token disasters don’t come from bad technology, they come from bad unlock design. Here are the most common mistakes teams make, and why they’re so damaging:
- **Front-Loaded Unlocks**
Releasing too many tokens early creates instant sell pressure. Even if insiders believe in the project long-term, the market interprets a wave of liquidity as a signal to sell. The result: price crashes, “rugpull” accusations, and a credibility hit that’s almost impossible to repair.
- **Overly Long Cliffs**
The opposite problem is just as harmful. If contributors or investors face multi-year cliffs with no liquidity at all, resentment builds. Contributors feel like they’re working for “phantom tokens” and may walk away. Investors may lose patience and disengage from supporting the project. Long-term alignment collapses before the project even matures.
- **No Transparency**
Surprise unlocks are poison for community trust. If holders don’t know when tokens are hitting the market, they assume the worst, especially in volatile conditions. Sudden unlocks not only destabilize price action, they also feed narratives of insider manipulation.
- **One-Size-Fits-All Schedules**
Not all stakeholders should vest the same way. Treating team, investors, and community airdrops identically almost always leads to misalignment. Investors may get liquidity faster than users, or contributors may face harsher terms than advisors. Either way, the market sees the imbalance, and confidence erodes.
## Principles of Fair Unlock Design
Designing a sustainable unlock schedule isn’t about copying what another project did, it’s about applying first principles that keep your stakeholders aligned and your market stable. Four principles stand out:
- **Alignment**
Unlock schedules should mirror the timeline of value creation. If contributors are building for four years, their tokens should unlock across that horizon, not before. Investors should unlock as the project gains traction, not when it’s still experimental. When unlocks match milestones, everyone’s incentives point in the same direction.
- **Predictability**
Markets hate uncertainty. The exact timing of token releases should be transparent from day one, with no surprises. Publish a calendar, automate the process onchain, and let everyone track the emissions curve. Predictability reduces FUD and allows holders to make rational decisions.
- **Graduality**
Smooth beats sharp. Instead of massive cliffs that flood supply overnight, use gradual vesting or streaming. Small, continuous unlocks give participants liquidity without overwhelming the market. Think of it as drip irrigation instead of a firehose.
- **Flexibility**
Not every stakeholder should vest the same way. Contributors may need faster liquidity than investors. Advisors might be tied to specific milestones. Community rewards might work best through streams or claimable schedules. Fair design adapts to each group, while keeping the overall system balanced.
## The Playbook: Designing Unlocks That Work
Turning principles into practice requires a clear process. Here’s a step-by-step playbook for designing unlock schedules that actually work in the real world:
### Step 1: Segment Stakeholders
Not all token holders are the same. Separate your allocations into team, investors, community, and partners. Each group has different needs, incentives, and risk profiles. A single schedule for everyone is guaranteed misalignment.
### Step 2: Map Expected Value Creation
Work backwards from your roadmap. When do you expect product launches, key integrations, or adoption milestones? Token unlocks should mirror these events, releasing supply only as real value accrues. This keeps stakeholders motivated and reduces the risk of premature selling.
### Step 3: Choose Vesting Formats
Pick the right mechanism for each group:
- Linear vesting for investors.
- Streaming vesting for contributors (continuous liquidity, no cliff shock).
- Milestone-based unlocks for advisors or partners.
- Hybrid models when alignment requires mixing formats.
### Step 4: Align Unlocks With Liquidity Events
Time unlocks with major market and governance events. Listing on an exchange? Avoid a large unlock the same week. Major vote coming? Ensure contributors already have voting power. Aligning unlocks with liquidity and governance moments maximizes impact while minimizing chaos.
### Step 5: Bake in Transparency With Onchain Tracking
Don’t just publish a PDF schedule, make it verifiable. Use tools like [Safe](https://safe.global) + [Sablier](https://sablier.com) to stream tokens directly from a multisig, with every unlock visible onchain. Transparency isn’t optional anymore, it’s the foundation of community trust.
## Tools and Best Practices
Even the best-designed unlock schedule can fail if it’s not implemented and communicated properly. The right tools make the difference between smooth, trusted distribution and chaotic surprises.
### Streaming Vesting: The End of Cliff Shocks
Instead of releasing tokens in large chunks, streaming vesting unlocks tokens continuously, second by second. Contributors get ongoing access to liquidity, while markets avoid sudden supply shocks. With Sablier, this happens natively onchain, so everyone can verify the flow of tokens in real time.
### Dashboards and Unlock Calendars
Transparency isn’t just about being fair, it’s about being visible. Dashboards and calendars showing upcoming unlocks give investors and community members confidence. When people can track token supply at a glance, it reduces speculation and keeps narratives focused on fundamentals, not fear.
### Learning From the Best
Projects that handled unlocks well tend to follow the same playbook: gradual releases, transparent tracking, and alignment with real value creation. Whether it’s teams streaming contributor rewards or DAOs tying unlocks to governance, the common thread is that supply enters the market in a way the community can anticipate and trust.
## Conclusion
Fair unlocks are more than just a technical detail, they’re the foundation of long-term alignment between your team, your investors, and your community. Poorly designed schedules create chaos, but thoughtful, transparent unlocks build trust and stability.
The formula is simple:
- Align unlocks with value creation.
- Make timing predictable and transparent.
- Stream gradually instead of dumping supply.
- Adapt formats to fit each stakeholder group.
Do this, and you transform unlocks from a risk into a strength.
At Sablier, we’ve seen first-hand how streaming unlocks reduce volatility, increase transparency, and keep incentives aligned. If your project is preparing for token unlocks, or correcting past mistakes, the easiest way to implement fair, real-time schedules is to put them onchain with [Safe](https://safe.global) + [Sablier](https://sablier.com).
Unlocks don’t have to kill your price chart. Done right, they can secure your project’s future.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Introduction Managing crypto payroll manually is a recurring operational
nightmare for DAOs and startups. Crypto teams rely on spreadsheets, manual
transfers fr
ghostUuid: 086cb1b6-9afa-490e-9191-8fc987a56805
publishedAt: '2025-08-15'
slug: how-to-automate-crypto-payroll-in-your-dao-or-startup-without-a-cfo
tags: []
title: How to Automate Crypto Payroll in Your DAO or Startup (Without a CFO)
updatedAt: '2025-08-15'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/08/Payroll-in-2-Clicks.png
---
## **Introduction**
Managing crypto payroll manually is a recurring operational nightmare for DAOs and startups. Crypto teams rely on spreadsheets, manual transfers from multisigs, and monthly reminders that are inefficient, error-prone, and impossible to scale. Contributors are often left in the dark, waiting on delayed payments, with no visibility or accountability.
Sablier solves this by turning payroll into a real-time, onchain stream. Instead of sending lump-sum transfers once a month, funds flow continuously to each contributor’s wallet using smart contracts. With Sablier, you can automate crypto payroll entirely, reduce operational overhead to zero, and give employees or contractors full transparency and control over their income.
Whether you're paying core contributors in USDC, contractors in your native token, or running a distributed team across multiple chains, Sablier offers a secure, auditable, and fully automated solution built specifically for leading organizations.
## **Why Onchain Payroll Is Better Than Offchain Payroll**
Onchain payroll eliminates the need for trust, manual intervention, and dependence on centralized SaaS tools.
Instead of relying on opaque SaaS tools or insecure internal workflows, teams should use smart contracts that execute autonomously, securely, and transparently on blockchains.
First, there’s no dependency on centralized software. Legacy payroll providers and even most crypto-native platforms operate via proprietary infrastructure that can go offline, get hacked, or freeze access to funds.
With Sablier, the protocol is entirely onchain and non-custodial, meaning your payroll logic is enforced directly by Ethereum smart contracts.
Second, it’s fully transparent. Every payment is verifiable onchain in real time. Recipients can see how much they’ve earned, when the stream started, and how much remains, all without needing to contact anyone. Auditors, contributors, and treasury managers get the same visibility without needing access to internal spreadsheets.
Third, Sablier is censorship-resistant and interface-independent. Even if Sablier’s frontend disappears, recipients can still claim funds directly via Etherscan or any block explorer. The protocol does not rely on any centralized service to function.
Fourth, onchain payroll removes the need for mutual trust between senders and recipients. Streams enforce the logic of the agreement automatically. Contributors don’t need to worry about late payments, and employers don’t risk overpaying or failing to enforce cliffs or vesting schedules.
Finally, it’s more cost-efficient. Instead of monthly multisig approvals, gas fees, and manual oversight, streams are deployed once and run autonomously. This drastically reduces recurring ops costs and eliminates payroll coordination overhead.
## **Why Streaming is Ideal for Payroll**
Streaming transforms payroll from a static, periodic event into a continuous, real-time financial flow. Instead of locking contributors into arbitrary monthly pay cycles, streaming ensures they earn by the second, with full visibility and control over their income.
For employees, this means immediate access to accrued compensation without waiting for the end of the month. For employers, it means better alignment with performance, reduced friction in cash management, and complete flexibility in adjusting or canceling streams when needed.
Streaming eliminates cash flow bottlenecks and overpayment risks. There’s no need to pre-fund large lump-sum transfers or track manual vesting schedules. Contributors earn what they’ve worked for up to the second, no more and no less.
It also enhances trust and accountability. Both parties can independently verify the payment schedule, status, and remaining balance at any time via the blockchain. There are no disputes, no reminders, and no uncertainty.
For any team operating in crypto, streaming is not just a novel payment mechanism. It is the most accurate, efficient, and trust-minimized model for compensating onchain contributors at scale.
## **Sablier Flow vs Sablier Lockup: Which Payroll Stream Should You Use?**
Sablier offers two powerful streaming formats tailored to different types of compensation: **Flow** and **Lockup**. Choosing the right one depends on whether you're paying ongoing employees or contractors on fixed-term engagements.
**Sablier Flow** is designed for full-time employees and long-term contributors. It creates **open-ended, real-time payment streams** that continue indefinitely until paused or canceled. You set a flow rate (e.g. $5,000 per month), and the stream accrues value every second. This model gives employees full visibility into their earnings, while allowing employers to modify, pause, or top up streams as needed. Flow is ideal for monthly crypto payroll, especially when paired with Safe multisigs and stablecoins like USDC or DAI.
**Sablier Lockup** is built for contractors, advisors, and contributors with a defined end date. It creates **closed-ended vesting streams** that release funds over a specific period, optionally with cliffs or discrete unlocks. Lockup ensures that contributors only receive what they’ve earned over time, with no risk of premature withdrawal. This is particularly useful for vesting agreements, milestone-based grants, and fixed-scope consulting arrangements.
Both models support full onchain transparency, programmable flexibility, and seamless recipient experience. In practice:
- Use **Flow** for recurring crypto payroll with no defined end date
- Use **Lockup** for time-limited contracts, grants, and vesting plans
Each is optimized for different needs, but both are powered by the same audited, battle-tested protocol infrastructure.
## **How Sablier Integrates Seamlessly with Safe Multisigs**
Sablier is fully integrated with **Safe** (formerly Gnosis Safe), the most widely used multisig wallet in web3. This integration allows DAOs, crypto startups, and treasury managers to create and manage onchain payroll streams directly from their Safe without requiring custom setup, extra wallets, or manual intervention.
Using Sablier with Safe means you retain full multisig security while automating payroll distribution across any supported EVM chain. Payroll streams can be created, paused, or canceled from within your existing Safe workflow, with all signers following the standard approval process. There is no need to move funds to a separate address or rely on insecure key management.
This setup enables organizations to run real-time crypto payroll from the same multisig used for treasury management, governance, and other financial operations. It eliminates the need for custom tooling or operational workarounds and ensures full auditability of all payment streams at both the smart contract and multisig transaction level.
For teams already using Safe to secure their funds, Sablier offers native compatibility, seamless UX, and scalable infrastructure for streaming payroll to any number of contributors, without compromising on security or composability.
## **Set It and Forget It: Zero Ongoing Payroll Operations**
One of the most powerful advantages of using Sablier for crypto payroll is that it requires no ongoing maintenance after setup. Once a stream is created, whether using Flow for open-ended payments or Lockup for fixed-term vesting, it runs autonomously, enforced directly by smart contracts onchain.
There’s no need for monthly approvals, no manual transfers, and no coordination with ops or finance teams. Contributors can independently monitor their earnings, track real-time accrual, and withdraw funds at their convenience using the Sablier interface or any compatible blockchain explorer.
Employers retain full control, with the ability to pause, cancel, or top up streams as needed. But in practice, most teams set streams once and never touch them again. This eliminates payroll overhead, reduces operational risk, and allows contributors to manage their own income without friction or delays.
For web3 organizations looking to automate compensation at scale, Sablier turns payroll into true onchain infrastructure, always-on, permissionless, and fully self-serve for both sender and recipient.
## **How to Pay Your Entire Team Using a CSV Upload**
Sablier supports **bulk stream creation** via CSV upload, allowing teams to automate payroll for dozens or even hundreds of contributors in a single transaction. This feature is ideal for DAOs, grant programs, airdrops with vesting schedules, and crypto-native companies managing multi-person payroll at scale.
The process is simple. You start by downloading the CSV template from the Sablier dashboard. Then, populate it with the required data: wallet addresses, token amounts, stream type (Flow or Lockup), start and end times, and optional parameters like cliffs or pause settings. Once uploaded, Sablier validates the input and batches the creation of all streams in one transaction.
Bulk creation drastically reduces operational overhead. Instead of manually setting up each stream, your entire team can be onboarded with real-time payroll in minutes. Every recipient gets their own independent stream, complete with onchain visibility and full self-service access via the Sablier interface.
For DAOs and crypto projects distributing compensation across large contributor bases, the CSV upload feature delivers scalable, secure, and gas-efficient onchain payroll infrastructure, all without writing a single line of code.
## **How to Use Sablier for Payroll: Step-by-Step Tutorial**
## **Metrics & Adoption: Sablier in the Wild**
Sablier is powering vesting and airdrops for thousands of organizations all around the world, including Uniswap DAO, Immutable, Maple, and many others.
Hundreds of individuals use Sablier for payroll. The Sablier Lockup protocol has already over $18M in cumulative stablecoin volume, for example. While the Sablier Flow protocol, more recent and a better fit for payroll, has already over $2.3M in cumulative stablecoin volume, in just a few months.
All Sablier protocols are [thoroughly audited and tested](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits?tab=readme-ov-file#audit-reports), and have received [extensive praise from leading security researchers](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits?tab=readme-ov-file#code-praise).
## **Real-World Example: How Silhouette Uses Sablier for Payroll – Interview with CEO Chandler De Kock**
We spoke with Chandler, the founder of [Silhouette](https://silhouette.exchange/), a shielded trading platform built on top of Hyperliquid. Silhouette uses end-to-end encryption to protect personal trade information, enabling the most sophisticated trading strategies to move freely onchain.
Silhouette currently pays its core team, eight contributors, in real-time using Sablier streams. The setup is integrated with [Safe](https://safe.global) multisig, making it easy to distribute funds securely and transparently.
Chandler noted that contributors appreciate the continuous accrual model and the control they have over withdrawing funds at any time.
However, he also highlighted some challenges: retroactive modifications to streams are not possible unless you cancel the stream (assuming it was set as cancelable), which can make correcting mistakes costly. Learning to use an onchain, immutable protocol like Sablier has a steeper learning curve compared to traditional tools.
Chandler emphasized the importance of using web3-native infrastructure:
“I think it's very important web3 teams use web3 tools. You guys are definitely one of the standard economic tools of the future.”
## **Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)**
**Can I pause or cancel a payroll stream?**
Yes. Sablier allows employers to configure streams with optional pause or cancel permissions. If enabled during setup, streams can be paused temporarily or canceled entirely at any time. This provides full control in case a contributor leaves early, a mistake was made, or a contract is terminated.
**Is Sablier a custodial payroll service?**
No. Sablier is 100% non-custodial. You retain full control of funds until they are streamed. Tokens move directly from your wallet or Safe to the recipient via smart contracts onchain. Sablier cannot access, freeze, or redirect funds under any circumstances.
**Can I use Sablier on multiple blockchains?**
Yes. Sablier supports streaming on over 20 EVM-compatible chains including Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Polygon, Gnosis, zkSync, and more. You can create streams on different chains from a single interface, making it easy to pay contributors based on their chain preferences or cost-efficiency needs.
**Who pays the gas fees for payroll streams?**
There are two types of gas fees: creation and withdrawal.
- Employers (stream creators) pay gas when creating the stream
- Recipients pay a small fee (~$1) when withdrawing funds Employers who wish to cover withdrawal fees on behalf of recipients can reach out to the Sablier team to sponsor these fees on their recipients’ behalf.
**What happens if Sablier’s frontend is unavailable?**
Sablier streams live entirely onchain. Even if the app or website goes offline, recipients can still access, track, and withdraw their funds directly using Etherscan or any block explorer. This makes Sablier resilient, censorship-resistant, and interface-independent.
**Can I fund payroll streams from a multisig wallet like Safe?**
Yes. Sablier integrates natively with Safe, the most widely used multisig wallet in crypto. You can create, manage, and cancel streams directly from your Safe without needing to transfer funds or create new wallets.
**How does Sablier compare to traditional SaaS payroll tools?**
Unlike SaaS payroll platforms, Sablier does not hold your funds or operate through centralized infrastructure. It provides direct onchain execution, full transparency, and no counterparty risk. It’s also composable with other web3 tools and accessible across multiple chains—making it a better fit for DAOs, crypto startups, and distributed teams.
**Is it possible to automate recurring raises or bonuses?**
Yes, you can manually increase a Flow stream’s rate or top up a recipient’s stream at any time. For more complex workflows, you can integrate Sablier with smart contract schedulers or payroll management scripts via the API or subgraph.
## **Conclusion**
Streaming payroll is rapidly becoming the standard for DAOs, crypto startups, and web3-native teams. It replaces manual payments, fragmented tools, and operational bottlenecks with transparent, automated, trustless infrastructure.
Sablier allows any organization to set up real-time token payroll in minutes—whether you're paying one contributor or thousands. With native support for Safe, multi-chain compatibility, and fully non-custodial smart contracts, Sablier delivers unmatched control, scalability, and efficiency.
By using Sablier Flow for ongoing contributors and Sablier Lockup for fixed-term contractors, teams can design tailored compensation systems that align incentives and reduce risk.
Once deployed, streams run autonomously, giving contributors 24/7 access to their funds while eliminating monthly coordination and approval overhead for employers.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
TL;DR: Distribute tokens directly from your Safe{Wallet}, with full control,
and transparency. Whether you're launching an airdrop campaign, or in need of
a bat
ghostUuid: c0d45729-eee4-4c0f-8d10-09335f702f26
publishedAt: '2025-06-30'
slug: how-to-vest-airdrop-tokens-using-sablier-in-safe-multisig
tags: []
title: Vest and Airdrop Tokens Using Sablier in Safe Multisig
updatedAt: '2025-09-29'
featureImage: >-
/content/images/2025/09/how-to-vest-and-airdrop-tokens-using-sablier-in-safe-multisig-1.png
---
**TL;DR:** Distribute tokens directly from your Safe{Wallet}, with full control, and transparency. Whether you're launching an airdrop campaign, or in need of a battle-tested token-vesting solution, [Sablier](https://sablier.com) is the ideal fit. Token distribution on Safe has never been this secure and simple.
## **Why Vesting and Airdrops Need a Better Solution**
Token distribution is one of the most important events in a project’s lifecycle. Mistakes carry a huge price. Yet most teams still rely on manual transfers, custom vesting contracts, and unaudited ad hoc solutions to distribute tokens to contributors, investors, or early users.
This leads to wasted time, money, energy and focus.
Sablier fixes this. It’s an immutable battle-tested and [extensively audited](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits) protocol for onchain token distribution. DAOs and businesses use Sablier for vesting, payroll, airdrops, and more, all from their Safe wallet.
## **What You Can Do with Sablier + Safe**
### **Vest tokens to contributors, teams, and investors**
Create linear or cliff-based vesting schedules from your Safe multisig. Funds can be allocated continuously over time, by the second, or in tranches, e.g. monthly. Recipients can withdraw vested funds whenever they want.
Streams can be created by entering recipient data manually in the Sablier Safe app, uploading a CSV file in the app, or directly interacting with the Sablier contracts onchain.
Learn more about vesting using Sablier [here](https://sablier.com/vesting?utm_source=safe_blog&utm_campaign=blog_feature).
### **Make your payroll perfectly smooth**
Payment streams can be created using Sablier, which unlike vesting streams, have the option to be topped up, paused and voided, making them ideal for onchain payroll.
Debt is accounted for, meaning if a stream runs out of funds, it will accumulate debt until the sender either tops it up, or voids it.
Learn more about payroll using Sablier [here](https://sablier.com/payroll?utm_source=safe_blog&utm_campaign=blog_feature).
### **Airdrop tokens to millions of individuals**
Distribute tokens to millions of wallets for pennies. Airdrops can be vested over time, or instant.
Sablier’s Merkle Airdrops infrastructure makes token airdrops incredibly cheap, and scalable. Eligible recipients can either claim via the Sablier Interface, or a custom interface you built integrating the Sablier contracts.
Learn more about airdrops using Sablier [here](https://sablier.com/airdrops?utm_source=safe_blog&utm_campaign=blog_feature).
### **Use Safe{Wallet} as your source of truth**
All token streams originate from your Safe. No bridges, no wrappers, no compromised custody. No one but you has access to your funds. Every transaction is authorized through your existing multisig setup. ERC-20 approvals are batched with the stream creation transactions for a seamless user experience.
The Sablier protocol has been [extensively audited](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits), and is fully immutable.
Their responsive customer service and seamless integration with Safe make the experience even more delightful. — Ryan O’Shea, Head of Operations at Maple
## **Why Teams Choose Sablier**
### **Minimize risk**
No custom scripts, no unreliable vibe-coded custom vesting/airdrop contracts. Embrace safety, and peace of mind. Sablier has been around since 2019, and has never been hacked. The Sablier codebase has received [extensive praise](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits?tab=readme-ov-file#code-praise) from leading security researchers in the industry.
### **Align incentives**
Token streams align incentives, they force long-term thinking. Whether it’s airdrops, grants or token vesting, there is no greater cost than a lack of alignment.
Industry leaders like Fluid, Venice, Polynomial and hundreds of others trust Sablier for multi-year streams worth millions of dollars.
### **Save time**
No more manual payments, building custom vibe-coded contracts or interfaces, having to explain to a stakeholder how to claim their tokens, etc.
Sablier users enjoy a “sit back and relax” experience. No need to create an account, just connect your wallet, create the streams, and our battle-tested onchain contracts take care of the rest. If a recipient has a problem, a support chat is natively provided on our interface with a rapid response time.
Each stream has a secure link, enabling you to share it with the recipient, or even third parties.
### **Go live in minutes**
Setup vesting streams, payments, airdrops, grants, and more directly from your Safe. Everything stays within your existing treasury workflow. Enter recipient data manually, or upload a spreadsheet instead.
## **Conclusion**
Sablier brings confidence to token distribution, an area where mistakes can’t be made.
Whether you're distributing tokens to contributors, investors, or early users, Sablier ensures that every stream is transparent, onchain, and perfectly aligned with your treasury strategy.
Integrated directly into Safe{Wallet}, it’s the fastest and most secure way to vest or airdrop tokens without compromising your workflow.
If you’re launching a token, there’s no better way to handle its distribution.
Start today at [app.sablier.com](http://app.sablier.com/?utm_source=safe_blog&utm_campaign=blog_feature).
---
[Here is a full tutorial](https://docs.sablier.com/support/how-to#how-to-create-a-vesting-stream-using-a-safe-multisig-wallet) on how to use Sablier using your Safe wallet.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
How to streamline staking rewards with real-time vesting and scalable
airdrops.
ghostUuid: 258167b7-137b-4158-b5a1-98e95de03346
publishedAt: '2025-05-30'
slug: building-a-staking-program-using-sablier
tags: []
title: Building a Staking Program Using Sablier
updatedAt: '2025-09-29'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/09/staking-rewards-1.png
---
_If you are wondering how to set up staking for tokens being vested in Sablier, head over_ [_here_](https://docs.sablier.com/guides/lockup/examples/staking/setup)_._
You want to build a staking program, and you want to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on audits, countless hours of programming, etc.? Sablier provides two battle-tested tools, Flow and Airdrops, to help you launch incredibly gas efficient and secure staking programs.
## What is Sablier Flow?
Sablier Flow is a debt tracking protocol that tracks tokens owed between two parties, enabling indefinite token streaming.
In practice, this means you can create streams that last indefinitely, that will account for debt when the sender runs out of debt, while not relying on a liquidation system, or wrapped tokens. Streams can be paused, voided, and optionally transferred (if allowed by sender) using the stream NFT, an NFT owned by the recipient that represents the stream (whoever owns the NFT is the recipient of the stream).
Flow was initially built with recurring payments in mind. Use cases like payroll, subscriptions, rent, and other similar use cases. It truly shines for those use cases, being battle-tested, immutable, and incredibly gas-efficient.
## Using Flow for Staking
However, it turns out that it also happens to be a great fit for staking. One of the features of Flow is that a stream can be topped up. In practice, this means that in a staking program, a new stream doesn’t need to be created every time rewards are distributed.
One can imagine a system where when a user first starts staking, the stream is created, and from that point on, every time they claim their staking rewards, those rewards are deposited into the stream and vested over time to the staker.
This has two great implications:
- **A cost-effective structure in terms of gas fees:** the vesting stream is only created once, and from that point one it’s just top up transactions that are light in gas
- **A vesting distribution program for staking rewards:** ensures token holders stay committed to the project for the long run and don’t immediately dump.
When a user unstakes funds, the stream can simply be paused, or alternatively voided, either right when the unstaking happens, or after all funds have already been streamed over in the stream.
You can offer a complete integration from your end, allowing stakers to manage their vested staking rewards on your interface, or just use [the Sablier interface](https://app.sablier.com).
The streaming rate of a stream can also be modified subsequently, as many times as you want, to dynamically modify how many tokens each recipient receives by the second.
The best part? Sablier Flow is an immutable protocol. The Sablier Labs team has no access to user funds, meaning stakers can safely let their staking rewards accumulate within Sablier, and only withdraw funds from the protocol when actually needed, saving up on gas fees. Only they can access their funds anyway.
Sablier Flow also has the advantage of being deployed on virtually [every EVM blockchain out there](https://docs.sablier.com/guides/flow/deployments), ensuring you can build your staking program on the chain where your community is active on.
## What is Sablier Airdrops?
Sablier Airdrops is a tool that allows you to airdrop tokens, either instantly or via vesting streams, to hundreds, thousands and even millions of people.
Eligible recipients either claim on the Sablier interface, or on a custom interface on your own website that Sablier can provide or you can build yourself by integrating our protocol.
For vested airdrops, when users claim, they receive a stream in which the tokens are vested in. For instant airdrops, they receive the tokens directly into their wallet when claiming.
Sablier Airdrops is available on just about any EVM chain, and soon coming to Solana.
## Using Airdrops for Staking
It turns out that you can use Sablier Airdrops for a variety of use cases, not just token launches. One of these is the distribution of staking rewards.
Instead of continuously streaming rewards like with Flow, you can run recurring airdrop campaigns (e.g., weekly, bi-weekly, monthly) that distribute tokens either instantly or in a vested manner to your stakers.
Here’s how it works:
- Take a snapshot of eligible stakers and their reward amounts
- Upload it as a CSV to Sablier’s interface and create the campaign
- Tokens are distributed instantly or as vested airdrops
Using Sablier Airdrops has the advantage of being incredibly scalable. It’s a product specifically made for mass token distribution. The best part? You can offer the claiming experience on your own website, so stakers aren’t even aware Sablier is doing the lifting in the background.
## Conclusion
Using Sablier for a staking program is an excellent idea. Our solutions are battle-tested and immutable, while enabling staking rewards vesting, ensuring long-term community alignment.
The future of staking is real-time token streaming. Start today, at [app.sablier.com](http://app.sablier.com).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'Sablier Research Series: Airdrop Strategy and User Incentives'
ghostUuid: 37b131e8-828f-4b6d-b2c7-7dbbe6407395
publishedAt: '2025-05-16'
slug: case-study-analyzing-the-zora-airdrop
tags:
- case-study
title: 'Case Study: Analyzing the $ZORA Airdrop'
updatedAt: '2025-05-16'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/05/airdrop-zora.webp
---
When it comes to token launches, few things are as hyped and as misunderstood as airdrops.
Positioned as a reward mechanism for early users, airdrops often promise much more than they deliver. The recent $ZORA token launch is a prime example. Framed as a “fun” experiment for the onchain creator economy, it ended up frustrating loyal users, missing key onboarding opportunities, and failing to drive long-term engagement. In this post, we break down what went wrong, why it matters, and how projects can avoid making the same mistakes.
## Key Stats
- $20M in tokens distributed
- 526,000+ wallets received airdrops
- Only 0.7% bought more tokens (~$3.5M in purchases)
- 81.5% of recipients made zero follow-up transactions
- Just 0.3% had 10+ transactions post-airdrop
- Token price dropped >65% within hours of launch
- $2,000 wasted on onchain storage (Base), vs. $1 using a Merkle airdrop
**Sources:** [Serotonin](https://x.com/serotonin_hq/status/1919436251414884463) and internal research from Sablier Labs.
# What Went Wrong
## 1\. Lack of Clear Objectives
Zora claimed the token was “for fun” with no governance, no equity rights, etc. while executing a massive airdrop that mimicked more serious, value-driven token launches. This led to mixed messaging, unclear expectations, and a lack of incentives to hold or acquire the token. Later attempts to assign utility will look reactive.
**Mistake:** ignoring token utility.
## 2\. Poor Targeting & Distribution Design
Instead of focusing on high-conviction users (like weekly creators with significant activity), Zora opted for broad eligibility. Many core contributors received very small allocations (e.g. [$77 for users with 400+ mints](https://x.com/pet3rpan_/status/1915061875743617450)), while airdrop farmers got equal or better rewards.
**Mistake:** not focusing and prioritizing core loyal users.
## 3\. No Incentivized Onboarding
The airdrop didn’t drive users into the product. There was no requirement to use the Zora app, no onchain delegation, and no gamified onboarding journey. Restricting airdrops to the app itself, and requiring users to mint/post content in order to claim, would have offered a great onboarding experience.
**Mistake:** not leveraging the airdrop as a growth funnel.
## 4\. High Burn Rate for No Retention
Zora spent a lot of resources on this token launch: ~$2,000 on-chain (they would have spent only $1 [had they used a merkle architecture](/airdrop-distribution-models-comparison-2025/)), millions in token value, and a lot of team effort. In return, it got a 3-day spike in activity, followed by rapid decay.
**Mistake:** airdrops are expensive and should be treated as such, using them as a one-off PR stunt is inefficient and demoralizes users.
# What They Could’ve Done Instead
Here’s what Zora could have done instead, to make this airdrop campaign a real success.
- **Focused targeting:** reward top 5,000-10,000 engaged users. Not more. Use mint counts, spending, social signals, and verified NFT communities to filter out Sybil wallets and known airdrop farms.
- **In-app claiming UX:** restrict airdrop claims to the Zora app, so users are forced to download it and onboard via the app.
- **Airdrop gamification:** give a base reward and let users unlock more through missions (mint, refer, engage). Encourage creators to compete as cohorts or collectives.
- **Soft utility:** offer exclusive features, access, fee discounts, or fee revenues to token-holders. Could also include token-gated discovery or creator analytics.
- **Use proper airdrop architecture:** using onchain storage isn’t the right way of doing things. Modern airdrops leverage a merkle architecture [for a reason](https://x.com/sy100x/status/1915077407754625441). It’s cheaper, more efficient, and battle-tested.
# Conclusion
The $ZORA airdrop serves as a case study in how not to structure user-facing token launches.
Despite noble intentions and a strong brand, the lack of clear goals, thoughtful targeting, and product-driven incentives led to a fleeting spike in activity, but no durable engagement.
As airdrops mature from speculative gimmicks into serious growth tools, teams must design them with precision: reward real users, tie distribution to usage, and align incentives with long-term value creation.
Otherwise, you're not building a community, you’re just subsidizing exit liquidity.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Avoid price crashes, reputational damage, and operational headaches by fixing
these common token unlock mistakes.
ghostUuid: 60e1e722-16cd-4df5-81c8-f24c3d337aa2
publishedAt: '2025-05-08'
slug: top-5-mistakes-teams-make-with-token-unlocks-and-how-to-avoid-them
tags: []
title: Top 5 Mistakes Teams Make With Token Unlocks (And How to Avoid Them)
updatedAt: '2025-05-12'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/05/top-5-mistakes.webp
---
Token unlocks can define the success of a project. A badly managed token unlock process can lead to detrimental price performance, hurt your credibility, and alienate your community.
Tokenomics are a key part of a project’s lifecycle and should definitely not be neglected. Here are the top mistakes we have seen projects make across the years, as well as how they can be prevented.
## 1\. Using a Custom Vesting Contract
Token distribution is a whole industry in and of itself. It’s a complex subject, with hundreds of different ways of approaching the problem, dozens of different solutions, etc.
In that context, it makes no sense to build your own vesting contracts. Unless you pay for audits, making it even more expensive, there are major security risks in doing so. Recipients will also face a subpar claiming experience, unless you build an interface on top of the vesting contracts, adding even more engineering work to the table.
And what about support requests? Recipients will inevitably have issues claiming, questions, etc. are you willing to handle this too?
You can read more about the downsides of custom vesting contracts [here](/why-choose-sablier-over-custom-vesting-contracts/), and how Sablier is a much better fit.
## 2\. Manually Distributing Tokens
Instead of building custom vesting contracts, some projects opt for manual token distributions, where they will either distribute tokens via ERC-20 transactions every month, quarter or year, or alternatively do so when requested by an eligible recipient to avoid triggering a periodic tax event.
This is a subpar solution, as it takes up a lot of your time, and recipients have to trust they will indeed receive the tokens. Distributing tokens in this fashion on a regular basis is also error-prone. Mistakes happen, what if you send tokens to the wrong address?
With a token vesting solution like Sablier, vesting streams can be created in a “set-and-forget” approach. [Treasury managers love Sablier](/why-your-treasury-manager-will-love-sablier-and-you-too/) for that reason. Made a mistake? Simply cancel the stream and get the unpaid funds back.
The core Sablier protocol is fully immutable, meaning no trust is required in Sablier, and recipients can rest assured knowing that their tokens are being vested through extensively audited and battle-tested onchain infrastructure.
## 3\. Not Vesting Tokens to KOLs
It’s customary to give Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) a token allocation for marketing purposes. However, many projects make the mistake of not vesting those tokens, resulting in immediate token dumping, which in turn results in reputational damage for the project.
It’s bad optics, it’s an erosion of trust, it’s retail getting REKT. It’s just not worth it.
Token vesting solves this problem by spreading out token unlocks over time, [up to the second if you want to](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/streaming), making the price action of your token smoother, and leading to stronger investor confidence as well as better incentives for KOLs.
Instead, vest these tokens over time. [Here is a blog post](/how-token-vesting-for-kol-distributions-prevents-instant-dumping/) explaining why and how to do so.
## 4\. Lacking transparency
This happens often with manual vesting, where projects won’t publicly communicate vesting schedules and projected token supply growth. For many this is an instant turn-off, as it makes it impossible to know whether an insider has the capability to dump a large allocation of tokens at any given time, leading to uncertainty. And markets hate uncertainty.
Sablier makes transparency very easy. You can share with [CoinMarketCap](http://coinmarketcap.com), [CoinGecko](https://coingecko.com), and other price trackers the [Sablier vesting contract address on the chain](https://docs.sablier.com/guides/lockup/deployments) you are vesting on, allowing them to automatically filter out tokens locked up in Sablier from the circulating supply.
You can alternatively also simply share the links to the vesting streams to your community. Sablier makes this incredibly easy, by allowing you to share a page with all the streams created by your address. [Here](https://app.sablier.com/vesting/?t=search&c=1&s=0xec83f8f9d37caf8ffc47d1bdaf74e36f3ba7eb11) is an example.
## 5\. Not following the standard 1-year cliff + 4-year vesting model
There is a reason why a 1-year cliff and four-year subsequent linear vesting is customary in Silicon Valley. It’s because it works. It’s because it creates the right incentives. It’s because it’s been proven to lead to the right outcomes in countless cases.
If one of your employees, for example, walks away within the first year of launching the token, they receive no tokens under this model. This forces long-term alignment and commitment from key stakeholders, as they only start receiving tokens a year after the token is launched, and only linearly from that point on, taking another four years to get to the full allocation.
Avoiding a cliff leads to short-term incentives, and the case is similar when shortening the vesting period. On the other hand, making the cliff or vesting period longer may lead to disappointments inside of your team or among key stakeholders.
The reality is simple. You should use a 1-year cliff and a four-year vesting plan. There is a reason why it’s the standard. The good news is [you can do so using Sablier](https://app.sablier.com/vesting/gallery/).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
We’ll stop indexing new v1.x streams in our interface starting June 23, 2025
to reduce complexity and focus on v2.0—existing streams remain unaffected.
ghostUuid: a4079d1f-9a07-44ac-892e-862c67910e34
publishedAt: '2025-04-21'
slug: sablier-lockup-v1-x-interface-tracking-changes-coming-june-23-2025
tags: []
title: 'Sablier Lockup v1.x: Interface Tracking Changes Coming June 23, 2025'
updatedAt: '2025-05-12'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/05/sablier-indexing-deprecation-1.webp
---
> **Update:** This post was written while Lockup v2.0 was the latest release. As of 2026, Sablier Lockup v4 is current — see [docs.sablier.com/lockup](https://docs.sablier.com/lockup) for up-to-date information.
Starting June 23rd, midnight UTC, newly created streams with Sablier Lockup v1.0, v1.1, and v1.2 will no longer be indexed by the Sablier interface. This means they won’t appear in the dashboard or be queryable through our interface.
Old streams created before June 23rd will continue to be indexed as usual. This change only affects created streams using v1.0, v1.1, or v1.2 after June 23rd, 2025. The docs on our release history and versioning scheme can be found [here](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/what-is-sablier#release-history). This update **does not affect** the underlying smart contracts.
To be clear:
- ✅ **Streams created _before_ June 23rd** using v1.0, v1.1, or v1.2 will **continue to be indexed and displayed**.
- ❌ **Streams created _after_ June 23rd** using v1.0, v1.1, or v1.2 **will not be visible** on the Sablier interface.
Users who create streams via our interface are unaffected as it relies on Lockup v2.0, our most advanced and secure protocol.
But if a third-party interface uses a Lockup v1.x contract to create streams, those streams will no longer appear in the Sablier Interface.
We strongly urge any integrators that still rely on deprecated Sablier Lockup protocol releases to migrate to v2.0. A changelog between v1.x and v2.0 is available [here](https://github.com/sablier-labs/lockup/releases/tag/v2.0.0).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Two-year vesting made effortless using Sablier.
ghostUuid: 31e5a9e3-a158-4282-af3c-6fef3f4ae139
publishedAt: '2025-04-18'
slug: arcadia-uses-sablier-to-vest-aaa-tokens-across-team-investors-lps
tags: []
title: 'Arcadia Uses Sablier to Vest AAA Tokens Across Team, Investors & LPs'
updatedAt: '2025-04-18'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/04/sablier-arcadia.webp
---
[Arcadia](https://arcadia.finance) streamlines clAMM liquidity management across DEX ecosystems like Aerodrome, Uniswap, et. al. through its unified Liquidity Management Layer (LML). As a protocol-level solution, Arcadia serves projects looking to optimize protocol-owned liquidity as well as institutional asset managers who require non-custodial LP management solutions. Permissionless and modular, Arcadia is core infrastructure for the future of DeFi.
Backed by Coinbase Ventures, Arcadia is live on Base with additional outposts across the Superchain planned in the coming months. Supporting Uniswap v4 Hooks and offering LP automation and liquidity bribing on a DEX-agnostic aggregation layer, Arcadia's suite of LP management tools drastically reduces overhead for professionals in an increasingly complex landscape.
### **The Challenge**
To support the launch of their AAA token, Arcadia needed to distribute tokens to 70 recipients—including team members, early investors, advisors, and liquidity providers—without creating sell pressure or operational complexity. The requirements:
- 2-year vesting plans to reassure the community and avoid dumping
- Different unlock curves per recipient type
- No custom contracts or interfaces
- Transparent, secure infrastructure
> _“We wanted our community to know we’re in this for the long haul, which is why we chose a two-year vesting period. Sablier made it incredibly easy to implement, with no engineering lift and full transparency. It’s hands down the best way to handle token distribution.”_ — [Thomas Smets](https://x.com/ThmsSmts), Arcadia CEO
### **Why Arcadia Chose Sablier**
Sablier’s protocol offered exactly what Arcadia was looking for:
- **2-Year linear vesting**: All recipients are subject to a long-term, two-year vesting period.
- **Real-Time transparency**: Token streams are visible and verifiable onchain, instilling trust with the community.
- **No-code setup**: Arcadia created all vesting streams via Sablier’s UI—no engineering work or audits required.
- **Battle-tested security**: With audited contracts and over [$500M in Total Value Locked (TVL)](https://dune.com/sablier/metrics), Sablier’s infrastructure is proven and reliable.
### **Impact**
With Sablier, Arcadia:
- Prevented early dumps by committing all recipients to long-term schedules
- Avoided spending thousands of dollars on custom vesting contracts
- Increased community trust via transparent, auditable streams
### **Conclusion**
Arcadia turned token vesting into a strategic advantage. With 70 unique streams set up across all key stakeholders, Sablier gave them the control, flexibility, and trust guarantees needed to grow AAA sustainably.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'The why and how of vested, manual-claim, and direct-transfer airdrops.'
ghostUuid: 9d8d4fb1-6e54-4ddc-b9d1-24074eebffe9
publishedAt: '2025-04-11'
slug: airdrop-distribution-models-comparison-2025
tags: []
title: Airdrop Distribution Models Comparison (2025)
updatedAt: '2025-04-11'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/04/airdrop-distribution-comparison.webp
---
Airdrops have become the standard way to launch a token in the crypto industry, consistently used to attract new community members, reward early supporters, or start up a new governance program. But “airdrop” is a broad term. Behind every airdrop campaign, there are decisions about lockups, claiming mechanisms, costs, user experience, and long-term strategy. This report looks at three distinct distribution models for airdrops:
1. **Instant but Manually Claimed Airdrops** – Tokens are distributed instantly but require user action to claim
2. **Instant and Directly Transferred Airdrops** – Tokens are sent directly to recipients with no effort required
3. **Vested Airdrops** – Tokens are distributed over time to recipients
Each approach shapes user behavior, community sentiment, as well as the token’s market trajectory. Whether your goal is to prevent huge sell-offs, maximize user engagement, or simply get tokens into as many hands as possible, choosing the right distribution method is critical.
In this article, we explore each distribution’s mechanics, highlight real-world examples, and analyze strategic considerations so you can decide which fits your project.
---
### **1\. Vested Airdrops**
**How They Work**
In a vested airdrop, recipients know they have a certain allocation of tokens but cannot immediately use or sell the entire amount. Instead, these tokens unlock incrementally—maybe monthly, [block-by-block](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/streaming), or at key milestones—over a set time period. Some projects build advanced structures such as penalties for early withdrawals or reassigning forfeited tokens to loyal holders. Most vested airdrops require a manual claim transaction from the end recipient to start the token vesting.
Typically, vesting is enforced by a smart contract that either:
- Holds the full allocation in escrow and releases portions over time, or
- Deposits the tokens in the user’s wallet with transfer restrictions (a token-level “transfer lock”), though this requires specific token contract features.
**Key Example:**
- [**Exactly**](https://exact.ly) **(EXA 2023)**: distributed tokens to protocol participants but vested them over time. When users claimed the airdrop, a vesting stream was created in which the tokens were gradually released.
**Pros**
1. **Reduced dumping risk:** vesting prevents massive sell pressure on day one.
2. **Long-term alignment:** the gradual release of tokens incentivizes recipients to stay active in the community.
3. **Behavior incentives:** vesting conditions (staking, governance participation, etc.) can be enforced before full ownership.
**Cons**
1. **User frustration:** some users dislike partial or delayed access; if the token’s value drops mid-vesting, they feel trapped.
2. **Market overhang:** future unlocks loom over the market, creating the possibility of predictable sell pressure.
**Who Should Use Vested Airdrops?**
Projects aiming to avoid pump-and-dump speculation. Protocols that want an active, loyal holder base often prefer vesting to ensure new token recipients are genuinely aligned. For instance, [**Safe**](https://safe.global) **(SafeDAO)** gave half of its airdropped governance tokens immediately but vested the other half over four years, ensuring recipients would remain involved.
Sablier is an ideal fit for vested airdrops, learn more [here](https://sablier.com/airdrops/).
---
### **2\. Instant but Manually Claimed Airdrops**
**How They Work**
With instant but manually claimed airdrops, tokens are allocated to a set of addresses, but each recipient must visit a claim portal or interact with a contract to get their tokens. Projects often post a “Merkle root” onchain that encodes who is eligible and for how much. The user provides a Merkle proof in a transaction, the contract verifies it, and then transfers the tokens.
**Key Example:**
- [**Uniswap**](https://uniswap.org) **(UNI, 2020)**: famous for awarding 400 UNI to every wallet that had used Uniswap before a certain date. Instead of sending tokens to hundreds of thousands of addresses, they deployed a Merkle distributor and let users claim individually, shifting gas costs onto the claimants.
**Pros**
1. **Gas efficiency for the project:** airdrop recipients pay their own transaction fees.
2. **User engagement:** claiming can be paired with educational or governance steps. It also ensures that only those who care retrieve tokens.
3. **No unintended token burning:** if someone never claims, those tokens stay in the treasury or revert to the project.
**Cons**
1. **Phishing risk:** fake “claim sites” can fool users. Major airdrops often see scammers swarm in.
2. **Potential bottlenecks:** if a highly anticipated airdrop goes live at once, the claim interface can crash (e.g., Arbitrum’s ARB launch).
**Who Should Use Manual-Claim Airdrops?**
Projects on high-fee networks like Ethereum that want a cost-effective way to distribute tokens. Also, any project that wants recipients to “opt in,” ensuring only engaged community members claim. Many top DeFi governance tokens (ENS, Optimism, Arbitrum) took this route to reduce project gas costs and filter out casual or inactive wallets.
---
### **3\. Instant and Directly Transferred Airdrops**
**How They Work**
The easiest model from the user’s perspective: tokens simply appear in their wallet. The project either scripts a batch of transfers or (in a blockchain fork) automatically credits everyone at genesis. Recipients do nothing, one day, they just see new tokens.
**Key Example:**
- [**Bonk**](https://bonkcoin.com/) **(BONK, 2023):** a meme coin that airdropped 50% of its total supply to various community segments. Because Solana’s fees are low, the team could afford direct transfers to over 100k wallets.
**Pros**
1. **Zero effort for users:** a “no-click” airdrop creates goodwill since holders wake up to free tokens.
2. **Wider reach:** ensures everyone in the intended group ends up with the token. No deadlines, no missed claims.
3. **Immediate circulation:** perfect for quickly seeding liquidity and decentralizing supply.
**Cons**
1. **High sell pressure:** everyone has access on day one, so mass dumping can occur instantly.
2. **Expensive for the sender:** on blockchains like Ethereum, directly transferring to thousands of addresses can cost a fortune.
3. **Risk of spam or lost addresses:** tokens may go to dormant wallets or uninterested recipients; some never notice they have it. This effectively "burns" a portion of the supply.
**Who Should Use Direct Airdrops?**
Well-funded projects on low-fee chains, or blockchains that want to immediately distribute tokens to a huge base of users. Hard forks also fit this model, since everyone automatically duplicates balances. While extremely user-friendly, direct distribution can cause dramatic, immediate price swings if large numbers of recipients decide to sell.
---
### **Deeper Strategic Considerations**
**1\. Preventing Instant Dumps**
- **Vested airdrops** are the most obvious solution: you can lock tokens in a smart contract, releasing them gradually.
- **Manual claims** help somewhat, since unclaimed tokens are effectively out of circulation.
- **Direct transfers** face the biggest risk of day-one dumping unless your community is strongly motivated to hold.
**2\. Community Engagement**
- **Vested** distributions encourage ongoing participation if the contract or project rewards behaviors like staking or governance.
- **Manual claims** drive users to your site, letting you capture attention and guide them through any onboarding or governance steps.
- **Direct** airdrops minimize friction but risk minimal engagement: a user who received tokens passively might sell them without ever visiting the project’s page.
**3\. Technical Complexity**
- **Vesting** demands robust, audited smart contracts. A ready-made solution like [Sablier](https://sablier.com) can be used instead of building a custom solution yourself.
- **Manual claims** can be simpler but still require a well-tested distribution or Merkle-proof system. Front-end reliability is crucial. Here again, [Sablier](https://sablier.com) can be used.
- **Direct** airdrops are conceptually straightforward. However, you might pay high gas fees, face rate limits, or cause network congestion if the drop is huge.
**4\. Hybrid Approaches**Many projects combine elements. For instance:
- **Half immediate, half vested:** [Safe](https://safe.global) (SafeDAO) gave 50% of tokens right away, the rest vested over four years. This balances instant ownership with stable, locked supply.
- **Partial direct, partial manual claim:** some propose a small direct drop so everyone notices, plus additional tokens that must be claimed or earned.
- **Activity-based vesting:** projects like [Osmosis](https://osmosis.zone/) used mission-based unlocking, requiring certain actions (liquidity provision, governance votes) before more tokens release.
---
### **Conclusion**
Vested, manual-claim, and direct-transfer airdrops each have unique trade-offs, and there’s no universal one-size-fits-all. Many successful projects have blended strategies to fine-tune distribution and keep their community engaged. Vesting aligns recipients to the project’s success by locking up tokens over time.
Manual-claim airdrops let only the most active and interested participants claim their tokens. Direct airdrops guarantee a frictionless experience and a broad user base, but can be expensive for the project and result in immediate sell pressure.
Ultimately, airdrops are more than free tokens—they’re a first impression and a distribution of ownership. Projects should carefully consider their goals (community building, governance, anti-dump measures) and the user experience in each approach. A well-executed airdrop can jumpstart network effects and foster loyal holders.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
The choice of a custodian is a critical decision for a DAO or company in the
crypto industry. There are both centralized and decentralized custodians. Some
rely
ghostUuid: b1dee19e-16e4-4754-bf18-0882f2c46870
publishedAt: '2025-04-04'
slug: best-crypto-custody-solutions-for-daos-and-companies-2025
tags: []
title: Best Crypto Custody Solutions for DAOs and Companies (2025)
updatedAt: '2025-04-04'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/04/crypto-custody.webp
---
The choice of a custodian is a critical decision for a DAO or company in the crypto industry.
There are both centralized and decentralized custodians. Some rely on a [multisignature](https://www.coindesk.com/learn/what-is-a-multisig-wallet) (multisig) setup, some rely on [multi-party computation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secure_multi-party_computation) (MPC), and some rely on [cold storage](https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cold-storage.asp). Some custodians exclusively work on EVM blockchains, others work across smart-contract and non-smart-contract blockchains.
Each solution has its strengths and weaknesses. This guide compares the top custody solutions—including **Safe (formerly known as “Gnosis Safe”), Fire Blocks, Copper, Anchorage, BitGo, and Coinbase Custody**—analyzing their security models (multisig, MPC, cold storage), user experience, pricing, regulatory compliance, and suitability for different organizational needs.
# Solutions
## Safe
[Safe](https://safe.global/) is the only decentralized custody solution on the list. It’s fully onchain and relies on a multisig model. This means one or more signatures by the wallets in control of the multisig are required for a transaction to be approved. A 2 out of 5 Safe multisig, for example, requires 2 signatures out of five eligible signers, for a transaction to be approved.
Safe is the ideal solution for DAOs as it’s fully onchain, making it publicly auditable, and it doesn’t require sign ups. Just connect your wallet, and you’re good to go.
One possible downside for Safe is it does require gas fees as it’s fully onchain, and it’s only available across EVM networks, like Ethereum, Arbitrum, etc. Blockchains like Bitcoin, or Solana, are not supported. There is also a smart contract risk if Safe’s contracts were hacked, though Safe has been around for over seven years now, and the contracts have never suffered a breach.
Given Safe is open-source, modular and publicly auditable, it’s an ideal solution for developers.
Safe is not a licensed custodian (it can’t be given it’s decentralized), and does not offer built-in compliance tools.
Safe is entirely free to use, aside from the blockchain gas fees, of course.
## Fireblocks
[Fireblocks](https://www.fireblocks.com/platforms/treasury-management) is a centralized custodian relying on MPC to secure its custody solution. The private keys of Fireblocks wallet are split into shares, following the MPC process. Fireblocks is ideal for institutions as it’s less difficult to use than Safe and the transaction approval process if offchain.
In contrast with Safe, Fireblocks has the advantage of being available on practically every major blockchain out there, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, etc. as it relies on MPC technology, as opposed to onchain signatures through a multisig model like Safe.
One of the downsides of Fireblocks is trust is required in Fireblocks given it’s a centralized, proprietary and closed-source solution.
Fireblocks is not a licensed custodian, but does offer certain compliance features.
Plans start at $2,400/year with an added 0.23% transaction fee, and go up to $25,000/year depending on how many assets you have under custody.
## Copper
[Copper](https://copper.co/en/products/digital-asset-custody) is a centralized custodian, which like Fireblocks, relies on MPC for transaction approvals.
Copper is ideal for hedge funds and traders, as its ClearLoop solution allows users to trade assets on centralized exchanges while not leaving Copper’s MPC custody. This ensures that if a centralized exchange on which a Copper user trades is hacked, the user’s funds will remain safe.
Like Fireblocks, Copper has the advantage of being available on practically every major blockchain out there, and the downside of having to trust Copper as it’s a centralized, proprietary and closed-source solution.
Copper is not a licensed custodian, but does offer certain compliance features.
Copper’s pricing isn’t public.
## Anchorage
[Anchorage](https://www.anchorage.com/platform/custody) is a leading custodian when it comes to compliance, being legally structured as a US-based bank, and being used by the US Department of Justice to be the custodian for all digital assets seized or forfeited in criminal cases. Anchorage relies on cold storage to secure its user funds.
Importantly, Anchorage also supports fiat custody, allowing users to store both fiat and crypto in their account.
Like Fireblocks and Copper, Anchorage has the advantage of being available on practically every major blockchain out there, and the downside of having to trust Anchorage as it’s a centralized, proprietary and closed-source solution.
Transactions can also take longer to process than other custody solutions, as biometric voice and video approval are used to validate transactions, and Anchorage reviews transactions before submitting them to the blockchain to authenticate each approval based on detailed behavioral analytics.
Anchorage is ideal for funds and organizations needing regulated custody.
Anchorage’s pricing isn’t public.
## BitGo
[BitGo](https://www.bitgo.com/) is another compliance-focused custodian. Like Anchorage, BitGo relies on cold storage, with users needing to pass a series of security checks, like video identification, to perform a transaction.
Notably, BitGo has a $250M insurance policy and a bankruptcy-remote structure, to offer peace of mind to its users. BitGo is used by several crypto ETF providers for custody.
Like Fireblocks, Copper and Anchorage, BitGo has the advantage of being available on practically every major blockchain out there, and the downside of having to trust Anchorage as it’s a centralized, proprietary and closed-source solution.
Like Anchorage, transactions can also take longer to process than other custody solutions, as several checks are performed when submitting a transaction.
BitGo is ideal for large institutions where compliance is a strong need.
Bitgo’s pricing isn’t publicly available.
## Coinbase Custody
[Coinbase Custody](https://www.coinbase.com/en-ca/prime/custody) is custodian regulated as a New York trust, offering insured cold storage for organizations and institutions.
Like Fireblocks, Copper, Anchorage and BitGo, Coinbase Custody has the advantage of being available on practically every major blockchain out there, and the downside of having to trust Coinbase as it’s a centralized, proprietary and closed-source solution.
Like Anchorage and BitGo, transactions can also take longer to process than other custody solutions, as several checks are performed when submitting a transaction.
Coinbase custody is ideal for companies and institutions looking to interact with the wider crypto ecosystem while being compliant.
Coinbase Custody’s pricing isn’t public.
# Conclusion
For DAOs, Safe is really the ideal solution. It’s both decentralized and open-source, while being completely onchain and fully compatible with DeFi and onchain governance participation.
For companies in need of regulatory compliance, Anchorage, BitGo and Coinbase Custody are the options to look into.
For large institutions that trade assets and need scalable custody, Fireblocks and Copper are optimal.
Many organizations will combine two or more custodians, using Safe for onchain activities, for example, while storing strategic holdings in an insured custodian like Anchorage or BitGo.
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Token launches can be a double-edged sword. You want your token to be adopted
at large scale, but you also want sustainable price action. When key opinion
leade
ghostUuid: 9551b1fc-460b-4a23-b680-d485b83a12a7
publishedAt: '2025-03-24'
slug: how-token-vesting-for-kol-distributions-prevents-instant-dumping
tags: []
title: How Token Vesting for KOL Distributions Prevents Instant Dumping
updatedAt: '2025-03-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/03/vesting-for-kols.webp
---
Token launches can be a double-edged sword. You want your token to be adopted at large scale, but you also want sustainable price action. When key opinion leaders (KOLs) receive allocations, there is a risk of instant dumping. The result? A short-term pump followed by a crash—bad optics, bad fundamentals.
The solution? **Token vesting.** By implementing a structured vesting schedule, projects can harness KOL influence while ensuring long-term alignment.
## **The Problem: KOLs and Liquidity Shocks**
KOLs, whether influencers, investors, or early adopters, are critical for an early-stage token project. Their support and endorsement drives attention, ultimately resulting in liquidity and hopefully usage for the product. But if they receive large allocations with no restrictions, **many will sell immediately** to make a quick profit. Incentives drive the world, after all.
This leads to:
- **Price volatility**: an initial pump, followed by a brutal dump.
- **Retail gets REKT**: enthusiastic retail investors buy high and get rugged.
- **Erosion of trust + bad optics**: future participants lose confidence in the project.
Without vesting, the narrative shifts from **long-term adoption** to **short-term speculation**.
## **How Token Vesting Prevents This**
A vesting schedule locks up KOL allocations and releases them gradually over time. This prevents instant dumping and ensures KOLs stay invested in the project’s long-term success:
1. **Smoother price action**: controlled unlocks prevent sudden liquidity shocks.
2. **Better incentives**: KOLs remain engaged, as their upside depends on long-term growth.
3. **Stronger investor confidence**: retail participants realize they are not exit liquidity.
### **Optimal Vesting Models for KOLs**
The right vesting strategy depends on the project’s goals. Here are some proven models:
#### **1\. Linear Vesting**
- Tokens unlock continuously over a set period.
- Encourages KOLs to stay engaged, as they can’t liquidate all at once.
- Works best when combined with **cliff periods** (e.g., no unlocks for the first year).
#### **2\. Milestone-Based Vesting**
- Unlocks tied to performance goals (e.g., engagement, content creation, protocol usage).
- Ensures KOLs contribute actively, rather than just receiving free allocations.
- Aligns influencer incentives with real project growth through measurable KPIs.
#### **3\. Hybrid Vesting**
- A mix of time-based and milestone-based vesting.
- Ensures some liquidity for KOLs while maintaining long-term alignment.
## **Vesting in Action: A Case Study**
Consider two hypothetical projects:
- **Project A:** Airdrops 5% of its supply to influencers with no vesting. The token pumps 3x in a day but dumps 90% within a week. Most influencers sell, and the project struggles to recover.
- **Project B:** Distributes 5% with a **3-month cliff + 6-month linear vesting**. Influencers are incentivized to promote long-term, the token retains value, and trust builds over time.
The difference? **Sustainability versus speculation.**
## **Sablier: The Perfect Tool for KOL Vesting**
With **Sablier**, projects can vest their tokens seamlessly to their KOLs. Benefits include:
- **Customizable vesting curves**: supports cliffs, linear vesting, etc.
- **CSV support**: enter your recipient data manually or upload a CSV spreadsheet
- **Fully onchain and permissionless:** Sablier has no control over user funds.
On top of that, Sablier’s battle-tested vesting protocol [has been extensively audited](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits).
## **Conclusion**
Token vesting isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a necessity. **Without it, KOLs can become a risk. With it, they become long-term ambassadors.**
For projects looking to implement seamless, onchain vesting, [**Sablier**](https://sablier.com) **is the ultimate solution.**
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Along with new airdrop vesting shapes and a new home section.
ghostUuid: dffd8db7-6e26-42a8-99aa-338c5cd9ce56
publishedAt: '2025-02-19'
slug: introducing-ranged-airdrops
tags: []
title: Introducing Ranged Airdrops
updatedAt: '2025-02-19'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/02/Introducingddddddd.webp
---
Sablier continues to push the boundaries of onchain token distribution. Today, we’re excited to introduce three major updates: Ranged Airdrops, new vesting shapes for airdrops, and a new home section with featured users and recent activity.
### **Ranged Airdrops: Set Fixed Start and End Dates**
Until now, Sablier only supported vesting schedules that began when a user claimed their airdrop. For example, if the vesting period is three months and Alice claims in February while Bob claims in March, Alice’s vesting would end in May, and Bob’s in June.
But what if you wanted all recipients to follow the same vesting timeline, regardless of when they claim? That’s where Ranged Airdrops come in.
With Ranged Airdrops, you can set a fixed start and end date for vesting. If a recipient claims their airdrop after the vesting start date, the system retroactively accounts for the elapsed time. This ensures that all recipients follow the same vesting schedule, simplifying token distribution and better aligning incentives.
Returning to the example, both Alice and Bob would have their vesting start in February and end in May, regardless of when they claim.
### **New Vested Airdrop Shapes: Unlock Linear & Cliff**
Following the launch of Instant Airdrops last week, we’re expanding the range of vesting shapes available for Airdrops. You can now set up vested airdrops using the Unlock Linear and Cliff distribution curves**.** And as a reminder, we recently [introduced Instant Airdrops](/introducing-instant-airdrops/), where the tokens are immediately available to the recipient upon claiming.
This flexibility allows you to set up the perfect vesting curve for your airdrop campaign, whether you need gradual releases, cliffs, or instant unlocks.
### **New Home Section: Featured Users & Recent Activity**
We’ve redesigned our home section to improve transparency and engagement. Two new sections have been added to the interface:
- **Featured Users**: A spotlight of top projects leveraging Sablier for token distributions.
- **Recent Activity**: A live feed of your recent activity across all Sablier products.
This makes it easier to discover projects using Sablier, as well as track your own personal usage of our platform.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- razgraf
excerpt: >-
From early on, product engineers in the EVM space get to interact with the
(in)famous ERC20 token standard. Cats, dogs, penguins, the US dollar, you name
it, ev
ghostUuid: 4e5053e7-ccd1-40cf-867b-5073bda49abf
publishedAt: '2025-02-07'
slug: the-dark-side-of-erc20s
tags:
- engineering
title: The Dark Side of ERC20s
updatedAt: '2025-03-29'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/02/erc-20-dark.webp
---
From early on, product engineers in the EVM space get to interact with the (in)famous **ERC20 token standard**. Cats, dogs, penguins, the US dollar, you name it, everything becomes a token to trade with, lend or distribute.
But standards don’t always evolve with the users’ needs. And if they do, unassuming integrations **can start breaking left and right**. A token distribution protocol like Sablier gets to see all shapes and sizes of ERC20s and needs to understand and adapt with every new one.
**Let’s go over the dark side of these tokens** and the common pitfalls you may need to shield your own users from.
## Where the fun begins
As a result of endless hours of debugging failing transactions and user reports, I’ve compiled a list of these pitfalls. The following are valuable _(and annoying)_ lessons from the point of view of a product engineer, designing experiences and helping users navigate 🛥️ around this dark nature of ERC20s.
**1\. Token details, `string` vs `bytes32`
2\. The 96 bits allowance
3\. Token balance “go up”
4\. Blacklists, rules and more rules
5\. Admin rights
6\. ERC-20 look-alike**
At the end, I’ll present a few other quality of life improvements for your product planning, as well as tooling that has helped with debugging over time.
---
## Token details, `string` vs `bytes32`
**Problem:** Contract calls for token name/symbol failing in apps or indexers.
**Context:** In its [original form](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/standards/tokens/erc-20/), ERC20 returns core details like token symbol or name as `string`. To optimize for gas costs, developers may [choose](https://ethereum.stackexchange.com/questions/93070/use-bytes32-instead-of-string-for-token-metadata) to replace these representations with `bytes32`. For an unassuming engineer, this results in a failing query for token details, or infrastructure like [The Graph](https://thegraph.com/) and [Envio](https://envio.dev/) seizing to parse events, due to a critical error.
**Solution:** Query for token details in both formats, at once or in sequence. If the call expecting a `string` result fails, revert to the `bytes32` version (and manually convert it to string afterwards).
## The 96 bits allowance
**Problem:** Approve transaction will fail with large allowances.
**Context:** While infinite allowances are an anti-pattern, in the spirit of shipping fast, they may be overlooked. Hard-coding them to large values (tip: padded to match the token decimals) and applying those values to any token will cause approval transactions to fail for tokens like `COMP`.
**Solution**: Implement granular allowances or handle max values for these assets.
## Token balance “go up”
**Problem**: Tokens-in doesn’t always equal Tokens-out.
**Context:** Certain mechanisms like rebasing tokens, [Lido](https://stake.lido.fi/)'s stETH or [Aave’s](https://aave.com/) **yield tokens** rely on dynamic balances that change over time, without any additional transfers or actions from the token holder. Their quantity simply .. goes up.
If your product or protocol uses a bespoke mechanism to measure token ownership, you might be influenced by this tokens-in-token-out invariant potentially breaking. Best case scenario, for assets increasing their balance (aTokens), it’s only the surplus that gets lost.
**Solution**: Warn users about depositing tokens without fixed/static balances or offer token wrappers like wstETH or [ERC-4626](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/standards/tokens/erc-4626/) when dynamic balances cannot be supported.
## Blacklists, rules and more rules
**Problem:** Transactions with transfers may fail due to internal blacklists or balance constraints.
**Context**: There are multiple types of internal lists that define who can transfer what and how much.
1. **From / to blacklists:** [Circle’s USDC](https://www.circle.com/usdc) may revert transfers to sanctioned addresses
2. **Maximum balance:** some token contracts constrain holdings by adding per-address caps (e.g. one wallet can only hold < 10,000 tokens). This mechanism fails to address popular escrows where lots of funds can accrue, such as [Uniswap](https://app.uniswap.org/) pools or [Sablier](https://sablier.com/vesting/) vesting contracts.
**Solution:** Since there’s no way to automatically cover all these edge-cases, you should simply check for this behavior when debugging failed transactions. Simulating txs will also help catch reverts caused by such lists.
## Admin rights
**Problem:** Tokens burned through external measures.
**Context:** Some tokens come with admin rights **over transfers and supply**. One such right is to **burn assets** from handpicked wallets, or forcefully transfer them without the knowledge of the user. This is definitely not part of the ERC20 standard, nor is it common practice in the industry, but it may happen and result in **assets “disappearing” from your protocol’s balances**.
**Solution**: Since it's yet again, a hard to predict behavior, keep an eye out for shady tokens. If your protocol is immutable, explain that **forceful actions** like burning tokens are at the discretion and the sole responsibility of the token admins.
## ERC-20 Look-alike
**Problem:** Some tokens (like $POL native tokens) follow a format similar to ERC20, but are not quite 1:1
**Context:** Some tokens like [Polygon's POL](https://polygonscan.com/address/0x0000000000000000000000000000000000001010) (formerly known as MATIC) implement the MRC-20 standard which gives the token attributes such as name, symbol or decimals but does not grant an allowance system ( 👏 **+** for UX, 😡 **\-** for inconsistency). For those integrating Uniswap's token list, POL will have to be handled separately since it breaks their own rule by not being a proper ERC-20 (causing generic allowance calls to fail):
> contains a list of ERC20 token metadata for use in dApp user interfaces
---
## Quality-of-life++
While there are **definitely more gotchas** with today’s “extended” ERC20s, like fee-on-transfer or a handful of exploits one should be aware of (e.g. [event spoofing](https://info.etherscan.com/non-standard-token-contracts/)), there's a couple of low-hanging fruits worth mentioning:
1. **Correctly handling token decimals** (not everything comes with `18` decimals, since that's just popular not _standard_)
2. **Preventing token addresses from being filled in recipient fields**. It’s a common copy/paste mistake to send things to the token address (or to `0x00`), so preventing those transfers from happening can save users in time.
3. **Bundling allowances with transactions**. This is a big improvement for Safe(s) since coordinating signatures especially in remote/distributed teams is a pain, but can also prove useful for Smart Wallets and ecosystems that support it (e.g. [EIP-5794](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-5792#wallet_sendcalls)). At least until Account Abstraction hits mainstream adoption.
## Fixing what’s broken
In the spirit of innovation, developers have already started implementing alternative systems that could one day become standard even in the EVM space.
While these are great and prove a need for improved token functionality, they don't all address the full list of gotchas we just went through.
Some notable designs that come to mind:
- [**Fuel’s SRC-20 standard**](https://docs.fuel.network/docs/sway-standards/src-20-native-asset/), where all assets are native-assets (behave like “ETH”)
- Solana’s **SPL** token standard and their [Token Extensions](https://solana.com/solutions/token-extensions)
- Optimism’s [SuperchainERC20](https://docs.optimism.io/stack/interop/superchain-erc20), Binance’s [BEP-20](https://academy.binance.com/en/glossary/bep-20), Connext’s [xERC20](https://www.connext.network/xerc20)
## Tooling
As a final recommendation, learning how to read the chain in order to debug issues for your users will definitely help uncover more “mysteries” down the road.
From engaging in basic analysis with Etherscan or the [Signature Database](https://www.4byte.directory/) to (and I cannot recommend this enough) debugging at its finest using [Tenderly](https://tenderly.co/), you’ll develop an eagle eye for unexpected behavior.
**Prevent, fix or explain** - either way, users will thank you. And when they're silent, it means you did an amazing job hiding all this complexity from them. **Congrats** 🔥**!**
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Along with a unified product and a new pricing model.
ghostUuid: e753cf3b-3857-42c4-a1da-99aad7edde8c
publishedAt: '2025-02-03'
slug: introducing-instant-airdrops
tags: []
title: Introducing Instant Airdrops
updatedAt: '2025-02-03'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/02/Introducing.jpg
---
In 2024, we pioneered Airstreams, a groundbreaking solution for running vested airdrop campaigns with ERC-20 tokens. Airstreams has since empowered **hundreds of organizations** to distribute tokens to **hundreds of thousands of recipients**.
Among this wide adoption of Airstreams, we got one specific feature request over and over again: instant airdrop distributions with no vesting. **Today, we’re pleased to launch our Instant Airdrops product.**
Along with it, we’re introducing a unified contract architecture, massively simplifying our codebase, as well as a new pricing system to ensure Sablier’s sustainability.
## Instant Airdrops
On top of linearly vesting an airdrop, or unlocking it in steps, **users now have the ability to airdrop tokens instantly**.
**Instant Airdrops require just one claim action**—initiated either by the recipient or any account willing to pay the fees—to receive the full airdrop allocation. This differs from vested airdrops (Airstreams), where the claim transaction creates a Sablier stream that distributes tokens over time.
This new feature is designed to cater to scenarios like:
- **Immediate token distribution**: community rewards, token launches, etc.
- **Engaging liquidity providers**: to reward LPs on DEXs without requiring ongoing vesting.
- **NFT and gaming rewards**: enable seamless distribution of an in-game currency or governance tokens for GameFi projects and NFT holders.
Thanks to Instant Airdrops, Sablier users now have full control over how they want to distribute their airdrops, whether instantly or via vesting.
**Want to launch an airdrop now?** Get started [here](https://staging.sablier.com/airdrops/create/?shape=instant).
## Unified Lockup Architecture
As part of our continuous effort to simplify and optimize the Sablier protocol, we are introducing a new smart contract: **Lockup**. This contract merges the **Lockup Linear, Lockup Dynamic, and Lockup Tranched** contracts, aggregating their functionality into a single, more efficient monolith contract.
By consolidating these separate contracts, we achieve:
- **A more developer-friendly codebase**: reducing complexity and making integrations more developer-friendly by having a single contract to be integrated with, as opposed to three different ones.
- **Improved gas efficiency**: merging contracts lowers the overhead.
- **Greater flexibility**: Lockup maintains the core features of each previous contract while offering a unified interface that supports linear, dynamic, and tranch-based unlocking.
With the new unified **Lockup**, projects can still configure their vesting schedules to fit their needs, but with a **simpler, more powerful contract architecture**.
## New Pricing Model
For the five years, Sablier has been entirely free to use. As we continue to grow and improve our protocol, we are introducing a **new fee model** to ensure long-term sustainability while maintaining our commitment to efficiency and security.
Importantly, **the fee model is not retroactive**—withdrawals from streams and claims from airdrops created via the UI before February 3, 2025 will remain free forever, thanks to the immutability of the smart contracts.
Under this new model:
- Creating streams and deploying airdrop campaigns will continue to be free.
- **Claiming an airdrop** will cost **$3**.
- **Withdrawing from a stream** will cost **$1**.
- Typically, recipients of a stream or airdrop perform these actions. However, since the withdraw and claim functions are public, any account can call them.
- The fees are paid in the **chain’s native currency**, the same used for gas fees (e.g., ETH on Ethereum, POL on Polygon).
To provide greater flexibility, **stream creators can sponsor these fees** for their recipients, even after the streams are created. If you’re interested in covering these costs for your users, [**email us at contact@sablier.com**](mailto:contact@sablier.com) or [**schedule a call with our sales team**](https://forms.gle/6z3XyfSLXDoRghG99).
The new pricing model allows us to continue building **the best user experience** for onchain token distribution while keeping our infrastructure scalable and cost-effective.
## In Conclusion
**Instant Airdrops** provide a seamless way to distribute tokens without vesting constraints, while the new **Lockup** unifies our contract architecture, making it easier and more cost-effective for projects to integrate our codebase.
Our **new pricing system** ensures long-term sustainability while keeping fees transparent and manageable, with the option for users to sponsor costs for their recipients.
If you have any questions or want to explore how these new features can benefit your project, [**email us at contact@sablier.com**](mailto:contact@sablier.com)—we’d love to hear from you. Thank you for being part of Sablier’s journey.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Streamline your token vesting program with Sablier: save time, reduce security
risks, and focus on your organization’s growth.
ghostUuid: 7e011cb5-ad6a-452f-bd33-0fcf67ee9d18
publishedAt: '2025-01-14'
slug: why-choose-sablier-over-custom-vesting-contracts
tags: []
title: Why Choose Sablier over Custom Vesting Contracts?
updatedAt: '2025-01-15'
featureImage: /content/images/2025/01/why-sablier.webp
---
Broadly speaking, there are two options when it comes to onchain token vesting. You can either build your own vesting smart contracts or opt for a tailored solution like Sablier. In this blog post, we will explore the drawbacks of using custom vesting contracts.
### **Development costs**
Smart contract developers are expensive, and building custom vesting contracts often ends up costing tens of thousands of dollars.
Moreover, developing smart contracts is time-intensive. Beyond the time required, there’s a significant opportunity cost: every hour your developers spend building vesting contracts is time they could be dedicating to building your core product.
Properly building these contracts also demands rigorous testing and auditing, whi ch can eat up more time and resources.
And that’s just the beginning. The next step involves creating an interface that allows employees, investors, and other stakeholders to manage their vesting schedules. Following that, you’ll need to provide ongoing support for users who encounter issues.
By contrast, setting up a vesting program with Sablier takes only minutes. Embrace simplicity.
### **Security**
Building secure smart contracts is no trivial task. The risks are significant, with numerous potential vulnerabilities that could lead to your vesting contracts being hacked and your vested supply dumped on the open market.
Even after building the contracts, a proper audit is essential to ensure their safety. Remember, we’re talking about your team’s treasury, which must be stored as securely as possible. Audits, however, require both time and money.
Sablier, on the other hand, has undergone extensive audits, has operated without a single hack for over five years, and has processed billions of dollars in total value locked (TVL).
### **Custom interface**
Custom vesting contracts require a custom interface—it’s simply unrealistic to expect recipients to manually claim their tokens via Etherscan (some teams have resorted to this error-prone approach, but we strongly advise against it).
Building and maintaining a custom interface demands significant time and resources. This is especially time-consuming as wallet standards change over time, and breaking changes in wallet frameworks have happened several times in the past.
In comparison, Sablier is actively maintained, supports the latest wallet standards and web frameworks, and offers a user-friendly design for a seamless user experience.
### **Customer support**
It’s unlikely you’ll have the capacity to provide continuous support to your users. And even if you do, covering all time zones is nearly impossible. What happens if an investor encounters an issue during the night or over the weekend? Will they have to wait hours—or even days—for assistance?
Sablier offers 24/7 human support—no bots. This round-the-clock service is crucial for maintaining strong relationships with your stakeholders and ensuring their satisfaction.
### **Hidden costs**
You might have done the math and consider it cheaper to build your own vesting solution, but there are many hidden costs:
- **Audit costs:** if you want to build your contracts properly, you will need at least one audit, which depending on the complexity and size of your codebase, could take up to several weeks and cost up to tens of thousands of dollars.
- **Ongoing maintenance costs:** web3 wallet standards change all the time, requiring your team to integrate those changes to ensure compatibility with the wallets used by your employees, investors and other stakeholders.
- **Opportunity costs:** all the time you spend trying to figure out what the best solution is, building your own contracts, building out an interface, testing it, auditing it, and maintaining it, is time you could spend building out your product instead.
Time is money, and Sablier respects your time. Our protocol is extensively audited, we actively maintain our interface and product offering, and it takes a few minutes to set everything up. You can focus on what matters: growing your business.
### **Trust and reputation**
Sablier is a trusted solution, widely recognized across the crypto ecosystem and backed by prominent names like a16z crypto, A Capital, and numerous angel investors. In fact, there’s a good chance your investors have already used our protocol and are familiar with our product.
Choosing Sablier signals your commitment to security, efficiency, and user experience. On the other hand, building your own contracts may raise concerns about their reliability.
### **Conclusion**
Creating your own vesting smart contracts might seem appealing, but the reality is that it’s a costly, risky, and a time-consuming project. Sablier eliminates these problems by providing a secure, audited, and user-friendly solution with 24/7 support. Focus on what you do best—building your project—and let Sablier handle the rest.
Interested in a personalized demo? Fill out [this form](https://forms.gle/6z3XyfSLXDoRghG99).
Want to use Sablier, but it’s missing a feature that is essential for you? You can request features in our [Canny dashboard](https://sablier.canny.io/).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
- prb
excerpt: The future of payment streaming has arrived.
ghostUuid: d1b87975-3b22-44b7-a0f7-f23093f98d50
publishedAt: '2024-12-12'
slug: introducing-sablier-flow
tags: []
title: 'Introducing Sablier Flow: Open-Ended Streams'
updatedAt: '2026-03-13'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/12/unnamed--2-.png
---
**|** _You can start using the new protocol on our_ [_interface_](https://app.sablier.com/payments/)_._
Sablier Lockup, the leading battle-tested protocol for onchain vesting and airdrops, has been live on mainnet for exactly five years now. It’s been used by leaders in the industry like Uniswap Governance, Compound, Shapeshift, Axie Infinity, Fjord, Immutable, and thousands of other incredible organizations at the forefront of innovation.
Remarkably, Sablier Lockup has maintained an impeccable security record, with no breaches, all while pioneering onchain token streaming.
Five years later, today, we’re once again reinventing and pioneering a new payment primitive.
## A brief history of Sablier Lockup
Sablier Lockup is an ideal fit for vesting and airdrops. The amounts distributed are fixed, meaning you cannot add funds to an existing stream, and streams cannot be extended either, the stream duration is fixed. This rigidity ensures a seamless and secure experience for these scenarios but falls short for more flexible use cases like payroll, grants, subscriptions, or other recurring payments where the sender and the recipient remain the same over time.
When using Sablier for onchain payroll, for example, users shouldn’t have to create a new payment every time they want to send over new funds to the same recipient. Similarly, subscribers of a service leveraging Sablier for payments shouldn’t have to create a new stream every time they extend their subscription. And finally, renters shouldn’t have to create a new stream every month to pay their landlord.
## The Solution: Sablier Flow
Sablier Flow solves these problems, by allowing users to create streams that support “top-ups”, which can be extended, and which can account for debt when funds run out. This makes for an ideal user experience for use cases like payroll, grants, subscriptions, rent, and other recurring forms of payments.
An employer can create a stream per employee, and then top up each stream every week, every month, or every quarter, for example. No need to create a new stream every time. The employee leaves the company? Void the stream. They are on a temporary break, or are in-between tasks as a freelancer? Pause the stream. Did they receive a bonus? Top up the stream.
Crucially, Flow is not a replacement for Sablier Lockup; they are designed to coexist and serve distinct needs. Lockup remains the best choice for vesting and airdrops, while Flow excels in managing payroll, grants, subscriptions, rent, and similar recurring payments.
Flow is robust, battle-tested through extensive audits, and universally available across 20+ EVM chains. Importantly, its design is elegantly simple, avoiding reliance on wrapping tokens or liquidators—suboptimal architectural choices that can introduce security vulnerabilities.
## The Why
Payments might seem boring, but just like computer processes communicate in bits, agents in our economy, both human and artificial, communicate through payments. When you pay someone, you offer that person capital, and by extension, agency. To the economy, it signals the recipient is a value creator. Payments are the backbone of our society, and one of the most popular forms of payments is paycheck.
We believe the only thing more outdated than cash is a bi-weekly/monthly paycheck. Why get paid every month? Why not every week? Day? Hour? Second? It’s completely arbitrary, and both employers and employees suffer from it.
Employers suffer because it’s time they have to spend every two weeks or month handling payroll, time that they could spend growing their business and ventures. Employees suffer because they are effectively giving a zero-interest loan every month to their employer.
The delta between a unit of work and its payment is technically a loan. In Europe, for example, where monthly paychecks are the norm, employees offer a 30-day loan to their employers every single month, interest-free. And this is without even mentioning the friction of having to wait 30-days for your paycheck to arrive in order to spend it. If you get paid in real-time, you can also spend in real-time. No waiting, just earning.
## Security
As always, security is our top priority. Sablier has never been hacked in over five years, while being the leading onchain token distribution solution during that whole time. The protocol is battle-tested and has been a year in the making. It was audited by senior auditors at Cantina as well as through a contest on CodeHawks.
In a space where many protocols overlook security, we stand firm—prioritizing safety now and always.
To incentivize responsible bug disclosure, we offer a public bug bounty of up to $100,000 offered for critical bugs. More detail on the terms of the program can be found on [GitHub](https://github.com/sablier-labs/flow/blob/5fc3f5b14f12ea879756d44a430d76cbb6ba8416/SECURITY.md).
## License
Just like Sablier Lockup, Flow is licensed under the [BUSL](https://github.com/sablier-labs/flow/blob/5fc3f5b14f12ea879756d44a430d76cbb6ba8416/LICENSE.md). This license is essentially a time-delayed General Public License v3.0-or-later. It restricts the use of the V2 source code in a commercial production environments for up to four years, after which it transitions into GPL indefinitely.
Please note that the BUSL 1.1 license does not impact integrations. We have licensed all code necessary for external integrations under GPL, including but not limited to interfaces and data types. This ensures that any protocol, web interface, mobile app, or other projects can seamlessly integrate with Sablier Flow.
## Conclusion
This is a new step in our journey to becoming the universal payment layer for the web; a world where any payment (whether vested or instant) is made through Sablier, a world where employees are paid in real-time, where they spend in real-time as well, where the economy functions fluently and efficiently.
This is only the start. There’s more to come.
If you are integrating and wish to get in touch, please fill out [this form](https://forms.gle/KKDo1aMGp2b2tdEr5), and we will respond as soon as possible.
To get involved and stay posted:
- Use Sablier Flow at [app.sablier.com/payments](https://app.sablier.com/payments)
- Follow Sablier on [X](https://x.com/sablier) and [Farcaster](https://warpcast.com/sablier)
- Email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com)
- Subscribe to the Sablier [blog](/)
Happy streaming! ⏳
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'Privacy for on-chain payments, now a reality.'
ghostUuid: 46e12e75-b90c-4282-a923-d392c13f5848
publishedAt: '2024-12-04'
slug: how-singularitys-confidential-defi-protocol-integrated-sablier
tags: []
title: How Singularity’s Confidential DeFi Protocol Integrated Sablier
updatedAt: '2024-12-05'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/12/sablier-singularity--2-.webp
featureImageAlt: How Singularity’s Confidential DeFi Protocol Integrated Sablier
---
[Singularity](https://www.thesingularity.network/) is a privacy-focused DeFi solution allowing its users to use DeFi protocols in a confidential manner. Singularity leverages zero-knowledge tech to make this possible, and to remain compliant, users are required to pass a KYC procedure when signing up.
This is especially helpful for institutions, that can now keep their on-chain activity private thanks to Singularity, while leveraging Singularity’s extensive privacy toolkit, including private OTC, staking, liquidity provision, and private AMM functionalities.
One of the obvious use cases for privacy in DeFi is vesting, and any form of token distribution as a whole. Crypto organizations who want to handle payroll on-chain, for example, have a major need for privacy. But one may also simply think of a grant program, for example, where privacy can be a major need.
This is why Singularity integrated the leading and most battle-tested on-chain vesting solution: Sablier.
**Solution**
Here’s why this integration was a perfect match:
1. **Onchain Privacy**: Singularity users can vest tokens and manage token distribution campaigns without revealing their wallets publicly.
2. **Compliance**: Only KYC’d wallets can access Singularity. This integration allows for use cases like vesting, airdrops, etc. to happen privately, while still being compliant.
3. **Security**: Sablier’s extensively audited smart contracts provide the security required for high-value institutional transactions. Having been established since 2019 with no security vulnerabilities, Sablier is truly battle-tested.
**Interview**
What follows is an interview with [Jemma Xu](https://x.com/jemma_xu), Co-Founder and CEO at Singularity.
**What was the primary motivation behind integrating Sablier into Singularity's platform?**
_Our motivation was to provide a compliant solution for private payments and vesting, a critical need for organizations handling sensitive financial data on-chain. By integrating with Sablier’s reliable and widely-used platform, we can offer a privacy layer that ensures these transactions remain confidential, fulfilling a key demand for our individuals and entities that desire such a solution._
**In what ways do you see this integration benefiting your institutional clients?**
_Institutions want the benefits of permissionless DeFi, but they don’t always want everyone seeing what they are doing.This integration allows institutional clients to maintain commercial confidentiality when managing payroll, token distributions and positions, and grants on-chain, which helps protect strategic data and meet compliance requirements. With Singularity's privacy features now on Sablier, users can execute secure, private transactions without compromising transparency or regulatory standards._
**What unique challenges does Singularity face in offering confidential DeFi services, and how does Sablier help address them?**
_One challenge is balancing commercial confidentiality with security and compliance, as institutions need all three. Sablier’s battle-tested, audited smart contracts provide a solid foundation for Singularity’s privacy features and complement Singularity's advanced zero knowledge technology ensuring private transactions are secure and compliant._
**Conclusion**
With this integration, Singularity is now positioned to serve as a leading confidential DeFi layer for token distribution. Through Sablier, Singularity users can get the benefits of DeFi without compromising on confidentiality or security. This integration shows how institutional DeFi platforms can leverage Sablier to meet complex, evolving needs in compliance, security, and privacy.
---
- Want to get started with Sablier? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Streamlining decentralized decision-making: the top tools for decentralized
governance.
ghostUuid: e18d7fe0-997a-463d-b9eb-1c4583d425cd
publishedAt: '2024-11-07'
slug: dao-governance-voting-tools-the-ultimate-guide-2024
tags: []
title: 'DAO Governance Voting Tools: The Ultimate Guide (2024)'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/dao-governance.webp
featureImageAlt: 'DAO Governance Voting Tools: The Ultimate Guide (2024)'
featureImageCaption: >-
DAO Governance Voting Tools: The Ultimate
Guide (2024)
---
There will be more decentralized organizations in the future. Whether that’s under the form of DAOs specifically, or under the form of new entities that will be invented in the future, we don’t know yet. Though it’s pretty clear that there will be thousands, millions even, of these organizations powered by crypto tech.
The question is how to best organize governance processes in these organizations. There is a fine line between optimizing for user experience (so more people vote), and decentralization.
An offchain solution with social login support (where you can login with your Google account, for example), is probably the most ideal solution in terms of user experience, and will probably get the highest rate of participation. But it’s also the most centralized solution.
A fully onchain governance protocol could guarantee full decentralization, transparency and sybil-resistance, but at the cost of a great user experience, which would probably result in a lower participation rate.
Finding that balance is key. In this blog post we will go over the various governance solutions available in the crypto ecosystem at the moment, that organizations can rely on to grow and prosper in a decentralized manner.
## **Aragon**
Started back in 2017, the [Aragon](https://aragon.org) project pioneered on-chain governance, all while building the tools and the foundation for a world where DAOs become the norm.
But Aragon isn’t just a voting platform, it’s an all-in-one solution for DAOs. In the Aragon App, you can create a DAO in a few clicks, members can vote on proposals, manage finances, etc. and the whole Aragon stack is, of course, [fully open-source](https://devs.aragon.org/).
With Aragon OSx, an advanced modular DAO framework, projects can customize their governance safely and easily. Governance logic is programmed into plugins, which DAOs can then install, upgrade, or uninstall. This allows governance to evolve over time, and also allows everyone to benefit from innovations in governance, as the plugins are open-source, easy to install, and compatible with any Aragon DAO.
Aragon is fully onchain, though they have made the user experience as seamless as possible, allowing you to deploy a DAO without any code in a matter of minutes. It follows that the voting process is also fully onchain, and requires voters to sign a transaction when voting.
[Lido](https://mainnet.lido.fi/#/), [API3](https://docs.api3.org/reference/dao-members/), [Decentraland](https://blog.aragon.org/decentraland-secures-treasury-with-aragon/) and many others use Aragon to power their organization.
## **Tally**
[Tally](https://tally.xyz) is an all-in-one DAO governance platform as well that offers DAO contributors the ability to vote, create proposals, and delegate. Tally powers more than 10x onchain DAOs than any of the other DAO governance platforms, secures over $30b, has supported the transfer via onchain proposal of nearly $700m in value. It’s been in operation since 2020.Because all voting happens onchain so that votes can be executed permissionlessly, voters pay gas fees—usually just cents on L2s. Onchain voting has the advantage of increased censorship resistance and transparency—more on that [here](https://docs.tally.xyz/knowledge-base/tally/onchain-governance/the-onchain-thesis).
> _“Tally is shaping the future of credibly neutral protocols through onchain governance. We partner with protocols to launch their governance so they are set up for truly decentralized, sustainable, and effective decision-making. Protocols that use Tally thrive in the long- and short-term.” – Dennison Bertram, Co-founder and CEO, Tally_
Tally acts as a frontend for [Compound](https://compound.finance)'s [Governor contracts](https://docs.tally.xyz/user-guides/tally-contract-compatibility/compound-governor-bravo) (now considered deprecated) and [OpenZeppelin's Governor contracts](https://docs.tally.xyz/user-guides/tally-contract-compatibility/openzeppelin-governor), the gold standard of onchain voting. Tally offers a simple but very effective approach to DAO governance, the setup is quick, and it can also be used as an interface to interact with DAOs that have a voting system based on Compound Governor or OpenZeppelin Governor. They support over 500 DAOs on over 60 chains: [Arbitrum](https://tally.xyz/gov/arbitrum), [zkSync](https://tally.xyz/gov/zksync), [Wormhole](https://tally.xyz/gov/wormhole), [Uniswap](https://www.tally.xyz/gov/uniswap), [Gitcoin](https://www.tally.xyz/gov/gitcoin), [ENS](https://www.tally.xyz/gov/ens), etc. are all supported.
Tally also offers other features, like the ability to manage DAO finances by [including a no-code token swap transaction in a proposal](https://docs.tally.xyz/knowledge-base/proposals/creating-proposals/swaps), staking via the [Tally Protocol](https://tally.mirror.xyz/Drw-uvqhUnJLRxg32sV-sqKZ785-AO85FBaCYeXqxhA), and [multichain governance](https://tally.mirror.xyz/peHXv-1Bv4RY6Hf3UeCSH74aCu2e2ttSMytxJwB7DpY).
## **Snapshot**
Initially exclusively an off-chain voting solution, [Snapshot](https://snapshot.org/) recently launched [Snapshot X](https://docs.snapshot.box/), an onchain voting protocol to compete with the likes of Tally, Aragon, DAOHaus and others which are fully onchain.
Offchain voting is less decentralized, but offers greater flexibility and has the advantage that voters do not have to pay transaction fees when voting: all they have to do is to sign a message using their wallet.
> _“Snapshot is built for the fluid and rapidly evolving landscape of Web3 governance, providing DAOs with the most modular on-chain governance protocol and the flexibility to implement structures based on their unique vision.” – Jeremy Musighi, COO, Snapshot Labs_
An interesting setup is to use Snapshot’s offchain voting system as a signaling mechanism, to check if the community would be open to a certain proposal, and then use Snapshot X, or an onchain competitor for the actual voting process.
Speaking of Snapshot X, it differentiates itself from competitors by focusing on both flexibility and modularity. Users can customize voting strategies, proposal validation strategies, execution strategies, etc.
Snapshot can be set up in a matter of seconds, and allows many different types of voting, such as quadratic voting, weighted voting and of course basic voting.
[Arbitrum](https://snapshot.org/#/arbitrumfoundation.eth), [Aave](https://snapshot.org/#/aave.eth), [Uniswap](https://snapshot.org/#/uniswapgovernance.eth) and many other leading platforms in the crypto space leverage Snapshot for signaling/voting purposes.
## **DAOHaus**
A lesser known but equally interesting option is [DAOHaus](https://daohaus.club/).
Based on [MolochDAO](https://molochdao.com/), a pioneering decentralized organization focused on allocating capital towards Ethereum infrastructure, DAOHaus allows organizations to set up a DAO that includes a voting platform, a Safe multisig wallet, with the ability to execute chains on EVM chains like Ethereum, Gnosis, Optimism, Arbitrum, Polygon and Celo, including in a cross-chain manner.
> “_DAOHaus is built on the belief that ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.’ This ethos drives its community-centered approach. DAOHaus supports those willing to experiment and iterate, fostering open collaboration to discover new solutions in the vast and evolving DAO design space. We have only just scratched the surface of the possibilities.” –_ [_Dekan from DAOHaus_](https://x.com/dekanbro)
DAOHaus is a particularly attractive offering for those looking to build custom tooling around it, as it’s entirely free, open-source and forkable solution, with the added benefit of a [fully featured SDK](https://docs.daohaus.club/).
DAOHaus has been used by the likes of [Protocol Guild](https://protocol-guild.readthedocs.io/en/latest/), [Gitcoin](https://gitcoin.co), [MetaCartel](https://www.metacartel.org/), [RaidGuild](https://www.raidguild.org/), [Hats](https://www.hatsprotocol.xyz/) and others.
**Conclusion**
There are many options available, the key is to find the suitable balance between security, decentralization and censorship-resistance, and a great user experience that makes it incredibly easy to participate in governance proposals and keeps DAO members engaged and involved within the community.
Each platform has its upsides and downsides, and some may be a better fit for specific use cases, an example being Snapshot’s offchain solution that is used by several DAOs for signaling, before the actual onchain voting takes place.
---
- Want to get started with Sablier? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Token streaming is an ideal fit for grants, and could have prevented the
Arbitrum DAO from losing 59.5K ARB tokens.
ghostUuid: 7a6871ea-e809-4f47-b06e-f5213e0e10f9
publishedAt: '2024-10-08'
slug: preventing-arbitrums-furucombo-incident-using-sablier
tags: []
title: Preventing Arbitrum’s Furucombo Incident Using Sablier
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/unnamed--1-.webp
featureImageAlt: Preventing Arbitrum’s Furucombo Incident Using Sablier
---
Earlier this summer, the Arbitrum Foundation observed that some of the grants they had offered were being misused by grantees. Naturally, they reached out to the projects in question and asked them to return the granted funds. This is a first point of friction, as having to ask for refunds is not an ideal situation and can lead to conflict, frustration, etc.
The second point of friction occurred when Furucombo, one of the grantees that had apparently misused their Arbitrum grant, didn’t return the funds. They even sent the whole grant they had received to a centralized exchange, Kraken.
Then, they notified Arbitrum that the funds would be returned, but didn’t actually do it, until they were publicly forced to [after a post on the Arbitrum forum](https://forum.arbitrum.foundation/t/potential-misuse-of-funds-furucombo/25496). The result? [They were banned from any future grants from the Arbitrum DAO](https://forum.arbitrum.foundation/t/potential-misuse-of-funds-furucombo/25496/55).
The question is, how could we have prevented this?
## Streaming grants
The idea behind streaming is simple: I send you 100 USDC over a month, and every second of it, every single second, you will receive a fraction of the 100 USDC. Every second, there are new fractions of those 100 USDC flowing in. At the end of the month, it adds up to 100 USDC. In essence, Sablier allows you to pay individuals or entities in real-time. Just like you can stream movies on Netflix, or songs on Spotify, you can stream money using Sablier.
There are many use cases for streaming as a technology, the most popular ones being vesting, airdrops, payroll and grants, at the moment. Grants are a particularly interesting use case, as the dynamics of token streaming introduce a bilateral trustless relationship.
Let’s imagine you have a grant program and you stream a grant as part of it to Bob, your first grantee. Bob knows that he is now paid in real-time. If he walks away during the agreed upon project submission timeline, you will notice it, and can simply stop the stream and get the funds back which haven’t yet been paid out at that specific time.
So if the grant has a 40-day duration, and Bob walks away after 30 days, you will get 25% (or 10 days worth of funds) of the funds back. But that’s not the only advantage, as on Bob’s side, he knows that if you stop paying him, he can just stop working and will have been paid for the time he worked.
Both grantees and grantors win here. The grantor has improved assurances that the grantee will deliver the promised work, and can get the unpaid funds back if they notice any problem. The grantee is getting paid for the work they do and doesn’t have to trust the grantor to pay out the funds, as they are paid directly while the grantee does the work.
## Improved transparency
But the dynamic nature of streaming isn’t the only advantage here. ncreased transparency is another one. Onchain token streaming protocols are fully public. Anyone can visualize a payment stream, see who the sender is, the recipient, how much is being paid out, how much has already been withdrawn by the recipient, etc.
[Here](https://app.sablier.com/stream/LL-1-273/) is an example of a 600K USDC stream on Ethereum mainnet.
You can see the balance increase in real-time, see a history of transactions related to that payment (stream creation, withdrawals, transfers, etc.), see how much has been withdrawn, and so forth.
This increased transparency is particularly useful in a DAO context as anyone in the DAO’s community can independently audit those transactions and make sure they are correct.
## Conclusion
Using Sablier, the Arbitrum DAO could have prevented the loss of funds by ensuring gradual, transparent, and conditional fund releases. This would have not only prevented the loss of funds, but also added an extra layer of transparency for the DAO as a whole.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Seamlessly handle vesting, grants, payroll, and airdrops using Sablier on
IoTeX’s decentralized infrastructure.
ghostUuid: 16b4bde7-ce75-4776-9e6e-e611ced40056
publishedAt: '2024-09-09'
slug: sablier-live-on-iotex-token-distribution-for-the-depin-economy
tags: []
title: 'Sablier Live on IoTeX: Token Distribution for the DePIN Economy'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-iotex.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Sablier Live on IoTeX: Token Distribution for the DePIN Economy'
---
We’re excited to announce that Sablier is now live on IoTeX, the leading DePIN layer-1 blockchain.
> DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network) refers to a decentralized network of physical infrastructure, like a network of IoT devices, for example.
On top of its blockchain, IoTeX has other projects in the pipeline. One example is W3bstream, a decentralized multi-prover network that enables DePIN applications to verify real-world data using multiple validity proofs, to ensure that the data coming from IoT devices is securely processed. Another example is the Unified Identity System (IoID), a decentralized protocol managing machine-to-machine and machine-to-person relationships in DePIN applications.
## Introducing Sablier on IoTeX
Sablier is now live on IoTeX, enabling DePIN builders to automate their token distribution processes, including vesting, airdrops, grants, payroll and many other use cases, in a seamless and efficient manner.
Key benefits of using Sablier on IoTeX:
- **Efficient vesting and grants:** automate real-time token distribution to contributors, employees, or partners without the complexity of traditional vesting or payroll processes.
- **Scalable airdrops:** manage airdrop campaigns and distribute governance tokens to incentivize community participation up to millions of recipients.
- **Battle-tested security:** Sablier has never been hacked in 5+ years of existence.
Sablier brings greater efficiency and scalability to IoTeX-based projects, allowing them to focus on building and scaling their DePIN applications without worrying about the overhead of manual token distribution.
## Interview with IoTeX’s Simone (Head of RevRel)
To get a better understanding of how this partnership aligns with IoTeX’s vision, we spoke with Raullen Chai, CEO at IoTeX, about the potential of this integration.
**How does Sablier fit into IoTeX’s broader DePIN vision?**
_Sablier's integration with IoTeX aligns perfectly with our DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks) vision by extending the utility of real-time finance into the physical world. IoTeX has always been focused on enabling trust and transparency in the machine economy, where physical devices and infrastructure can autonomously interact with the blockchain._
_With Sablier’s real-time streaming of payments, we’re enabling new models for decentralized employment and incentivization for contributors in DePIN projects. This means that participants in real-world infrastructure networks can receive immediate, continuous rewards for their contributions, helping to drive the growth of decentralized infrastructures across sectors like connectivity, energy, and mobility._
_Sablier’s solution not only enhances payment transparency and automation but also supports the broader goal of empowering everyday users to contribute to, and benefit from, decentralized networks without the delays of traditional finance._
**What excites you most about the partnership with Sablier?**
_We’re excited about how Sablier’s real-time payment streaming enhances the IoTeX ecosystem. By allowing contributors in DePIN projects to get paid instantly and continuously, we’re making participation in decentralized infrastructure networks more attractive and efficient._
**What does the future look like for IoTeX?**
_IoTeX’s future is centered around scaling DePINs by making them more decentralized, secure, and trusted. As more devices, machines, and real-world infrastructure become interconnected, IoTeX will serve as the trust layer for these interactions, enabling machines to autonomously transact, share data, and generate value._
_Our focus is on empowering decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePINs), where users not only contribute but also benefit from real-world infrastructures. With innovations like ioID, an end-to-end decentralized identity solution for DePINs, and W3bstream, our off-chain verifiable compute platform, combined with partnerships like Sablier, we are laying the groundwork for a future where machines and humans collaborate securely in a decentralized ecosystem._
## How to Use Sablier on IoTeX
Sablier is already live on IoTeX, you can use it starting today through our app. Here is how to do so:
1. Head over to our [app](https://app.sablier.com)
2. Connect your wallet
3. Select “IoTeX” in the network dropdown menu
4. You’re good to go! You can now start using Sablier on IoTeX.
Whether it’s vesting, payroll, airdrops and grants, you can use Sablier for it.
## Conclusion
For builders, contributors, and developers in the DePIN ecosystem, this collaboration is a critical step forward and will help expand the IoTeX network and community.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Strengthening community alignment and long-term commitment with Sablier.
ghostUuid: d8ecf17d-2db3-40d5-8445-4ed3dcad46c0
publishedAt: '2024-08-13'
slug: case-study-weaves-use-of-sablier-for-vesting-and-user-engagement
tags: []
title: 'Case Study: Weave''s Use of Sablier for Vesting and User Engagement'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/unnameddddddd.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Case Study: Weave''s Use of Sablier for Vesting and User Engagement'
---
Weave is revolutionizing the wealth management sector with its powerful decentralised finance toolkit, making it easier to get started than ever before! They notably offer a strategy builder that enables users to easily create custom yield farming strategies or static portfolios through a drag-and-drop interface that is suitable for both newbies and experts alike. These can then be shared and copied by followers, for a fee.
## Challenges
Weave faced the challenge of managing its $WEAVE token distribution in a way that would encourage long-term engagement and commitment from its community members. This is typically the real difficulty when launching a token.
If the tokens are instantly unlocked, whether after an airdrop or a token sale, a majority of market participants will probably exit their position on launch day. User retention is poor, incentives aren’t aligned, and the engagement generated by the token launch is short-lived as people no longer care about the project in question after they sold their allocated tokens.
Weave could have built a custom vesting contract, but that would have required them to also build a custom interface for it, ideally audit the contracts as well, etc.
## Solution
In this case, Sablier really is a plug-and-play solution. No need to sign up, no need to subscribe, etc. Connect your wallet, create the vesting schedules, and you are good to go.
> _“Sablier’s innovative distribution capabilities have enabled Weave to allocate tokens via both Airstreams and custom vesting schedules, enhancing community engagement and granting users control and transparency over their holdings. It being so simple, secure, and cost-effective means there’s no reason not to use Sablier!”_ - Harry, President of Operations at Weave
But there are several other advantages that came into play here as well.
**Fully automated and transparent:** Sablier provides a fully automated and transparent solution, removing the need for manual vesting processes, vesting contracts, and improving trust within the project’s community.
**Flexible vesting schedules:** Weave could customize the vesting schedules to include cliffs and gradual token releases. This flexibility allowed them to adjust the schedules in a very granular way for each recipient.
**User engagement:** By vesting tokens over a period of time, Weave ensured that users had a continuous incentive to stay involved and contribute to the project's growth. This differs with instant token releases, where participants are incentivized to dump on day 1 to exit their position and avoid being dumped on by other recipients.
## Conclusion
Using Sablier for user retention and long-term community engagement is incredibly underrated. Stakeholders are incentivized to stay active within the project as they know they will still be receiving tokens X weeks, months, or even years from now. Incentives don’t lie, and ultimately define what a project becomes in the long run.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'A new standard for fair, secure and transparent token launches.'
ghostUuid: 7f3ac5c1-0d27-4208-bb40-c1552f276cdc
publishedAt: '2024-07-29'
slug: streamlining-token-launches-fjord-and-sablier-join-forces
tags: []
title: 'Streamlining Token Launches: Fjord and Sablier Join Forces'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/unnamed.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Streamlining Token Launches: Fjord and Sablier Join Forces'
---
Sablier is proud to announce our revolutionary partnership with [Fjord](https://www.fjordfoundry.com/), the leading community-focused platform specializing in fair and transparent Liquidity Bootstrapping Pools (LBPs).
This partnership integrates Sablier’s battle-tested token distribution protocol into Fjord’s LBP product, revolutionizing the token launch process.
## About Fjord Foundry
Fjord has established itself as a leading token sale platform with a primary focus on fairness and transparency. Until now, Fjord has been used to raise over $1B, generated $1.6B in swap volume and had 100K market participants.
Fjord specializes in Liquidity Bootstrapping Pools (LBPs), that prioritize equitable distribution, effectively reducing the impact of bots and whale manipulation on the token sale process. The platform’s unique pricing mechanism empowers the community to dictate the fair market value of tokens.
## The Collaboration
It’s a match made in heaven. Fjord handles the token sale, Sablier handles the token distribution. Through this deep integration, Fjord users can set up an LBP sale and directly set up a vesting plan through Fjord’s interface afterwards.
The vesting plan leverages Sablier under the hood. Users have the ability to set up a custom cliff, define the vesting duration, etc. This is all done from the Fjord interface. The LBP creator doesn’t have to use Sablier’s interface.
After the sale ends, the vesting streams are created and investors who participated in the sale can head over to the [Sablier app](https://app.sablier.com), to manage their own personal vesting plan.
This leads to three main benefits for investors participating in Fjord LBP campaigns:
- **Transparency:** Investors can see exactly how and for how long their tokens will be vested, promoting trust and reducing uncertainty.
- **Control:** By accessing their personal vesting plans on the Sablier app, investors can monitor their vesting streams, withdraw funds, etc.
- **Security:** Sablier’s battle-tested contracts ensure the highest levels of security, with the protocol having been around for over five years, while never once getting hacked.
These make Sablier an ideal candidate for integrations. Sablier Labs itself does not store any proprietary data. Anything available on the Sablier interface is directly queried from the chain. It’s all onchain data.
## Case in Point: Parifi
Parifi, a leading perpetual platform, leveraged Fjord to raise $154.59K from over 400 investors. As part of that fundraising process, the PRF tokens that were sold in the LBP were vested through Fjord’s Sablier integration over a two month period. Investors each had an individual vesting stream they could manage on the [Sablier interface](https://app.sablier.com).
The vesting process ensured a healthy and natural price action, forced investors to be aligned with the project’s interests as they knew going in they wouldn’t be able to dump everything on day one, and more importantly kept the community interested in the project after the token sale.
> _“Using Fjord and Sablier for our token launch at Parifi was a game-changer. The integration of Sablier’s token distribution protocol into Fjord’s LBP product streamlined the entire process for us, from the token sale to the vesting period. The security provided by Sablier’s battle-tested contracts gave us peace of mind, knowing that the tokens were in safe hands. This truly sets a new standard for fair and secure token launches.” —_ Chester Bella, Product Developer at Parifi
It happens frequently that after an airdrop or a token sale, community members lose interest and stop their involvement within the community. Vesting prevents that.
## Interview with Rob, Fjord’s CTO
What follows is a brief interview conducted with Fjord’s CTO [rmsrob.eth](https://x.com/rmsrob_).
**Why an integration with Sablier specifically?**
_At Fjord, we were already following PaulRBerg on GitHub and recognized the structure of his repositories and ideas as leading the ecosystem. We had been considering adding a vesting feature for a while and unanimously decided to use the Sablier library for its security and battle-tested vesting solution, as well as for the team behind it and the user-friendly UI. We feel very comfortable with our users continuing with Sablier after a Fjord LBP event._
**How was the integration process?**
_Overall, the integration was smooth. We had to add some new arguments needed for Sablier to our PoolSettings to set up the LBP. The key part was handling the vesting with Sablier when the user needed to use our redeem function. We decided that the user would redeem and receive a Sablier stream matching the remaining time according to the original LBP creator's configuration. At Fjord, we use the LockupLinear as it's the most common use case for our users._
_After defining the scope, we contacted the Sablier team to explain our goals. We appreciated their interest in Fjord and our work. The exchange also ensured we were following best practices with the Sablier library and the @prb/math library._
_Deploying Fjord on multiple chains was challenging. However, with Sablier already being on most chains, and after some discussions, we were granted a license to deploy the BUSL Sablier V2 Core contracts. We look forward to proceeding with this in our upcoming Fjord v2.0.0 and beyond._
**How much traction has the integration gotten?**
_LBP events that continue with a Sablier vesting stream make up a small but crucial part of our LBP offering, but for us it's a great start. At Fjord, we are committed to providing creators with all the tools they need for their various circumstances and Sablier's integration is a key player. We are looking forward to continue working together in the coming years._
## Conclusion
This partnership is more than a partnership, it’s a revolution. Projects launching new tokens can now do so in a fair, sustainable and efficient way, all from Fjord’s interface.
By integrating Sablier, Fjord can offer token sale organizers and backers a battle-tested, efficient, and premium way to manage token distribution.
For more information on how to set up token vesting on Fjord, visit [Fjord’s platform](https://www.fjordfoundry.com/) and start exploring the future of community-driven token sales today.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: It's all about creating the right long-term incentives.
ghostUuid: 1c1560e2-6a65-4893-ae4f-3033b60134eb
publishedAt: '2024-07-16'
slug: case-study-salads-adoption-of-airstreams
tags: []
title: 'Case Study: Salad''s Adoption of Airstreams'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-salad.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Case Study: Salad''s Adoption of Airstreams'
---
Salad, based in Singapore, is a leader in the Web3.0 revolution, building an X-2-Earn ecosystem by leveraging blockchain technology and innovative growth strategies. Salad’s mission is to incentivize engagement across platforms and foster industry-wide partnerships for mutual growth, offering fair earning opportunities to all community members.
## Challenges
Salad sought an airdrop solution to manage its $SALD token distribution to its community members.
But, the traditional way of doing airdrops has a lot of flaws. The majority of airdrop recipients sell their allocation immediately, leading to a sell-off as soon as the token launches. On top of that, the interest these airdrops gather is short-lived. As soon as airdrop recipients sell their allocation, they no longer have an incentive to care about the project in question.
Several projects which launched their token recently through a traditional airdrop saw a sudden massive decrease in their protocol’s usage. The mercenaries farming their token no longer had an incentive to do so.
And that’s the big problem: traditional airdrops do not create the right incentives for community members. They don’t incentivize long-term thinking.
## Solution
By vesting the airdrop using Sablier Airstreams, Salad ensured the right incentives were set in place. The best part is Salad decided to vest the token over a two-year period. Community members who claimed their allocation from the airstream campaign know that they will still be receiving tokens in more than a year from now.
This means they still have an incentive to care. They have an incentive to make sure the project becomes successful, as the tokens they will be receiving a year from now will otherwise be worth less than they are worth today.
> “This commitment with Sablier ensures stability and sustained growth for our ecosystem while paving the way for exciting developments ahead.” – Felix Sim, Founder, Salad.
But the best part is that Sablier's battle-tested contracts have been extensively audited over the years, and have never been hacked since the original protocol launch back in 2019. This is important, because if you are doing an airdrop through a third-party solution like Sablier, a significant share of your supply will be locked up in that third-party solution.
In this case, fortunately, the core Sablier protocol is fully decentralized and immutable. The Sablier Labs team does not have control over user funds, and as mentioned previously, Sablier has never been hacked in over 5 years.
## Conclusion
In conclusion, Salad created the exact right incentives for its token distribution thanks to Sablier Airstreams. It ensured long-term thinking, and a gradual token release led to a healthy price action.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
- prb
excerpt: The best token distribution protocol in crypto gets even better.
ghostUuid: 575c413f-ebf9-43cf-8cac-ed213122149a
publishedAt: '2024-07-05'
slug: q3-2024-release-notes
tags: []
title: Q3 2024 Release Notes
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-q3-2024-release-notes.webp
featureImageAlt: Q3 2024 Release Notes
---
We unveiled our groundbreaking [Airstreams feature](/introducing-airstreams/) back in December last year. Airstream campaigns enable vested airdrops to millions of recipients. We’ve seen hundreds of campaigns created since then, with hundreds of thousands of recipients globally. Along with it, we released Sablier V2.1, which introduced several new mechanics like the transferability of token distribution streams, as well as multiple smaller updates.
We’ve been hard at work on the latest iteration of our battle-tested token distribution protocol in the past six months. Today, we’re excited to unveil Sablier v2.2, which introduces an incredibly gas-efficient contract for tranched token distribution schedules, the removal of our protocol fee mechanism (the Sablier v2.2 protocol is free, forever!), as well as multiple security updates and a codebase cleanup.
Let’s dive into it!
## **Updates**
### LockupTranched
LockupTranched is a brand new efficient contract, joining the existing LockupLinear and LockupDynamic series. As a reminder, LockupLinear handles linear token distribution streams, while LockupDynamic handles non-linear curves, meaning monthly unlocks, exponential streams, timelocks, etc.
Consider LockupTranched as a specialized version of LockupDynamic, specifically for distribution schedules that are made exclusively of discrete tranches. A timelock, a monthly unlock stream, or similar streaming curves that are only horizontal or vertical, but never diagonal, can all be made using LockupTranched.
Why is this important if LockDynamic could already handle this? By creating a hyper specialized contract for this specific purpose, we enable massive gas savings, reducing fees for end users, while also simplifying the contract logic, and by extension making the protocol even more secure.
There is one third advantage: it makes integrations for developers even easier. Using LockupTranched, creating tranched streams is now even more accessible.
LockupTranched is now available for regular streams, as well as Airstream campaigns. This means you can now airdrop tokens using timelocks, monthly unlocks, etc. and not just linear distribution curves like it was previously the case.
### Revamped Airstreams Experience
On top of the added support for new Airstream distribution curves thanks to LockupTranched, we’ve introduced many new updates that will improve the user experience as a whole for users.
**Claimable Tab**
Users no longer need to look for a specific campaign to claim on our website, the interface now natively shows all the Airstream campaigns the user is eligible for in a brand new “Claimable” tab.
This will significantly increase the number of claims for Airstream campaigns, as it will be much harder for a recipient to miss a campaign they are eligible for.
**Grace Window**
We’re introducing a new feature called the Grace Window. Anytime before the first claim, or 7 days after, you can clawback the funds that you deposited in the campaign contract, if anything went wrong.
Imagine you create a campaign, you fund it, a few eligible recipients start claiming, and you then realize you made a mistake. If you are still in the 7-day grace period, you can take back the funds (an “initial clawback”) that haven’t yet been claimed at that time.
This will work alongside our optional "final clawback after expiration" feature, which enables campaign creators to clawback funds that haven’t been claimed after a certain date.
**Settings**
Campaign creators now get access to a “Settings” tab that enables advanced features for power users such as “Visibility”, which if toggled off ensures that the campaign isn’t visible via [the Sablier interface](https://app.sablier.com).
For campaign creators or users accessing the campaign URL directly, the page will still remain visible at all times, so hold on tight to that link before making it public with your community.
- **Campaign Name**: Might seem like a minor update, but Airstream campaigns can now have a custom name. This will make the experience even better and easier to understand for recipients, as campaign creators will be able to add additional context regarding their campaign in its name.
- **Search Engine Visibility**: If you want your campaign page to be indexed by search engines, this is now possible. This will allow campaign creators to get even more visibility for their campaigns, ensuring even greater engagement and participation from eligible recipients.
### Farcaster Frame Support
As part of our latest experiments, we’re unveiling a first set of Sablier frames. Share \`[app.sablier.com/api/frame/latest/home/](https://app.sablier.com/api/frame/latest/home/)\` on your favorite Farcaster client and keep tabs on any brand new stream being created. Use \`[app.sablier.com/api/frame/stream/\[stream-id](https://app.sablier.com/api/frame/stream/[stream-id)\]\` to highlight any specific item.
H/T the [wevm](https://x.com/wevm_dev) team for their work on the Frog framework.
### Working with Envio
Uptime and reliability have been a core factor for our product development. In this sense, we’ve engineered a new indexing solution based on Envio’s suite of fast and flexible tools for access to on-chain data.
Alongside our existing subgraphs, Envio is enabling faster queries, fallbacks and an overall optimized environment, which translates into a much better UX for our in-app users. Moreover, due to their cross-chain querying capabilities, this opens the door to advanced chain-abstracted portfolios of streams in future versions of Sablier. We couldn’t be more excited about that!
### Various Quality-of-Life App Updates
We love tinkering with our products, until they’re 10/10 and then some more. Since our last launch, we’ve added a bunch of small new features we’re proud of, including:
- Improvements to our in-app search engines 🔍
- A simplified experience for creating streams (priority on groups) 🪶
- A calldata generator for technical users (nicely integrated with [https://x.com/swissknifexyz](https://x.com/swissknifexyz) for on-demand decoding) 👨💻
- Add token to wallet button 🦊
- Persistent dashboard guides for early users 📚
- Small UI updates (we’ve made things shinny) 💎
### Public Withdrawals
Anyone can now trigger the withdrawal transaction for someone else! This will improve the user experience for people who aren’t necessarily accustomed to using our interface.
Let’s say you are an employee paid as part of your payroll program through Sablier. As opposed to going to the Sablier interface, and manually withdrawing yourself, your employer could simply trigger that transaction for you along with their other employees.
The withdrawal can of course only be made to the stream recipient’s address, not to the third-party address triggering the withdrawal for them.
### Protocol Fee Mechanism Removal
As you may know, Sablier V2.1 and V2.0 both featured a protocol fee mechanism similar to Uniswap’s fee mechanism. Inside the protocol was a fee switch that enabled the governance module, currently controlled by a multisig held by Sablier Labs, to charge a fee on every stream created using the protocol.
But given you are an avid reader of this blog, you also know that [we never charged any fees](/why-and-how-sablier-is-free-to-use/). We never turned the fee switch on. Given we have no plans to turn it on in the future, and couldn’t come up with any rational reason to keep it, we simply decided to remove it.
### Hook System
Sablier V2.2 is even more secure, thanks to an updated hook system. As you may know, Sablier V2 featured an advanced hook system that allowed any integrator to get notified onchain when streams are canceled, withdrawn, or renounced.
As part of our [audits](https://codehawks.cyfrin.io/c/2024-05-Sablier/results?t=report<=contest&sc=reward&sj=reward&page=1), security researchers found that it was possible for the caller of the withdraw and cancel functions to skip hook calls by providing only enough gas to execute the Sablier functions without executing the hook callbacks. This undermines the credibility of hook calls, which are crucial for building an ecosystem around Sablier NFTs.
That is why in V2.2, we redesigned how hooks are called by adding an allowlist of contracts that are tightly integrated with withdraw and cancel and removing it from renounce. If the hook call fails, the execution fails as well. Initially, the allowlist will be maintained by the Sablier admin, with potential future governance control.
## **Security**
We have an impeccable security track record at Sablier, and we intend to keep it. Our battle-tested token distribution protocol has been live on mainnet since 2019, with a [~$200M median TVL](https://sablier.notion.site/e8dc6f6b90e64e6bad285d3d02fdc262?v=1c0ba8d0ef2e403b9e68cc521beccfcb) in the past few years.
Sablier V2.0 and V2.1 have both already [been extensively audited](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits). This release was audited by [Cantina](https://cantina.xyz/), a leader in the industry, as well as through a [CodeHawks audit competition](https://codehawks.cyfrin.io/c/clvb9njmy00012dqjyaavpl44/results?t=report<=contest&sc=reward&sj=reward&page=1) that had +40 participants. You can find an in-depth review of this latter audit [here](/codehawks-v2-2-audit-contest-review/). We even had a specialized audit made by [Egis Security](https://github.com/Egis-Security/audits) for our updated hook system.
The updated [v2-core codebase](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core) contains one of the most robust test suites in the Ethereum ecosystem, with 174 test files and +8K lines of code testing the protocol in all possible ways.
Security is and will forever be our first and foremost priority at Sablier. Trust is built through transparency, meticulous attention to detail, and an unwavering commitment to safeguarding user assets. When you use Sablier, you're using a protocol that puts those values above all else.
## **Conclusion**
Sablier V2.2 is the most efficient, accessible and secure token distribution protocol in the ecosystem. With the introduction of the gas-efficient LockupTranched contract, the removal of the protocol fee mechanism, an updated hook system and multiple security improvements, Sablier is effectively the best way to distribute tokens in crypto.
V2.2 not only makes developer integrations even easier, the protocol is also now significantly cheaper for users, reinforcing our commitment to providing the best, most secure token distribution experience available.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Our Codehawks audit was a wrap, and we are very excited to share the findings
and the steps we took to mitigate those risks.
ghostUuid: 767b6fab-4a48-47c2-b598-3e1a5bf5a5f1
publishedAt: '2024-07-01'
slug: codehawks-v2-2-audit-contest-review
tags: []
title: Codehawks V2.2 Audit Contest Review
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/codehawks-sablier.webp
featureImageAlt: Codehawks V2.2 Audit Contest Review
---
_Written by_ [_Shubham Yadav_](https://x.com/sy100x)_, Protocol Engineer at Sablier Labs._
We extend our gratitude to all the auditors who participated in the contest and gave their time to find any issues in the v2.2 codebase! Importantly, no high risk issues were found.
Worth noting that the Sablier protocol, live on mainnet since 2019, has never been hacked since then, all while having [tens of thousands of users](https://dune.com/sablier) since then. We take security extremely, really, seriously at Sablier Labs. Each protocol version is [thoroughly audited](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits) by several parties, and our testing suite is one of the most rigorous in the industry. A testing technique called “[Branching Tree Technique](https://x.com/PaulRBerg/status/1682346315806539776)”, invented by Paul Razvan Berg, co-founder and CEO at Sablier Labs, [even became an industry standard](https://github.com/alexfertel/bulloak).
[Link to the final report](https://codehawks.cyfrin.io/c/clvb9njmy00012dqjyaavpl44/results?t=report<=contest&sc=reward&sj=reward&page=1)
## Medium Findings
**M-01: Insufficient input validation allows an attacker to obtain stored XSS**
The safeAssetDecimals function in the SablierV2NFTDescriptor contract wasn’t checking whether the ERC20’s symbol contains special characters. An attacker could deploy an ERC20 asset with special symbols that could be loaded on websites supporting Sablier NFT SVGs. This could be used to inject client-side scripts into web pages viewed by other users.
**Resolution:** We acknowledge this as a valid finding and have fixed it by supporting assets that return alphanumeric symbols and spaces only.
[Related PR](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/pull/945)
**M-02: Overflow in the \_calculateStreamedAmount function**
In the case of Lockup Linear, if the start time is in the future, the streamed amount calculation can lead to arithmetic overflow due to the use of an unchecked block. This poses a serious risk to v2.2 because the cliff time could be zero if there is no cliff. In the previous versions of the protocol, streams with no cliff are created using cliff time equals to the start time. So this issue does not apply to any of the previously deployed versions.
**Resolution:** We have fixed this by returning 0 in \_calculateStreamedAmount if the stream start time is in the future.
[Related PR](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/pull/941)
**M-03: Limiting gas during a transaction allows skipping hook calls**
The caller of withdraw, cancel, and renounce could skip hook calls by providing only enough gas to execute the Sablier functions without executing the hook callbacks. This undermines the credibility of hook calls, which are crucial for building an ecosystem around Sablier NFTs.
**Resolution:** We redesigned how hooks are called by adding an allowlist of contracts that are tightly integrated with withdraw and cancel and removing it from renounce. If the hook call fails, the execution fails as well. Initially, the allowlist will be maintained by the Sablier admin, with potential future governance control.
[Detailed Discussion](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/discussions/952) [Related PR](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/pull/951)
**M-04. Use of CREATE method susceptible to reorg attack**
Even though reorgs are not very popular these days, we decided to mitigate this risk by switching to CREATE2 to deploy Merkle lockup contracts through the factory.
[Related PR](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-periphery/pull/355)
## Low finding
**L-01: SablierV2Lockup is not EIP-4906 compliant**
Sablier protocol inherits ERC-4906 to emit MetadataUpdate events. To ensure compatibility with some NFT marketplaces, we have fixed this by supporting the ERC-4906 interface. It is worth noting that Sablier NFTs get updated on Opensea even without adherence to ERC-165.
[Related PR](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/pull/946)
**L-02. Admin change in Merkle Lockup does not reflect in stream sender**
Although a valid finding, most airstream creators use multisig wallets, so the change of admin is achieved by changing the owner of the multisig wallet. Fixing this would require a major re-architecture of the protocol since the Lockup contracts have no knowledge of the admin of the Merkle Lockup contract.
**L-03 Early initiation of grace period limits creator's ability to withdraw funds via Clawback**
A 7-day grace period is deemed sufficient for campaign creators to detect anomalies and use clawback to withdraw funds. It is worth noting that this 7-day period begins after the first claim. Hence, this is acknowledged as informational as we do not believe this can impact any user.
**L-04. Potential honeypot attack on NFT marketplaces**
This issue is more related to NFT marketplace practices than the Sablier protocol. We advise NFT marketplaces to support non-cancelable Sablier NFTs to mitigate this risk. And hence this is acknowledged as informational.
**L-05. Cross chain replay attacks on Merkle Lockup contracts**
While creating Airstream campaigns, it is highly unlikely for a user to use the exact same configuration across different chains. Even if they do, the Merkle root of the airdrop recipients would differ. Hence, this is acknowledged as informational as we believe this can not impact any user in practice.
**L-06. Stream sender cannot cancel a stream with a pausable asset that is paused**
This issue is related to ERC-20 tokens rather than the Sablier protocol. Thus, we acknowledge it as an informational finding. Mitigating this would require separating the refund from the cancel function and would impair UX by making it a two-step process. Users should exercise due diligence when accepting ERC20 tokens.
**L-07. WithdrawMultiple can be DOS’ed by a random user**
While this is a valid finding, we see no incentive for a user to perform a DoS attack. A user DOS’ing would pay transaction cost without gaining anything from it. Thus, this is acknowledged as informational.
## Conclusion
We take security very seriously and have addressed the critical issues identified in the audit. These improvements will help us build a more robust and secure ecosystem around the Sablier protocol. We thank Codehawks for organizing this contest.
We would also like to extend our deepest thanks to all the auditors who participated in the audit contest and helped us make Sablier more secure than ever.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: And there's no catch.
ghostUuid: 5a756fee-a270-4638-bb43-9b72f64c5f7c
publishedAt: '2024-06-10'
slug: why-and-how-sablier-is-free-to-use
tags: []
title: Why and How Sablier Is Still Free to Use
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/pricing-free-3.webp
featureImageAlt: Why and How Sablier Is Still Free to Use
---
Being in touch with potential Sablier users, we are often asked the question of what the pricing model is for Sablier. The answer is always the same: it's entirely free to use (aside from gas fees) and we intend to keep it that way for the medium term.
The next question is often, how is that sustainable? What's the catch? There is none, and that's why we decided to write this blog post to clarify our stance.
Right now, our core priority at Sablier is growth. Growth. Growth. Growth. We intend to become the universal immutable token distribution layer for crypto.
Sablier's co-founders initially bootstrapped the project using their own funds and [a few grants](/big-day-for-sablier-we-raised-a-grant/), we were then [subsequently acquired](/sabliers-past-and-future/), and two years later spun out given the success the protocol was getting. Since then, [we have been privately funded](/sablier-labs-raises-seed-round/) thanks to an incredible team of angels and VCs such as [a16z crypto's CSX](https://a16zcrypto.com/accelerator/) (think Y Combinator for crypto), [A Capital](https://acapital.com/) and more, which is why we can allow ourselves to entirely, ruthlessly and unapologetically focus on growth and keep our product entirely free to use, for now.
We may eventually charge fees as we will need to generate revenue and become self-sustainable, obviously, but our core priority at the moment is offering the best possible token distribution for our users. A fee system we could implement would be, for example, a flat percentage fee on every stream created. It wouldn't be retroactive. In fact, we can't even do that due to how our smart contracts are [designed](https://docs.sablier.com/contracts/v2/reference/overview).
The core Sablier protocol is entirely immutable, and we have no control over it, meaning there would be no way for us to retroactively charge users. Any token distribution plans created until then, if that ever happens, will be free, forever.
For third-party integrators, we offer a broker fee system, which allows them to charge fees on every stream created through their own interface/integration. Needless to say that [the official Sablier interface](https://app.sablier.com) does not charge broker fees (or any types of fees whatsoever), as mentioned previously. The broker fee system is there to incentivize third-party integrations by offering them a native way to generate a revenue stream.
That's a wrap.
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Unvested airdrops are a relic of the past. Use airstreams instead. What is an
airdrop? In the crypto world, an airdrop is a form of token distribution
mechanism
ghostUuid: 56159974-7af0-43fe-b066-66d6e7b8b622
publishedAt: '2024-05-27'
slug: using-sablier-for-airstreams
tags: []
title: Using Sablier For Airdrops
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-for-airdrops.webp
featureImageAlt: Using Sablier For Airdrops
metaDescription: >-
Explore Sablier Airstreams, a revolutionary airdrop solution preventing token
dumping and fostering long-term community engagement.
---
Unvested airdrops are a relic of the past. Use airstreams instead.
### What is an airdrop?
In the crypto world, an airdrop is a form of token distribution mechanism where a specific set of wallet addresses receive a certain number of tokens, for free. To be eligible for the airdrop, meaning to have your wallet address included in the list that will be airdropped to, an action is usually required.
Sometimes your wallet will be included because you used the protocol or product in the past, sometimes it will be included because you helped boost the project’s social media presence, made a contribution to a GitHub repository, etc.
In most airdrops, recipients receive funds instantly, and don’t have to wait a certain period of time before getting access to the airdropped funds. It’s also quite usual for the recipients to have to manually claim the airdrop, meaning go on a website where the airdrop campaign is hosted, connect their wallet and sign a message proving that they are indeed the owner of the wallet, and subsequently execute a transaction that releases their token allocation to their wallet.
Airdrops are sometimes also made in several rounds, where a first share of the token supply is initially released, then a second one, etc.
### Benefits of an airdrop
The core idea behind organizing an airdrop as a primary initial token distribution mechanism is that this will (hopefully) lead to the most diverse/broad base of token holders. If you were to organize an ICO instead, for example, the number of initial token holders would probably be much smaller, as not everyone is ready to invest in an ICO, while everyone is usually very welcoming of an airdrop.
Airdrops are also effectively marketing campaigns, as they generally get a lot of attention on social media (who doesn’t want free money after all?) and are a great way to get your project viewed in a positive light by hundreds, thousands and sometimes millions of people. As the airdrop organizer, you could also require recipients to share a specific link or piece of text promoting your initiative, for example, further contributing to the virality of your campaign.
Launching a token using an airdrop as opposed to organizing an ICO is also a smoother way of operating when it comes to regulation, given there is no initial token sale, meaning it’s easier for the project organizing the airdrop to argue that the token is indeed a utility, and not a security, following the SEC’s legislation.
### Problems with traditional airdrops
The current way most airdrops are organized is severely flawed. There are multiple issues:
- **Short-term dumping:** given most airdrops release all the funds instantly to recipients, a lot of recipients also immediately sell their airdrop allocation after receiving it. This leads to a direct price dump after the token launch, which really isn’t an ideal way to launch a new token.
- **Short-term interest:** after recipients receive their airdrop allocation, and given it’s usually released all at once directly, there is no reason for them to stay involved in the project or participate later on. Sometimes, community members who were previously involved in the project until the airdrop suddenly stop being active afterward, as they no longer an incentive to.
Those are big problems. Community members are the backbone of any crypto project, which is why it’s incredibly important to strengthen your relationship with them. Additionally, the short-term interest one-time airdrops generate doesn’t contribute to building up long-term marketing momentum.
Finally, given the airdrop organizer is usually giving away a meaningful share of their token supply, it’s also in their best interest to maximize the momentum, marketing, community engagement and decentralization gains they can take out of it. If you are going to give away free money, do it well.
### **What Are Airstreams?**
With tens of thousands of users onboarded already, Sablier Airstreams is the leading vested airdrop product in crypto. Using Airstreams, one can seamlessly create a vested airdrop campaign with the recipients being able to claim through the official [Sablier Interface](https://app.sablier.com), or another integrated interface built on top of the Sablier Protocol.
There are two main advantages to having a vested airdrop:
- **Prevents dumping on day 1**, given the tokens are vested and gradually unlocked.
- **Ensures community alignment**, as recipients know they will still be receiving tokens X months/years from now, meaning they have an incentive to stay involved in the project and think on a long-term perspective, as they know they will still have a stake in the project in X months/years from now.
There are many advantages to using Sablier Airstreams specifically to do so:
- **Entirely free to use:** the Sablier team is currently entirely focused on growth, which is why the protocol and the interface are entirely free to use. There are no fees.
- **Security:** Sablier has been around for over five years now, [with a sizeable TVL](https://defillama.com/protocol/sablier#information) (make sure to turn the "vesting" option on), while never getting hacked (not even once).
- **User experience:** Sablier users have an incredible experience both for creating the token distribution plans, as well as claiming them as part of an airdrop. The Sablier team also provides a support chat where users can ask for help if they face an issue.
### How do Airstream campaigns work?
It's incredibly simple.
**1\. Creating the campaign**
Creating an Airstream campaign is exceptionally easy. Head over to [the Sablier interface](https://app.sablier.com), upload a spreadsheet with the airdrop data based on the provided template, and our interface will do the rest! Yes, that's how easy it is.
**2\. Claiming the airdrop**
Once the campaign is created, recipients can start claiming their share of the airdrop by heading over to the campaign page on our user interface. But, what if you want a more personalized experience?
One, where users may not even know Sablier is powering the airdrop in the backend? This is entirely possible. Using the [Sablier Airstreams API](https://docs.sablier.com/api/merkle-api/intro), you can check from your interface the eligibility of a recipient, and subsequently issue a claim transaction onchain using an onchain API provider like [Infura](https://www.infura.io/) or [Alchemy](https://www.alchemy.com/).
### **Conclusion**
Sablier Airstreams is not just an airdrop solution; it’s a comprehensive strategy to ensure community alignment and prevent day 1 token dumping, all while offering an incredible user experience to airdrop recipients.
**If you are launching a new token, use Sablier Airstreams.**
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com/).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1idPuVlTARF_NEyBKCZQ6z-Vf6nVodxs1Pz6VAv9oiMY), and we will reach out to you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Why a leading cap-table management tool has integrated the Sablier token
distribution protocol.
ghostUuid: 487f2907-fa6a-4e62-b6d7-a026991d6e6c
publishedAt: '2024-04-17'
slug: case-study-tokenops
tags: []
title: 'Case Study: TokenOps'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-tokenops.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Case Study: TokenOps'
---
[TokenOps](https://tokenops.xyz/) is one of the leading cap-table solutions in crypto at the moment. Using its advanced interface, companies can create, manage and track vesting programs, while investors can manage their portfolio of vested tokens in an easy way,having access to top-notch compliance and accounting features.
They also provide in-depth insights and analytics, enabling users to get a deep overview of their token’s ownership and utilization, tracking token-holders, receiving alerts for key token movements, etc.
### **Integrating Sablier Is the Only Logical Choice**
At Sablier, we like to think that one of the reasons for TokenOps’ success is its strategic integration with Sablier V2, the leading token distribution protocol in crypto. Sablier has been on mainnet since 2019, when we introduced our flagship payment model: the linear stream.
Thanks to the integration, TokenOps has been able to focus on building itsfront-end product. In the background, our state-of-the-art, battle-tested protocol is powering their interface, for free.
For potential integrators looking to harness the power of token streaming and token distribution, Sablier V2 is the only logical choice. Here’s why:
- **Unparalleled security:** Sablier has been around since 2019 and has never been hacked, with an average monthly TVL of $174M since 2021 and today. It’s battle-tested.
- **Cost effective:** The protocol is entirely free to use at the moment.
- **Native revenue generation:** While the protocol is free to use, that doesn’t mean you cannot make money integrating it. Using our built-in third-party fee system, integrators can charge a fee on every stream created through their interface, natively.
- **Incredible user experience:** We have over four years of experience when it comes to on-chain token distribution. The Sablier protocol is specifically tailored for integrators looking to it for vesting, grants, airdrops, payroll, and more similar use cases.
The integration of Sablier V2 into TokenOps is a blueprint for what other integrators can achieve. TokenOps has leveraged Sablier V2 to offer vesting programs where streaming curves can be linearly streamed, something unique in the ecosystem. Other token distribution protocols only offer discrete payment schedules.
### **A Call to Action for Integrators**
But the greatest advantage for TokenOps by far, is that integrating Sablier V2 gives it the ability to fully and ruthlessly focus on building out its own product, while not having to build any smart contracts, deal with audits, etc. The savings in time, payroll, and frustration are priceless.
For integrators contemplating the right protocol to integrate, or contemplating whether or not they should build their own, the message is clear: Sablier V2 is the only protocol that offers the robustness, flexibility, and economic viability (it’s free!) required to succeed.
The success of TokenOps proves it.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'Onchain vesting, onchain transparency.'
ghostUuid: 0f530da0-1c54-4fa7-9ecd-f35fabb15206
publishedAt: '2024-04-09'
slug: case-study-parifis-adoption-of-sablier-for-token-vesting
tags: []
title: 'Case Study: Parifi''s Adoption of Sablier for Token Vesting'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-parifi.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Case Study: Parifi''s Adoption of Sablier for Token Vesting'
---
Parifi, a pioneering platform in the perpetual contracts market, has leveraged Sablier for vesting programs encompassing core contributors, potential future contributors, their reserves fund, and strategic round investors.
Parifi allows you to trade on both desktop and mobile, while offering a cutting-edge liquidity curve mechanism, along with auto-compounding LP vaults and many other features.
### **Challenges**
Parifi aimed to establish a vesting framework that was secure, efficient, and adaptable to the needs of various stakeholders, including core team members and investors. Traditional vesting methods posed challenges in terms of flexibility, security, and administrative overhead. But the largest problem by far, was related to transparency.
Sablier offers natively third-party sharing for vesting plans, meaning the creator of a vesting plan can share the URL of the page with a third-party, including someone other than the recipient, so they can check the progress of the vesting program. This level of transparency is unmatched.
> _“Sablier's cutting-edge vesting solutions have empowered Parifi to streamline our token distribution, marrying transparency with efficiency. This not only enhances the user experience but also strengthens trust within our community.”_ — Chester Bella, Product Development at Parifi
### **Token Distribution Redefined**
Further enhancing its token distribution strategy, Parifi implemented the EscrowedEXA contract, managing vested $PRF tokens using Sablier. This contract escrows tokens within incentivized vaults and staking pools, ensuring a gradual and secure reward unlocking, and aligning the interests of contributors and investors.
Moreover, Parifi aims to incorporate Airstreams for the progressive distribution of airdrops. This approach contrasts with traditional lump-sum distributions and aligns with the long-term incentives of PRF token holders, contributing to the ecosystem's stability and growth.
### **Solution**
By integrating Sablier's vesting solutions, Parifi achieved a dynamic, transparent and secure approach to token distribution.
By vesting the token allocation for the Parifi Reserve fund, the team ensured that the community could transparently verify the vesting procedure at any time, and see how much of the funds have already been withdrawn by the fund. Vesting the contributor allocations allows Parifi to incentivize them and align their long-term interests with the project’s. The same applies to strategic round investors.
This improves the trust of the Parifi community in the ecosystem and strengthens the appeal of the PRF token, as community members have full knowledge and can independently verify when tokens will be unvested.
### **Conclusion**
In conclusion, through Sablier's innovative vesting solutions, Parifi not only addressed the challenges of security, efficiency, and transparency in token distribution but also fostered a stronger bond of trust within its community.
The transparent, dynamic approach to vesting aligns the interests of core contributors, investors, and the community with the long-term goals of Parifi, enhancing the overall appeal and resilience of the PRF token.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
We're incredibly excited to announce that Sablier Labs has raised a $4.5M seed
round from A Capital, Fenbushi Capital, WAGMI Ventures, GD1 web3, Cyfrin, DCV,
Fo
ghostUuid: a4596d97-2e47-40e7-8408-cf8a92b66330
publishedAt: '2024-03-22'
slug: sablier-labs-raises-seed-round
tags:
- announcement
title: Sablier Labs Raises $4.5M Seed Round
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/raise.webp
featureImageAlt: Sablier Labs Raises $4.5M Seed Round
metaDescription: >-
Sablier Labs secures $4.5M in seed funding to advance on-chain token
distribution, enhancing payroll and payment solutions for web3.
---
We're incredibly excited to announce that Sablier Labs has raised a $4.5M seed round from A Capital, Fenbushi Capital, WAGMI Ventures, GD1 web3, Cyfrin, DCV, Founderheads, and an outstanding lineup of angels – Daniel Bar, Ben Middleton, Evan Van Ness, David Iach, Ari Barmat, Kartik Talwar, Igor Barinov, Sarunas Legeckas, Blake Gao, David Truong, Martin Tellechea, Moshe Malawach, Auryn MacMillan, Kerman Kohli, John Henderson, Lito Coen, Paul Salisbury, Alp Ergin, Clement Fermaud, and Matej Nemček.
We have also received funding from a16z Crypto Startup Accelerator, as a participant in the CSX Spring 2024 cohort in London.
This is a big leap from our pre-seed in 2022, when we raised $500K from Starbloom Capital, Safe Ecosystem Foundation, F.actor, Doug Leonard, and Charles Songhurst.
Sablier has been the leading on-chain token distribution and money-streaming solution for five years now, with [over 65K streams created](https://dune.com/queries/1796044/2983473), [$50M in stablecoin volume](https://dune.com/queries/1816298/2988924), and [over $161M in median TVL](https://sablier.notion.site/e8dc6f6b90e64e6bad285d3d02fdc262?v=1c0ba8d0ef2e403b9e68cc521beccfcb&pvs=74) over the past three years. The protocol has been used by organizations like Shapeshift, NounsDAO, VitaDAO, Maple Finance and hundreds of others for vesting, payroll, airdrops, grants, and other similar use cases.
> Wondering how Sablier can support your organization's operations? Get in touch with our team [here](https://forms.gle/qEnbrzTrq6MSQRMr7).
The investment will enable us to:
- Hire top talent from across the world.
- Improve and expand our current product offering with an open-ended streaming product, enabling an even better user experience for use cases involving recurring payments, such as payroll.
- Build a next-generation payment platform (codename: "Sablier V3") that is currently in stealth mode.
We can't wait to showcase the amazing products we have been working on internally. Stay tuned on [Twitter](https://x.com/Sablier) and [Farcaster](https://warpcast.com/sablier), and check out our website at [sablier.com](https://sablier.com).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Offer a gasless vesting, airdrop and payroll user experience to your users by
using Sablier on LightLink.
ghostUuid: 87a1e234-94c3-4a91-8aa5-f6106e1c98ef
publishedAt: '2024-02-21'
slug: sablier-joins-forces-with-lightlink-a-new-era-of-gasless-transactions
tags: []
title: 'Sablier Joins Forces with LightLink: A New Era of Gasless Transactions'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-lightlink--1-.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Sablier Joins Forces with LightLink: A New Era of Gasless Transactions'
---
We're thrilled to announce a groundbreaking partnership with LightLink, an Ethereum Layer 2 renowned for its commitment to instant, gasless transactions for dApps and enterprises.
## **About LightLink**
Before diving into the specifics of our collaboration, let's spotlight LightLink. Established as a leading Layer 2 solution, LightLink offers an unparalleled experience with its Enterprise Mode, allowing users to interact with smart contracts in a gasless way, where the fees are sponsored by the developer of the smart contracts.
Enterprise Mode offers a fixed-fee system, a vast ecosystem with millions of users to tap into, all with a high-throughput network. LightLink is also at the forefront of innovation when it comes to its modular architecture, as it leverages [Celestia](https://celestia.org) for data availability.
## **Introducing Sablier on LightLink**
Sablier, known for its innovative approach to on-chain token distribution, brings a new level of efficiency and flexibility to LightLink's ecosystem. Our platform enables streamlined processes for vesting, payroll, airdrops, and more, all in a more transparent and efficient way than traditional methods.
Organizations like Compound, Shapeshift, and hundreds of others have used Sablier to power their vesting, payroll, airdrop and grant processes over the past few years.
## **The Collaboration**
Our integration with LightLink leverages the strengths of both platforms. Users can now experience the seamless functionality of Sablier's money streaming and token distribution solution on LightLink's gasless infrastructure.
This synergy not only enhances the user experience but also expands the capabilities of both platforms in serving the growing demands of Web3 communities. The enterprise use cases for Sablier like vesting, payroll, airdrops and grants, make it a particularly good fit for LightLink’s enterprise customer base.
## **Interview with Daniel Enright, Ecosystem Lead at LightLink**
What follows is a small interview we conducted with Daniel Enright, Ecosystem Lead at LightLink, about LightLink’s future and their partnership with Sablier.
**What excites you most about the partnership with Sablier?**
_Sablier has been a protocol that I have admired as it is an elegant, trustworthy and fully featured token distribution and vesting solution. The UX and powerful ways by which you can configure vesting to take place are top tier within the space.As we approach our TGE I am very pleased that we will be providing our investors and partners with a solution to vest their tokens that is a pleasure to use._
**How do you see this integration benefiting the LightLink ecosystem?**
_We are excited that Sablier has been made available on the LightLink ecosystem as we see it as a useful public tool that can be leveraged by many of the applications that are here today as well as those that arrive tomorrow._
**Can you share some insights on future developments at LightLink?**
_As we head towards our Token Generation Event we are very excited to put the LL token within our community member’s hands, there are a lot of exciting programs and opportunities to make use of LL in the near future including the validator program and the establishment of the LightLink DAO._
_We also can’t wait to continue with our exciting Community Airdrop campaign and distribute the Luminary collection PFP NFT’s to the top participants._
## **How to Use Sablier on LightLink**
Sablier is already live on LightLink, you can use it starting today through our app. Here is how to do so:
1. Head over to our [app](https://app.sablier.com)
2. Connect your wallet
3. Select “LightLink” in the network dropdown menu
4. You’re good to go! You can now start using Sablier on LightLink.
Whether it's for payroll, vesting, or airdrops, you can set up your token distribution plan in a matter of seconds, all while enjoying the gasless and high-throughput experience LightLink offers.
## **Conclusion**
This partnership is more than an integration; it's a testament to our commitment to shaping the future of token distribution. Together, Sablier and LightLink are paving the way for a more efficient, accessible, and user-friendly transacting experience.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Sablier stream NFTs have real-world utility.
ghostUuid: 4b45f73c-68a9-45d8-9f42-b13661bad65d
publishedAt: '2024-01-23'
slug: how-shell-protocol-uses-sablier-stream-nfts-for-its-token-distribution
tags: []
title: How Shell Protocol Uses Sablier Stream NFTs for Its Token Distribution
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/IMG_0348.webp
featureImageAlt: How Shell Protocol Uses Sablier Stream NFTs for Its Token Distribution
---
Shell Protocol aims to unify DeFi with a single swap interface for NFTs and one-to-many swaps across every major protocol. The new Shell v3 will combine the best features of DEX aggregator 1inch and data aggregator DeFi Llama, becoming a place where people come to trade and explore the DeFi ecosystem. Their protocol is like a DeFi super app on Arbitrum, allowing users to trade tokens and NFTs, stake, optimize holdings, track market data, and more.
Shell minimizes the first mover advantage for new projects, ensuring that up-and-coming teams can immediately tap into a well-connected network. Meanwhile, end users gain access to the latest tools without navigating a tangled web of browser tabs.
With the launch of SHELL, the governance token of the Shell DAO, it was time for the team to figure out how to distribute the token to investors, community, and themselves, in a fair and transparent way, all while ensuring the smoothest launch possible.
### **The Challenge**
Rapid increases in the supply of a new token can negatively impact a developing ecosystem, a common issue with traditional token vesting methods.
In these traditional vesting plans, the circulating supply of tokens abruptly increases by a substantial amount monthly or quarterly, often a large portion of the total supply. This abrupt increase can lead to volatility in the token's price.
Typically, traditional vesting involves creating and deploying a custom smart contract. This process requires extra development work, security measures, and a dedicated interface for recipients to claim their tokens, resulting in a cumbersome user experience. Additionally, the contract deployment incurs fees.
Furthermore, this vesting contract often necessitates a labor-intensive process every few months, where signers must coordinate and manually authorize the token releases. This method is not only tedious but also relies on the company's commitment to execute the releases as planned.
No one prefers to spend extensive time setting up a complex vesting program for a new token, nor does anyone want the hassle of manually claiming their vested tokens from a custom contract on a platform like Etherscan.
### **The Solution**
Shell chose Sablier for four key reasons:
- **Comprehensive User Experience:** Sablier provides a platform enabling both senders and recipients to oversee and control their vesting plans, known as "streams".
- **Full Automation:** The setup of vesting plans is a one-time process, eliminating the need for treasury administrators to perform monthly transactions.
- **Cost Efficiency:** Utilizing Sablier streams is up to 90% more economical compared to traditional vesting contracts, thanks to pre-deployed Sablier contracts.
- **NFT Integration:** Each Sablier stream is encapsulated in an NFT, belonging to the recipient. These NFTs, designed as hourglass SVGs generated on-chain, can be used in third-party protocols and transferred across wallets.
Shell's integration of these stream NFTs into their app is a step function change. With the introduction of Shell v3, they are launching a unique NFT AMM featuring financial NFTs for the first time: Sablier stream NFTs. Users will be able to trade stream NFTs via a new Sablier NFT AMM, offering extensive control over their $SHELL tokens.
> **“Sablier had the flexibility and reliability Shell Protocol needed. Not only that, Sablier token streams are a powerful new primitive that will unlock many new use cases in the future.” –** Kenny White, founder & chief economist at Cowri Labs, creators of Shell Protocol
What Shell achieves with this integration is the creation of a comprehensive financial ecosystem centered around their token, which isvestedfrom the outset through Sablier. This would be unfeasible with other token distribution protocols or traditional vesting contracts due to the absence of NFT representation and the limited flexibility and integration capabilities that Sablier's protocol provides.
### **The Benefits/Results**
Shell decided to put everyone on the same vesting schedule. Investors, the core team and community members are treated equally, all subject to a two-year linear vesting program. The NFT representation of Sablier streams allows for a seamless integration inside their app, and the ecosystem Shell is building around the streams will lead to a great user experience for recipients.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
- prb
excerpt: Vest your token airdrop with Sablier
ghostUuid: 0a1cf5fd-5e35-400b-ae1c-36475b2c9607
publishedAt: '2023-12-20'
slug: introducing-airstreams
tags:
- announcement
title: 'Introducing Airstreams: An End-to-End Solution for Vesting Airdrops'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/introducing-airstreams-1.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Introducing Airstreams: An End-to-End Solution for Vesting Airdrops'
---
Airstreams. Sounds cool, doesn’t it? In this blog post, we're excited to unveil the innovative mechanism we've meticulously crafted for the past six months. We'll dive into how it works and the unique advantages it brings to the table.
> Before starting, and to make things extra clear about how awesome Airstreams is as a product, note that it's entirely free to use. Zero fees besides gas costs.
## The Problem
Airdrops have become a routine in the crypto industry. Over the years, it has become the standard way of launching a new token, and for good reasons: it’s a great way to give ownership of a project to the right people.
However, **the traditional way of doing airdrops is flawed**. Most airdrop recipients claim the tokens only to sell them right away, and the interest these airdrops gather is short-lived.
The big problem with **simple, one-time airdrops is that they don’t create the right incentives for community members**. They don’t incentivize long-term thinking.
This is a major problem because community members are the backbone of a crypto project, and losing most of them immediately after the airdrop isn’t great.
The solution to this problem is extremely elegant and creates the right incentives for community members to think from a long-term perspective. It will guarantee that the community will keep the project’s future as their first and foremost priority.
That solution is called Airstreams.
## The Solution
Airstreams is our end-to-end solution for vesting airdrops.
Instead of airdropping all of the tokens all at once, recipients get them in tranches via Sablier token streams—basically, like an on-chain vesting plan.
**An airstream can have a duration of days, weeks, months, or even years**. You could, for example, vest the airdrop of your new token over 4 years. Or 6 months. You get to choose.
The beauty is that the community members are forced to think long-term and keep the project’s future as their first and foremost priority. They are forced to because instead of receiving all the tokens at once, they receive them over time.
**Airstreams not only create the right incentives but also ensure that the price of your token won’t crash on day one**. This has been the case for many airdrops, where many airdrops are dumped immediately.
## How it works
To create an airstream campaign, you upload a CSV file with a list of recipients, specifically their addresses and allocated amounts. You can do this using the [Sablier interface](https://app.sablier.com), which can generate airstream campaigns with up to 50k recipients (yes, you read that right – 50,000):
Our spreadsheet feature is the perfect fit for airstreams: it allows you to **upload a CSV file with the recipients,** and the interface will create an **airstream campaign from which every recipient can claim their share**.
Another great advantage of Airstreams is that creating a campaign with lots of recipients **won't ruin you in terms of gas fees**. Launching a campaign means deploying a smart contract with a constant-size [Merkle proof](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkle_tree) associated with your user data. The streams are created only when each recipient claims the streams.
The Sablier interface is designed to automatically generate the Merkle tree for you by default, but there is also the possibility of generating the tree manually using our [open-source API](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-merkle-api).
Let's go over some noteworthy properties of Airstreams:
1. **Recipients pay the gas fees themselves to create and start the stream** when they claim (the claim action creates the stream). Creating a campaign with thousands of recipients would be incredibly costly if the campaign creator had to pay for all the gas fees.
2. **You keep full control over unclaimed Airstream token allocations**. You can set an optional expiration date, after which you can recover all tokens that have not been claimed.
3. **You don't have to fund the campaign directly in order to deploy it.** You can deploy the campaign contract now and fund it later when you feel comfortable doing so.
### What happens after claiming?
Once a recipient claims, the vesting period begins. Each recipient will receive a unique payment link, which they can use to track and withdraw their airdropped tokens. Withdrawing is a separate transaction.
If they don’t want to withdraw the streamed tokens immediately, that’s OK. They are in good hands with Sablier.
Sablier is a fully decentralized protocol that has been **running on Mainnet since 2019 without any hacks,** with a median monthly TVL of $152M between 2021 and 2023.
We take great care in ensuring the safety of the tokens streamed using our protocol, and **security is and will always remain our first and foremost priority**.
Airstreams are built on top of the Sablier V2 Protocol, which has been reviewed by multiple smart contract auditors, including senior security researchers at [Cantina](https://cantina.xyz/). You can see all of the audits [here](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits).
## Conclusion
Airstreams provide a much better way to distribute tokens than traditional airdrops. Vesting makes community members aligned with the project’s interests and think from a long-term perspective.
> Did you know that creating an Airstream campaign is entirely free-... OK, fine, you probably know about this by now!
**If you are launching a new token, use Sablier Airstreams.**
- Want to get started? Check out the user interface [here](https://app.sablier.com).
- Want a demo? Fill out this [form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSflPkWlF2yFnessGHL4mqErGyL6Vvd4c1B11xqrTPH3qn7plw/viewform), and we will reach out to you.
- Have a question, idea, or issue? Email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com) or ping us on [Twitter](https://x.com/sablier).
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Learn why they locked up over 80% of their token’s supply in Sablier’s
battle-tested token vesting solution.
ghostUuid: 742c7dec-6c19-4d90-90b3-0aea5e85219d
publishedAt: '2023-11-28'
slug: how-tokensight-leverages-sabliers-vesting-solution
tags: []
title: How TokenSight Leverages Sablier's Vesting Solution
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-tokensight.webp
featureImageAlt: How TokenSight Leverages Sablier's Vesting Solution
---
TokenSight, a groundbreaking platform for DEX trading, is set to redefine the landscape of crypto trading.
With pioneering features like trade orders, copy trading, and real-time alerts, TokenSight revolutionizes the way traders engage with the crypto market.
As TokenSight embarked on this ambitious journey, it faced the complex challenge of managing token vesting, a critical aspect for ensuring long-term alignment with its users and stakeholders.
### **The Challenge**
As a trailblazer in the DEX arena, TokenSight's had to set up a token vesting program that was both efficient and secure. Traditional vesting methods, often cumbersome and inflexible, posed two significant challenges:
- **Time-Consuming management:** Traditional vesting requires continuous oversight and manual intervention, leading to inefficiencies and a high administrative burden.
- **Security concerns:** Conventional vesting processes can be vulnerable to security risks, especially when payments are made manually, or if a custom vesting contract is used.
> Sablier enabled us to seamlessly stream our unlocked tokens with a smooth and efficient user experience.
>
> Moreover, its implementation proved to be remarkably cost-effective, significantly more economical than competing options.
>
> Our decision to opt for Sablier was driven by its capability to seamlessly execute our intricate vesting schedule. - Blagoj, CEO at TokenSight Corp
### **The Solution**
In its quest for an optimal solution, TokenSight turned to Sablier. Sablier's approach to token vesting offered several advantages aligned with TokenSight's needs:
- **Streamlined and efficient:** Sablier's token distribution solution allows for a 'set and forget' approach, significantly reducing the administrative workload. The TokenSight team can now fully focus on building their DEX solution.
- **Decentralized and secure:** the Sablier protocol is fully decentralized and immutable, the Sablier team has no access to user funds. The Sablier codebase [has received multiple audits](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits) and [has been widely praised for its quality](https://sablier.notion.site/Code-Praise-ffcfba15e3684768b6e0797a4f08b5f8?pvs=74).
- **Real-time fund access:** Recipients can withdraw funds the second they are distributed, ensuring a great user experience.
### **The Benefits/Results**
Locking up over 80% of its token supply into Sablier’s cutting-edge token distribution protocol, the TokenSight team was able to completely streamline their vesting processes and win a lot of valuable time.
And given the streams were set as uncancelable at creation date, recipients are guaranteed to receive their vested **TKST** tokens.
Oh, and did we mention that Sablier is completely free to use?
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
- prb
excerpt: >-
Streamline your vesting process in seconds using the leading token streaming
protocol.
ghostUuid: ffec9b25-ce53-4308-9ba2-282bfef1d24a
publishedAt: '2023-11-20'
slug: using-sablier-for-token-vesting
tags: []
title: Using Sablier For Token Vesting
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/sablier-for-vesting.webp
featureImageAlt: Using Sablier For Token Vesting
---
### What Token Vesting Is
**Let's start by introducing the basic concepts**.
Vesting is the act of restricting the ownership of a financial asset for a predefined period of time. Put simply, it's the duration a founder, employee, or investor has to wait to obtain complete control over their assets.
Like regular stock option programs in traditional finance, crypto has token vesting programs. These usually come under the umbrella of the token economics of the project. And just like in the traditional world, this is usually done via monthly or quarterly unlocks, when vesting recipients receive a share of their allocation.
There is also a cliff period. This is an initial duration during which recipients are not entitled to any tokens. At the end of this cliff, a predetermined quantity of tokens becomes instantly accessible. For instance, a vesting scheme could incorporate a one-year cliff, followed by a three-year program where tokens are unlocked on a monthly basis.
Additionally, it's not uncommon for tokens to be released when certain predefined objectives or milestones are achieved.
### Benefits of Vesting in General
There are several benefits to vesting. **Incentive alignment** is one of the major ones**.** A vesting program ensures stakeholders remain committed to the project by creating a significant long-term financial incentive. This increases employee retention and ensures they remain engaged with the project.
Additionally, having a vesting program **reduces the risk of dumping**, as stakeholders receive their tokens over time instead of all at once and are aware that they will still be receiving some in the future, too. Thus, stakeholders are tied to the project's long-term future. It is in their best interest for the project to do well. By extension, **the ability of an investor to pump and dump the token is severely limited**.
Yet another benefit is that the team behind the token has sufficient time to deliver the product/ service they are working on. Quite often, an organization will launch a token and release their product/service only later. This is usually done via an airdrop, an ICO, IEO, or other mechanism.
Without vesting, stakeholders could sell their whole token allocation before launch, meaning the team wouldn't have time to demonstrate the quality of their product/service and, by extension, the utility of their token. A vesting schedule ensures the team has sufficient time to deliver on their promises.
However, we've only talked about the benefits of vesting in the general case. When it comes to **implementing a token vesting program**, traditional approaches present several problems.
### The Problems with Traditional Token Vesting
1. **Custom development:** the standard approach is to write and deploy a custom smart contract for vesting. This demands additional development efforts, security considerations, and a dedicated claiming interface for recipients, which leads to a clunky user experience.
2. **Manual payments:** the vesting contract is often accompanied by a labor-intensive process once every X months, requiring signers to coordinate and manually sign the unlocks. This process is not only cumbersome but also places trust in the company to follow through.
3. **Expensive fees**: deploying custom vesting contracts costs a significant amount of gas.
No one wants to spend hours, or even days, setting up a complex vesting program for their new token**.** And no one wants to manually claim their vesting allocation from a custom vesting contract on Etherscan.
Additionally, the predictable release of traditional vesting schedules presents risks such as the potential for speculation and rapid selling of tokens by recipients.
So how do we solve all this? With [Sablier](https://sablier.com)!
### Introducing Sablier
Let's first talk about what Sablier is.
**Sablier is a fully decentralized token streaming protocol** available on multiple EVM chains, including Ethereum, Optimism, Arbitrum, and Polygon. It is the first of its kind ever built in web3, tracing its origins back to 2019. Today, hundreds of organizations like [**Shapeshift**](https://shapeshift.com/)**,** [**Nouns DAO**](https://nouns.wtf/)**,** [**Aragon**](https://aragon.org/)**, and** [**Reflexer**](https://reflexer.finance/) **use Sablier for vesting, payroll, airdrops, and more**.
We use "streaming" to refer to the continuous allocation of on-chain assets.
The way it works is that the creator of the vesting plan deposits a specific amount of ERC-20 tokens in a contract. Then, the contract progressively allocates the funds to the recipient, who can access them as they become available over time. The payment rate is influenced by various factors, including the start and end times, as well as the total amount of tokens deposited.
For more details, please visit our [**website**](https://sablier.com) and our [**documentation**](https://docs.sablier.com).
### Why You Should Use Sablier for Vesting
**Sablier is entirely free to use** and is a proven solution with a **median monthly** **TVL of $174M** between 2021 and 2023 (see our listing on [DefiLlama](https://defillama.com/protocol/sablier-finance)).
Sablier solves all of the problems of traditional vesting:
- **End-to-end user experience**: we offer a platform for both senders and recipients to monitor and manage their outgoing and incoming vesting plans (referred to as "streams").
- **Full Automation**: setting up the vesting plans only has to be done once. Treasury admins do not have to initiate monthly transactions anymore.
- **Cost-effective**: creating Sablier streams is up to 90% cheaper than deploying traditional vesting contracts. The Sablier contracts are already deployed and ready to use.
### Features
What other features are supported by Sablier?
- **Cliffs:** cliff periods are supported.
- **Flexibility:** the payment granularity can be continuous (every second), discrete (every day, every week, etc.), or even non-linear (exponential, logarithmic, etc.). Advanced payment schemes, such as back-loaded vesting, are also supported.
- **Batch**: it is possible to create up to ~100 streams with one transaction.
- **Cancelability**: streams can be either cancelable or non-cancelable. If cancelable, the sender can recover the unstreamed funds if an employee/contributor leaves or certain KPIs aren’t met while the stream is still running.
- **NFT Representation:** every stream is wrapped in an NFT owned by the recipient. The NFTs are visually represented as on-chain generated [](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/nft#hourglass-svg)[hourglass SVGs](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1679567118898192384), and they can be deposited in third-party protocols and transferred to other wallets.
- **Flexibility**: streams can be created via our [interface](https://app.sablier.com/), by [manually calling our contracts](https://docs.sablier.com/contracts/v2/guides/create-stream/lockup-linear), or via our [Safe](https://safe.global/) multisig app, making Sablier an excellent fit for any setup.
## Conclusion
Sablier provides an incredible user experience for token vesting, solving all problems associated with traditional vesting. Our protocol has been a game changer for hundreds of web3 organizations, helping them with their token vesting programs and racking up transaction volumes in the hundreds of millions.
You can get started by using our app here:
For more information about how Sablier can help you set up the perfect vesting program, check out our website [**here**](https://sablier.com/organizations/).
Oh, and did we mention that Sablier is completely free to use?
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
The original version of the Sablier protocol supported payment streams that
were strictly linear. During every second of the stream, the same amount is
allocate
ghostUuid: b3ad3ef6-7a16-4f06-83b2-7ea73b344ecb
publishedAt: '2023-11-06'
slug: dynamic-streams-in-the-sablier-ui
tags: []
title: Dynamic Streams in the Sablier UI
updatedAt: '2025-02-04'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/Screenshot-2023-10-24-at-22.webp
featureImageAlt: Dynamic Streams in the Sablier UI
metaDescription: >-
Explore Sablier V2’s dynamic payment streams, enabling customizable linear,
timelock, exponential, and cliff-based token distributions in the Sablier UI.
---
The original version of the Sablier protocol supported payment streams that were strictly linear. During every second of the stream, the same amount is allocated from the sender to the recipient.
As a result, we used to be laser-focused on the concept of [token streaming](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/streaming) at the time. However, with the advent of [Sablier V2](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1679567031795056645), this is no longer the case. On top of the streaming functionality, we are now more generally focused on token distribution, which includes streaming, but many other types of payments, too.
With V2, not only can you create linear streams, but you can also explore timelocks, immediate unlocks, exponential streams, and other payment types. These are all powered by our flagship smart contract [LockupDynamic](https://docs.sablier.com/reference/lockup/contracts/contract.SablierLockup).
In this blog post, we will explore the payment types available in our interface, but it is worth noting that the potential for innovation is limitless when you interact programmatically with the contracts. For instance, it is possible to create streams that unlock assets at the end of each calendar month or even streams that follow a [polynomial distribution](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier-v2-exactly-protocol/tree/9016ed5ce8f96d70056a051e4f4866430a8f9e72#polynomial).
> We use the term "stream" in a broad sense to refer to any on-chain distribution of assets over a period of time.
---
### Unlock In Steps
The Unlock In Steps streaming curve is literally just that: a traditional vesting contract with periodic unlocks.
After each period, a specific amount becomes unlocked and available for the recipient to withdraw. Past unlocks accumulate, so if the recipient doesn't withdraw them, they will be able to withdraw them later.
The advantage of using Unlock In Steps instead of a normal vesting contract are three-fold:
1. **User experience;** Sablier provides senders and recipients with an end-to-end solution a native and easy-to-understand user interface.
2. **Automation**; Sablier automates the entire process. No more worries about setting up vesting contracts or creating a user interface for your employees to claim their tokens.
3. **Cost reduction**; calling a function in a pre-existing Sablier contract is cheaper than deploying a custom vesting contracts.
---
### Timelock
A Timelock stream is a temporary vault where the tokens are locked up for a pre-defined amount of time, and then subsequently released in one go to the recipient.
This is similar to Unlock In Steps, except there is just one step as opposed to several. This can be very useful if you are a looking to make a Timelock payment, but you don't want to have to deal with setting up a custom smart contract. Sablier offers a smooth user experience for both sender and recipient to keep tracked of the time-locked tokens.
---
### Unlock-Linear
A portion of the deposit amount gets immediately unlocked, and then a linear stream follows. It's a great choice for use cases in which an upfront deposit is needed, like freelancing.
---
### Unlock-Cliff
This is similar to Unlock-Linear, except in this case, the initial unlock is followed by a Linear Cliff stream.
In practice, this means that:
- An initial amount is initially directly unlocked
- Then, a cliff period begins during which nothing is streamed
- At the end of the cliff, a new immediate unlock takes place
- From there, the remaining funds are streamed linearly over to the recipient
---
### Exponential
Exponential streams allow for streams where the recipients receive more and more tokens as time moves forward.
This is a great fit if you are looking to airdrop tokens to your community, as instead of receiving the tokens all at once (no streaming) or in a linear fashion (linear stream), your community members will receive the majority of the tokens towards the end of the stream.
This incentivizes long-term behavior and a constructive attitude.
---
### Cliff-Exponential
The Exponential Cliff streaming curve is similar to the Exponential stream, but there is a cliff preceding the exponential curve.
The stream starts with a cliff (however long you want), a specific amount is then instantly unlocked and streamed over to the recipient, and from there the rest of the streaming curve is increasing slowly and then exponentially.
This is an excellent fit if you are a company looking to vest tokens for your employees. It will incentivize them to stay with you for the long run, as the more time moves forward the more they will earn.
---
## Conclusion
Sablier V2 is the most powerful and advanced on-chain payment protocol in web3. This article is just a teaser of what our smart contracts can do.
Want to build your own custom stream? Dive into our docs:
[Sablier Docs | Sablier](https://docs.sablier.com/)
You'll find out how to whip up any function and turn it into a cool streaming curve. Or, just hit us up at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com) and we will build it together.
Finally, make sure to check out our [app](https://app.sablier.com/). It's the easiest way to get started with Sablier.
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
Introducing Total Obtainable Value (TOV): A New Methodology for Evaluating
Vesting Tokens
ghostUuid: 1a67b4f3-768c-4d8d-9dd9-7a7c9af34948
publishedAt: '2023-10-24'
slug: introducing-tov
tags:
- data
title: 'Total Obtainable Value: A New Methodology for Evaluating Vesting Tokens'
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/introducing-TOV-1.webp
featureImageAlt: 'Total Obtainable Value: A New Methodology for Evaluating Vesting Tokens'
---
> **Deprecated:** The TVL figures cited below reference Sablier V1, which is no longer the active protocol. The TOV methodology still applies, but for current information on token vesting and streaming, see [Sablier Lockup](https://docs.sablier.com/lockup) and [Sablier Flow](https://docs.sablier.com/flow).
In 2022, DeFiLlama made the decision to exclude vesting tokens from their default TVL metrics. This article will explain why this approach is bad and propose an alternative methodology that is fairer and more accurate.
## The Problem with Simple Price Multiplications
DeFiLlama realized that the simple method for calculating TVL—simply multiplying the number of tokens by their current price—had glaring issues for vesting tokens (VTs) with small market caps. This method resulted in TVLs that were disproportionately high compared to the actual market cap, creating a distorted picture, e.g., $100M TVL for a token with only $10M in market cap.
While DeFiLlama still retains this methodology as an option in their UI, it is tucked away under an "Include in TVL" dropdown menu.
## Case in Point: The Sablier V1 Dashboard
As of writing this article, DeFiLlama reports a TVL of $3.44M for [Sablier V1](https://etherscan.io/address/0xcd18eaa163733da39c232722cbc4e8940b1d8888). But when VTs are included, the figure increases to $51.8M. Let's take a closer look at what makes up this TVL.
- **Standard TVL ($3.44M):** stablecoins and native tokens like ETH and MATIC.
- **Vesting TVL ($48.46M):** various assets such as $COMP, $FOX, and $ICHI.
## Rethinking TVL: TOV Included
Now, consider this thought experiment:
What would happen if Sablier V1 were to be hacked? The hacker would likely liquidate the VTs in exchange for more liquid, non-VTs like ETH or stablecoins. So, is it reasonable to assign a zero value to VTs sitting in Sablier? Clearly, the answer is no. But if we agree that $48.46M is an inflated figure, what's the real value?
The solution is to **anchor the value of vesting tokens to the equivalent value of non-vesting tokens obtainable through a counterfactual hack of the smart contract.** And the easiest way to estimate this value is by querying data from DEX aggregators like [1inch](https://app.1inch.io/).
We used 1inch and estimated the USDC value that would be obtained by liquidating specific tokens currently locked up in Sablier V1:
| Vesting Token | Obtainable Value | Simple Price Value |
| --- | --- | --- |
| $COMP | $879K | $1.54M |
| $FOX | $840K | $2.07M |
| $ICHI | $145K | $485K |
The obtainable value is smaller than the simple price value but it is still significant.
Of course, this is an incomplete model. For one thing, using 1inch means ignoring liquidity on centralized exchanges and other chains. For another thing, actual hackers would employ more sophisticated liquidation strategies, such as selling small amounts over multiple days and submitting orders on different exchanges.
However, even with these caveats, this is a substantial improvement over the current approaches that disregard the value of VTs entirely.
## Conclusion: Use TOV in Your TVL Aggregator
VTs locked up in smart contracts are funds at risk. If there is a bug, hackers can swap the VTs for non-VTs. We refer to the value of these non-VTs as Total Obtainable Value (TOV), and we argue that all TVL aggregators should include this TOV in the TVL calculated for smart contracts that hold VTs.
---
---
authors:
- max
- prb
excerpt: All streams are not created equal.
ghostUuid: 6518e6ba-257d-4fa4-aee1-0eb2747cd5b1
publishedAt: '2023-09-21'
slug: overview-token-streaming-models
tags:
- engineering
title: An Overview of Token Streaming Models
updatedAt: '2026-03-13'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/token-streaming-models.webp
featureImageAlt: An Overview of Token Streaming Models
---
The token streaming space in web3 is growing rapidly, and while the different token streaming protocols out there may look similar on the surface, there are qualitative differences between them.
This blog post compares the various streaming models that are up and running on mainnet.
Note that we will assume that you have a little bit of familiarity with Ethereum. If you're a newcomer, check out this [website](https://github.com/PaulRBerg/foundry-template/blob/9a8328fa26da503dc25de62117e4bce06ac27934/script/Base.s.sol).
## But First, What is Token Streaming?
Let us first get familiar with the basic concept.
Token streaming means the ability to make continuous payments on a per-second basis. It is a new financial primitive that was pioneered in web3, which can [solve](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/streaming) real-world problems related to establishing trust on the Internet.
DAOs and web3 organizations [use](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/use-cases) streaming for running their token vesting, airdrops, and payroll. Streaming automates the payment process for all of these use cases and provides a more fair and equitable compensation.
## Closed-ended Streams
Closed-ended payment streams have a fixed deposit amount and a fixed duration. Once the sender creates the stream, a specific start and end time are recorded on the blockchain.
This type of stream was [pioneered](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1205533344886411264) by Sablier back in 2019, but today there are multiple providers, such as StreamFlow, Sushi Furo, and LlamaPay. It is also possible to use Superfluid by setting up a [Gelato](https://www.gelato.network/) task to schedule the closing of the stream.
Let's take an example. Imagine Alice wants to stream 3,000 DAI to Bob during the whole month of January.
1. Alice deposits 3,000 DAI in a smart contract on Jan 1, setting the end time to Feb 1.
2. Bob's allocation of the DAI deposit increases every second beginning Jan 1.
3. On Jan 10, Bob will have earned approximately 1,000 DAI. He can send a transaction to withdraw the tokens to his wallet.
4. If at any point during January Alice wishes to get back her tokens, she can cancel the stream and recover what has not been streamed yet.
### Use Cases
Closed-ended streaming works particularly well for vesting, airdrops, and grants, since the payment amount and duration are known in advance in these cases.
However, it can also work for payroll, given that it alleviates the need to perform monthly payments (which can be costly, e.g., when using a Safe multisig). The only requirement is to have the cash upfront.
### **Pros and Cons**
The pros of closed-ended streams are:
- **Autonomy**: no off-chain components are required to keep the streams afloat.
- **Autopilot**: the sender does not have to monitor and top up their streams.
- **Peace of mind**: closed-ended streams can be non-cancelable, which gives recipients the peace of mind that the entire deposit will eventually be streamed in full.
Whereas the cons are:
- **Capital lockups**: the sender needs to deposit a large amount of ERC-20 tokens upfront.
- **Discontinuation:** multiple streams need to be created when a sender wishes to keep paying the same recipient.
### Custom Curves
Closed-ended streaming is really what Sablier currently excels at, distinguishing itself from other platforms that only offer linear streaming options. With Sablier, users can create a wide range of streaming curves, including exponentials, logarithms, and step unlocks.
This feature constitutes what we term a "[universal streaming engine](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/stream-types)", since it empowers developers to tailor the token distribution process with arbitrary mathematical precision.
## Open-ended Streams
In contrast to closed-ended, open-ended streams don't have an end time and are not tethered to a specific deposit amount. They may also be called "indefinite streams".
The way it works is that the user sets a desired payment rate per second, at which point the protocol initiates a continuous transfer of tokens from the sender to the recipient. This transfer persists until either the sender (i) cancels the stream or (ii) depletes their funds. In principle, as long as the sender continues to top up the stream, it could remain running indefinitely.
Let's take an example. Alice wishes to send Bob a continuous stream of 100 DAI per day. This rate breaks down to approximately 4.16 DAI per hour and roughly 0.0011574074 DAI per second.
- Alice tops up her streaming account with tokens, e.g. 500 DAI.
- Alice submits a transaction to kickstart the 100 DAI/day stream.
- After 1 hour, Bob will have earned ~4.16 DAI.
- After 2 days, Alice tops up her account with 2,000 DAI.
- After 10 days, Bob will have earned 1,000 DAI, leaving Alice with a remaining balance of 1,500 DAI (2,500 - 1,000).
Now, what happens on day 25, when Alice runs out of money? Different protocols handle this scenario in varying ways, making it a key implementation detail.
#### Wrapped Token Model
[Superfluid](https://www.superfluid.finance/) introduced open-ended streaming in 2020. Their protocol relies on token contracts that wrap the underlying ERC-20 tokens on a 1:1 basis (e.g. USDCx)
These wrapper contracts have special functions for streaming. Most notable is the `balanceOf` function, which returns a continuously updating balance to reflect the incoming and outgoing streams.
When the sender's balance approaches zero, Superfluid is required to terminate the stream to maintain solvency in the wrapper contract. Otherwise, the 1:1 conversion invariant is broken.
To address this, Superfluid is running an off-chain [network of liquidators](https://docs.superfluid.finance/superfluid/sentinels/liquidations-and-toga) who monitor the solvency of sender accounts. These liquidators are paid a small fee whenever they close the stream of a sender that is close to becoming insolvent. In addition to liquidators, the network also comprises participants known as "Patricians". These individuals stake tokens to serve as a liquidity backstop, ensuring that funds are available should a liquidator not intervene in a timely fashion.
#### Debt Tracking Model: LlamaPay
[LlamaPay](https://llamapay.io/) is the other player in the open-ended streaming category. In their implementation, no liquidation occurs when the sender runs out of funds. They keep track of the debt incurred by the sender and display a negative balance.
When senders top up a LlamaPay stream with accumulated debt, the deposit offsets the negative balance. This repayment is immediately accessible for withdrawal by the recipient, thereby eliminating the need for a network of liquidators.
The crucial point is that this system cannot be implemented with wrapped tokens due to the 1:1 invariant. LlamaPay uses standard smart contracts that hold custody of the raw ERC-20 tokens.
#### Debt Tracking Model: Sablier
In late 2024, Sablier entered the open-ended streaming space with [Sablier Flow](/overview-token-streaming-models/) — a debt-tracking protocol that shares LlamaPay's approach of using standard ERC-20 tokens with no wrappers or liquidators, but goes further in functionality.
In LlamaPay, a single sender funds multiple streams from a shared balance within one contract. If the sender becomes insolvent, recipients compete to withdraw on a first-come, first-served basis — leading to unequal distributions.
Sablier Flow isolates each (sender, recipient) pair into its own stream with its own balance, eliminating this problem entirely.
Other advantages over LlamaPay:
- **Adjustable rates**: change the rate per second on the fly — no need to cancel and recreate the stream.
- **Pause and resume**: temporarily halt a stream and restart it later.
- **Void**: either party can permanently end a stream, writing off any uncovered debt.
- **Deposits from any address**: not just the sender — enabling third-party funding, DAO treasury top-ups, or automated refills.
Flow is deployed on 25+ EVM chains, was audited by Cantina and CodeHawks, and is backed by Sablier's five-year track record of operating streaming protocols with no security breaches.
### **Pros and Cons**
The pros of open-ended streams are:
- **Capital efficiency**: there is no need to make a large deposit of ERC-20 tokens upfront.
- **Continuation:** only one stream has to be created when a sender wishes to keep paying the same recipient.
Whereas the cons are:
- **Management overhead**: the sender needs to keep tabs on their streams so that they are not liquidated, or they don't incur any debt.
- **Infrastructure risk**: in the case of wrapped tokens, a complex off-chain infrastructure is relied upon for the system to function correctly.
- **Unpredictability:** looking at an open-ended stream alone doesn't give any guarantee to the recipient regarding the long-term solvency of the sender; also, open-ended streams cannot be non-cancelable.
## Conclusion
To sum up, this article has provided an introduction to token streaming, categorizing it into two distinct types:
- Closed-ended
- Open-ended
Each type comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages, involving different trade-offs. Overall, having multiple implementations is good because it gives end users more flexibility.
While navigating the complex landscape of token streaming can be challenging, we hope this article has shed some light on the current state of the field.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
The largest on-chain institutional capital marketplace is using Sablier for
its internal vesting program.
ghostUuid: 2ccd2bb6-bd40-4158-a4eb-94c8c8d180f4
publishedAt: '2023-09-04'
slug: case-study-maple
tags:
- case-study
title: How Maple Uses Sablier for Vesting
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/1_lH7Fx84wVoItPikXWsILZw-1.webp
featureImageAlt: How Maple Uses Sablier for Vesting
---
**Maple, the leading on-chain institutional capital marketplace, stands out from the crowd**.
Built with both traditional financial institutions and decentralized finance leaders, [Maple](https://maple.finance/) is transforming debt-capital markets by combining industry-standard compliance and due diligence with the transparent and frictionless lending enabled by smart contracts and blockchain technology.
Maple launched in 2021 and connects institutional lenders and borrowers with capital opportunities on-chain.
## The Challenge
In 2021, the Maple team introduced a new token and faced the task of organizing their vesting program to distribute this token among employees, advisors, and key partners.
**The traditional vesting process poses substantial challenges**:
1. **Manual payments:** This approach requires labor-intensive allocation every three months, a process that is not only cumbersome but also places trust in the company to follow through.
2. **Custom vesting smart contract:** Creating a custom contract for vesting demands additional development efforts, security considerations, and a dedicated claiming interface for recipients, often leading to a less-than-ideal user experience.
Additionally, the predictable release of traditional vesting schedules presented risks such as the potential for speculation and rapid selling of tokens by recipients.
## The Solution
**Sablier’s advanced** [**token distribution solution**](https://sablier.com/) **served as an elegant solution to Maple’s challenges.**
With **a one-time setup**, Sablier enables companies to “**set and forget**” their vesting programs, with the option to cancel a stream if necessary.
Sablier has become our go-to solution for streamlining token vesting for our team since May 2021. We’re thoroughly impressed by how it effortlessly automates complex token vesting processes, saving us time and ensuring accuracy.
> Their responsive customer service and seamless integration with Safe make the experience even more delightful. — Ryan O’Shea, Head of Operations at Maple
Token streams distribute payments in fractions, allowing recipients to withdraw funds at any time. This method effectively **solves the dumping problem**.
**Sablier’s ability to create multiple streams in a single transaction makes it perfect for large-scale vesting programs.**
## Benefits/Results
Maple’s use of Sablier since 2021 has allowed them to shift their focus from dealing with complex traditional vesting contracts to growing their institutional capital marketplace.
**Sablier is integrated with** [**Safe**](https://safe.global/), which empowered the Maple team to create streams directly from their multisig wallet, enhancing the user experience.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Voting on governance proposals using streamed tokens? It’s now possible.
ghostUuid: 52b81e55-6b96-41e6-8c7a-1ad0d62c0f7c
publishedAt: '2023-08-19'
slug: introducing-sabliers-snapshot-voting-strategies
tags:
- announcement
title: Introducing Sablier’s Snapshot Voting Strategies
updatedAt: '2024-11-27'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/1_VivJvfIAoeAd7q-ODHCDZg.webp
featureImageAlt: Introducing Sablier’s Snapshot Voting Strategies
---
A lot of Sablier users are DAOs with decentralized governance systems in place. They use Sablier for vesting, airdrops, grants etc.
One of the power features of decentralized organizations is being able to vote on governance proposals and impact the future of the DAO as a token holder. For assets locked in Sablier, this means being able to use them as voting power while they are still being streamed.
This is now possible for Snapshot users, thanks to our new voting strategies. Let’s dive right in!
## Voting Strategies (Sablier V2)
To enable off-chain governance, we designed a collection of Snapshot Strategies that compute the score (voting power) of assets stored in Sablier streams.
[Sablier Docs | Sablier](https://docs.sablier.com/)
Based on the internal requirements of every DAO, we provide a couple of different sub-strategies for how the voting power will be decided. We call these`policies`.
**Primary policies ⭐️**
- **`withdrawable-recipient`** — Tokens available/withdrawable by the stream’s recipient.
- **`reserved-recipient`**— Tokens available/withdrawable aggregated with unstreamed tokens (future).
**Secondary policies**
- **`deposited-recipient`**, `**deposited-sender**`, `**streamed-recipient**` and **`unstreamed-recipient`**
### Recommendations
For the best results, we recommend using the primary policies alongside classic erc20 holdings.
1. The first option is to use the `withdrawable-recipient` policy alongside `erc20-balance-of`. Doing so will aggregate tokens streamed but not withdrawn yet, as well as tokens in the user's wallet.
2. The second best option is using `reserved-recipient` with `erc20-balance-of`. Will aggregate: tokens streamed but not withdrawn yet, unstreamed funds (accessible in the future) and finally, tokens in the user's wallet.
## Voting Strategies (Sablier V1)
The Sablier V1 strategy will regard the voter as a stream recipient. It returns the power for any voter as the **sum of all deposits** made by a sender towards the recipient (the **voter**) for a specific ERC20 token (similar to v2’s `streamed-recipient`policy).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'A state-of-the-art airdrop, using Sablier.'
ghostUuid: b25e103b-76d5-489e-970d-5747760e8bee
publishedAt: '2023-08-04'
slug: case-study-exactly-protocol
tags:
- case-study
title: How Exactly Used Sablier for its Airdrop
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_7B78idsR0h-JFrvR4PaC6A.webp
---
[**Exactly**](https://exact.ly/) **is a variable and fixed-rate lending protocol on Optimism and Ethereum**. It provides both variable and fixed rates for lending and borrowing tokens.
**Users can deposit funds in pools that return yields based on their usage by borrowers.** The allocation is optimized using the Dynamic Utilization Rate, which allocates assets between pools based on the supply and demand of credit. They also offer many other key features like a brand new interest rate model, a more efficient liquidation process, etc.
## The Challenge
The Exactly team wanted to launch a token to hand over control of the protocol to the Exactly DAO.
**The problem was:** how to organize the token launch in such a way as to distribute it to the community, while preventing dumping and creating long-term incentives for recipients to align their interests with the DAO’s interests?
**Traditional lump-sum airdrops are not a solution** for that problem, simply because they enable dumping, as a lot of recipients dump on day 1 as soon as they receive their token allocation. They do not create long-term incentives and alignment around the DAO’s priorities.
They also prevent the project from creating a long-term marketing strategy, as **most recipients lose interest as soon as they receive their lump-sum airdrop**.
Exactly was looking for an open source, verified and audited contract with the flexibility to set up different types of vesting. Because the team planned for the airdrop to last four months, while investors would receive their tokens over three years, while for team members the situation was a bit different: they needed a custom vesting curve as it depended on their token vesting schedule.
Needless to say that this would have been **very difficult** to set up without a dedicated solution.
## The Solution
But lump-sum airdrops aren’t the only option anymore. Thanks to Sablier, it is now possible to **stream the airdrop allocation over time to each recipient**.
In Exactly’s case, they used Sablier V2 to **create a** [**Lockup Linear**](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/stream-types) **stream** that has a duration of four months. This means that during those four months, **every second, each airdrop recipient receives a fraction of their allocation**.
Now, a noteworthy point here is the fact that airdrop recipients had to manually claim the airdrop, meaning they had to head over to [Exactly’s user interface](https://app.exact.ly/governance), and then trigger the airdrop claiming process there. Only then was the stream created.
This **prevents inactive wallets from receiving an airdrop allocation**, which ensures that the tokens airdropped to your community are only streamed over to active participants.
**Thanks to Sablier’s native** [**Snapshot**](https://snapshot.org/) **integration** that uses their “voting strategies”, projects can set up their governance portal to **allow community members to vote using the tokens being streamed**.
## Benefits/Results
**Over 24,000 addresses are eligible for the airdrop**, but [as of Monday July 31st, only 1328 of those actually claimed](https://dune.com/exactly/exactly-airdrop) the Exactly airdrop.
This highlights the importance of the **manual claiming process**, as many wallets which have used a protocol in the past may no longer be active at the time of the airdrop, especially in a bear market.
Thanks to the Snapshot integration, Exactly airdrop recipients can already start voting on governance proposals, even if they haven’t yet received the entirety of their airdrop allocation.
By streaming their airdrop, the **Exactly team ensured that the incentives for the community matched the incentives of the projects, and offered a platform for a long-term marketing strategy, all while still enabling airdrop recipients to participate in governance using the tokens being streamed.**
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Similar to Uniswap V3 Positions NFTs, Sablier V2 Streams are rendered as
on-chain SVGs.
ghostUuid: 4b33864d-e409-4591-8fd5-83fe5b6fd7e9
publishedAt: '2023-07-21'
slug: introducing-sablier-v2-streams-nfts
tags:
- announcement
title: Introducing Sablier V2 Streams NFTs
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/1_mwFUBe7U0MPQA17gqkFPeQ.webp
featureImageAlt: Introducing Sablier V2 Streams NFTs
---
Let’s talk about Sablier V2 Streams NFTs. They’re a bit like [Uniswap V3 Positions NFTs](https://opensea.io/collection/uniswap-v3-positions); every [Sablier V2 Stream](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/stream-types) is wrapped in an ERC-721 NFT, owned by the recipient of the stream.
This feature might seem minor on the surface, but it has a ripple effect with huge implications.
### Hourglass SVGs
To aid the discoverability of the NFTs, they are visually represented as colorful hourglasses.
The color theme is pseudorandom, meaning the color output is sensitive to the variations in stream data, producing a range of unique hues. There’s no way to tell ahead of time what unique color you will get.
The hourglass is an SVG that is 100% generated on-chain and derived from the data of the underlying stream:
- The percentage of the deposit amount that has been streamed
- The current [status](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/statuses) of the stream (pending, streaming, settled, canceled, or depleted)
- The streamed amount
- The total duration for which the stream lasts
For those interested in the low-level implementation details, the source code can be found here:
[v2-core/src/SablierV2NFTDescriptor.sol at bca1d9ea0485b065544486bb01f4148d44289644 · sablier-labs/v2-core](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/blob/bca1d9ea0485b065544486bb01f4148d44289644/src/SablierV2NFTDescriptor.sol)
## Integration use cases
Sablier V2 NFTs aren’t just pretty — they are backed by the underlying ERC-20 tokens locked up in the stream.
### Borrowing against future income
Once someone starts a Sablier stream toward you, you could potentially use the stream as collateral to borrow money in a compatible NFT lending protocol. You’re essentially securing a loan with income you haven’t even received yet. Mind-blowing, right?
This opens a world of opportunity, especially for DAO contributors who could access credit quickly using their Sablier stream as collateral. It’s a game-changer, and we’ve been working hard over the past few months to integrate this natively with Astaria, a top-tier NFT lending protocol.
### Buy and sell streams
But wait, there’s more. This NFT representation means you could even sell your stream on marketplaces like OpenSea or Blur. Let’s say you’re due to receive a stream of 10,000 USDC over a year, but you need the cash now and you don’t want to borrow against it.
Simple solution: sell it at a slight markdown, say for 9500 USDC. It’s an arbitrage trade, where the buyer’s willing to pay a 500 USDC premium to wait a year to receive the full 10,000 USDC. You get your income up front, for a small fee.
The concept of discounted cash flow is not a metaphor anymore.
### Calling NFT marketplaces
If you are interested in integrating Sablier V2 Streams in your NFT lending protocol, please fill out this [form](https://forms.gle/KKDo1aMGp2b2tdEr5) and we will get in touch with you as soon as possible.
## Conclusion
Sablier V2 Streams NFTs are paving the way for a ton of new opportunities in DeFi. The possibilities are limited only by imagination, and we can’t wait to see what innovative use cases will emerge in the future.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: The next-generation token streaming protocol is here.
ghostUuid: 072df93d-613e-48fe-96d0-2c00e5e663a5
publishedAt: '2023-07-13'
slug: introducing-sablier-v2
tags:
- announcement
title: Introducing Sablier V2
updatedAt: '2024-09-27'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_cdGZk3G1X6hoP7KlvdRIHg.webp
---
> You can start using the new protocol on [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/).
Sablier V1 was launched in December 2019 as a proof of concept for a token streaming design that involved making a one-time deposit gradually released over time (we now refer to this design as “Lockup”).
As simple as it was, V1 found product/market fit with vesting and grew to tens of millions, then hundreds of millions, and eventually over $1B in cumulative payment volume.
Today, we are incredibly excited to announce the launch of Sablier V2, a **next-generation streaming protocol** that doubles down on our flagship Lockup design. The protocol targets the EVM and works great for ERC-20 token vesting, payroll, airdrops, grants, and more.
This blog post provides a high-level overview of Sablier V2. For a deeper technical dive, check out the [Sablier Docs](https://docs.sablier.com/) website and the [Sablier V2 Core](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core) repository.
## Features
The most notable features of Sablier V2 are:
- **Lockup Dynamic**: a new money lego that lets you create streams that evolve as exponentials, logarithms, step functions, or any other curve.
- **Lockup Linear**: a streamlined revamp of V1, with support for cliff periods.
- Every stream is a **transferrable ERC-721 NFT.**
- Third-party interfaces can monetize their Sablier integration by charging **broker fees.**
- Integrators can implement **on-chain hooks** to get notified when streams are canceled, withdrawn, or renounced
- **Batching streams:** create multiple streams with one go
- **Non-cancelable** streams.
These features are not only powerful, but they are also unique.
No other streaming protocol offers non-linear streaming and transferrable stream NFTs, all in the context of a system that can be conveniently integrated via hooks.
Sablier V2 truly stands apart in a league of its own, pushing boundaries and redefining the landscape of payment protocols in web3.
## Lockup Dynamic
Lockup Dynamic streams are the main attraction of Sablier V2, as they enable the creation of any type of streaming curve, including non-linear ones.
Non-linear streaming blows wide open an entirely new space of incentive design. Imagine setting up a vesting plan that releases exponentially more tokens as time goes by. The longer your employee stays with your project, the more they will be getting paid.
The streaming function is composed of data tuples of the form (amount, exponent, milestone), which we call “segments”. The exponent is fed to an on-chain power function. The segments are covered in detail in the [docs](https://docs.sablier.com/concepts/protocol/segments).
On the Sablier Interface, we support only a few streaming models, but the potential for innovation is limitless when you interact programmatically with the contracts. Let us know what design you will come up with!
## NFTs
In Sablier V2, every stream is an ERC-721 non-fungible token (NFT) whose owner is the stream’s recipient. The recipient can transfer the NFT to another address, which also transfers the right to withdraw funds from the stream.
The transferability of the NFT makes streams tradable and usable as collateral in DeFi. Imagine an NFT lending marketplace that allows users to borrow funds by locking their streams as collateral (effectively borrowing against their future income).
The best part? Sablier V2 NFTs are represented as unique on-chain generated hourglass SVGs, which change their color and content based on user data.
## Deployments
Sablier V2 is deployed to Ethereum and six other EVM-compatible chains:
- Arbitrum
- Optimism
- Polygon
- Gnosis Chain
- BNB Smart Chain
- Avalanche
Click [here](https://medium.com/r?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdocs.sablier.com%2Fcontracts%2Fv2%2Fdeployments) to see the full list of deployment addresses.
## Foundry
Sablier V2 was built, tested, and formatted with the [Foundry](https://github.com/foundry-rs/foundry) application development toolkit.
Building it wouldn’t have been possible without the support offered by the Foundry community. We hope our work has given back as much to the community as it’s given us.
If your Ethereum project doesn’t use Foundry yet, what are you waiting for?
## Security
Ensuring the security of Sablier V2 is our utmost priority. We have dedicated significant efforts toward designing and testing the protocol to ensure its safety and reliability.
- Our [Foundry test suite](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/wiki/Tests) includes hundreds of files, which contain unit, integration, invariant, fork, and fuzz tests.
- We engaged a team of senior security researchers from [Cantina](https://cantina.xyz/portfolio) to perform [two full-length audits](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits).
- We further engaged [multiple specialized security firms and independent experts](https://github.com/sablier-labs/audits) to scrutinize parts of the protocol.
All bugs discovered during the testing and auditing phases were fixed. However, we cannot guarantee all bugs have already been discovered and resolved; we encourage the community to audit our contracts and security.
To incentivize responsible bug disclosure, we offer a public bug bounty of up to $50,000 offered for critical bugs. More detail on the terms of the program can be found on [GitHub](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/blob/main/SECURITY.md).
## License
Decentralized payment infrastructure should ultimately be free, open-source software, but the Sablier community deserves to be the first to build an ecosystem around the Sablier V2 codebase.
With this in mind, Sablier V2 Core is launched under the [Business Source License 1.1](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-core/blob/main/LICENSE.md). This license is essentially a time-delayed General Public License v3.0-or-later. It restricts the utilization of the V2 source code in a commercial production environment for up to four years, after which it transitions into a GPL license indefinitely.
Please note that the BUSL 1.1 license does not impact integrations. We have licensed all code necessary for external integrations under GPL, including but not limited to interfaces, data types, and all of [V2 Periphery](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v2-periphery). This ensures that any protocol, web interface, mobile app, or other projects can seamlessly integrate with V2 as anticipated.
Sablier Labs retains the ability to speed up the transition to GPL or provide license exemptions at any point. This can be achieved by updating the files housed at the [_lockup-license-date.sablier.eth_](https://app.ens.domains/lockup-license-date.sablier.eth) and [_lockup-license-grants.sablier.eth_](https://app.ens.domains/lockup-license-grants.sablier.eth) ENS domains.
For a more in-depth understanding of this license, please refer to this [FAQ](https://mariadb.com/bsl-faq-adopting/).
## Sablier V1
Thanks to Ethereum, the Sablier V1 protocol will continue to run in perpetuity. You can access it via [manual operation](https://medium.com/sablier/operating-the-sablier-protocol-manually-e6569092c533) or the following legacy interfaces:
- [v1-pay.sablier.com](https://v1-pay.sablier.com/)
- [v1-app.sablier.com](https://v1-app.sablier.com/)
## Closing thoughts
This is only the beginning.
Over the next few weeks, we will release further updates, publish additional documentation, and announce integrations with several launch partners. We welcome all feedback and involvement from our community.
If you are integrating and wish to get in touch, please fill out this [form](https://forms.gle/KKDo1aMGp2b2tdEr5), and we will respond as soon as possible. Alternatively, email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com).
To get involved and stay posted:
- Use Sablier V2 at [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/)
- Follow Sablier on [Twitter](https://x.com/Sablier)
- Email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com)
- Subscribe to the Sablier [blog](https://medium.com/sablier)
Happy streaming! ⏳
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
Reflecting on our roots and planning for what’s next; a letter from our
founders.
ghostUuid: af184669-34e1-4c2e-9623-230badf85d4e
publishedAt: '2023-07-10'
slug: sabliers-past-and-future
tags:
- meta
title: Sablier’s Past And Future
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_r4dkyuYE2_ASire3W2I-mA.webp
---
## The Early Days
As I sit here ruminating on the past and contemplating the future of Sablier, I am struck by the journey we have taken. It all began back in June of 2019, when I launched a [proof-of-concept version](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1134773451888238592) of Sablier after spending the entire Spring developing it. I had to learn UI design from scratch, and while the web app lacked aesthetic appeal due to my novice skills, it was functional. It marked a promising start to our journey.
Later, joined by my co-founder [Gabriel Apostu](https://twitter.com/razgraf), we released the first version of the Sablier protocol in [December 2019](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1205533344886411264). I was so impressed with our product that [I began dogfooding it](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1205648485686677504). And, as fate would have it, Sablier quickly gained traction within the crypto community. Even Vitalik himself [spoke about it](https://twitter.com/VitalikButerin/status/1207296004652961803)!
The allure of experimenting with this new primitive (i.e., money streaming) was irresistible to many, as its potential use cases were not entirely clear at the time. It was evident to all that payroll and subscriptions would be a significant use case, but what else could be achieved with it?
During the first few months, the protocol’s TVL grew to ~$100k, which by today’s standards, isn’t much, but it was an achievement in those days. DeFi wasn’t even a thing yet, as it only took off during the famous “DeFi summer” of 2020.
However, we faced a significant hurdle; we were not generating any revenues. We had been fortunate to receive a [generous grant from MakerDAO](https://medium.com/sablier/big-day-for-sablier-we-raised-a-grant-bde00a9a31e3) during the summer of 2019, but as the months went by, we were running out of money.
## The Acquisition
Eventually, we found an acquirer. I had spoken to the CEO of [Hifi Finance](https://hifi.finance/), [Doug Leonard](https://twitter.com/dleonard00), during the months leading up to the acquisition, and the idea was for Hifi to acquire Sablier, while I would join the company as Technical Lead.
During the summer of 2020, [this became a reality](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1288153766240440321), and for the next two years, barely any new features were implemented in Sablier as I was entirely focused on building the Hifi lending protocol.
However, during that time, with absolutely no marketing, the protocol found product/market fit and quickly grew to millions, then [tens of millions](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1317157568846925826), then hundreds of millions, and finally [reached its peak with a TVL of $1.5B in 202](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1449768273046917120)1.
Things were going so well that it became clear to Doug, Gabriel, and myself that Sablier needed its own independent team building it out full-time.
The positive trajectory was so apparent that Doug, Gabriel (who was then working at Pods Finance), and I were compelled to acknowledge the necessity for Sablier to have its own dedicated, full-time team. The project needed an all-hands-on-deck approach.
## The Spinoff
And thus, in early 2022, I left my job at Hifi to start working again on Sablier along with Gabriel and also with [Maxime Desalle](https://twitter.com/maxdesalle) (fellow Hifi alumni).
After having been acquired by Hifi two years before that, Sablier spun off into a new UK-based company called Sablier Labs. This means that we are independent entities now, run by different teams, and we are working on solving different problems in crypto.
I continue to maintain a close relationship with both Hifi and Doug Leonard, and I will remain forever grateful for the early-stage investment that facilitated Sablier’s growth and development.
## What’s Next
After raising a small financing round and making a few hires, we set out to write the next chapter in Sablier’s story: Sablier V2. This is the latest iteration of the Sablier smart contract protocol, and we have been working on it for over a year now. It will come out later this Summer.
We believe that Sablier V2 will revolutionize how cryptoasset streaming works. Our product keeps getting better and safer. Sablier has now been running on Mainnet for nearly four years, and it has never been hacked. We intend to keep it that way. The safety of the funds locked up in the protocol is our first and foremost priority.
As I stand here, filled with a sense of excitement, I am awed by the vast potential that lies ahead for Sablier. Observing how this project, with its humble beginnings, has risen to become a prominent platform for a diverse array of crypto operations — including token vesting, payroll, and airdrops — is just amazing.
And yet, we are not satisfied with just resting on our achievements. Instead, we are ready to become the leading crypto streaming platform worldwide. The future is calling, and we are eager to step up to the plate.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: Everyone is head over heels for it.
ghostUuid: 71f47087-059d-4da9-90a9-328ba45c7180
publishedAt: '2023-06-23'
slug: why-your-treasury-manager-will-love-sablier-and-you-too
tags:
- organizations
title: Why Your Treasury Manager Will Love Sablier (And You Too!)
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/1.webp
featureImageAlt: Why Your Treasury Manager Will Love Sablier (And You Too!)
---
Managing payroll, expenses, token vesting plans… these things can quickly become annoying. They are both time-consuming and repetitive. **Sensing the imminent risk of burnout amongst treasury managers, we built Sablier.**
**Sablier let’s you create token streams.** When streaming funds to someone, that person will receive a fraction of the funds every second. Think of it like streaming a song on Spotify, or streaming a movie on Netflix, but instead with tokens on the blockchain.
The kicker for treasury managers? **The simplicity,** treasury managers are head over heels for it. You only have to set up these streams once, even if they’re set to run for years on end.
**The protocol is so decentralized**, we couldn’t touch your funds even if we wanted to (and we don’t). It’s time to finally find out what peace of mind feels like.
**Streams can last a few hours, days, months, and even years.** It’s common for crypto teams set up four-year vesting plans using Sablier. After these streams are created, there is nothing to be done anymore, your hard-working treasury manager can finally sit back and relax.
The protocol takes care of the rest: **every second, a fraction of the funds is streamed to the recipient, who can withdraw the streamed funds at any time.** You only pay a transaction fee when creating the stream, and at every withdrawal as a recipient.
**Streams can be canceled at any time**, by both the stream creator and the recipient. **The interface provides a secure stream link which can be shared with anyone**, even third parties.
If you’re on the receiving end, **Sablier is a dream come true**. No more waiting for bi-weekly or monthly pay periods; your compensation is trickling in every second. **Experience the taste of financial freedom, only with Sablier.**
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: 'You read it right, the OG crypto platform uses Sablier.'
ghostUuid: 377ac4e3-4195-4997-85f3-d210721d63a9
publishedAt: '2023-06-15'
slug: case-study-shapeshift
tags:
- case-study
title: How Shapeshift Uses Sablier for Grants
updatedAt: '2024-11-25'
featureImage: /content/images/2024/11/1_p6LGtksOY3h1iNclV0B0yg.webp
featureImageAlt: How Shapeshift Uses Sablier for Grants
---
[Shapeshift](https://shapeshift.com/) has been around since 2014. **It’s a major player in the industry**, and the Shapeshift exchange offers a completely private, non-custodial and multi-chain user experience. But **Shapeshift is now more than an exchange**, it’s a platform where users can trade, track, buy, and earn.
## The Challenge
There are a lot of different stakeholders in the Shapeshift ecosystem. Most of these stakeholders need to receive a form of compensation in some way. Employees and shareholders of Shapeshift (the company), receive tokens under a vesting program, for example.
Independent contributors receive grants from the DAO to continue building the ecosystem. The DAO itself needs a continuous source of funding, and some DAO contributors are also rewarded with FOX tokens on a regular basis.
**Having to make a different transaction for each of these stakeholders every week/month/quarter would be incredibly time-consuming**. But the worst part is that these asynchronous transactions don’t provide the right incentives for DAO contributors to keep the long-term vision of the Shapeshift DAO as their core priority. Additionally, as always with asynchronous transactions, **the recipients need to trust that the sender will indeed make the transaction**.
## The Solution
**ShapeShift utilizes the Sablier V1 protocol** for a variety of payments, including **token vesting** programs, **grants**, and **compensation for contributors**.
The ShapeShift DAO treasury is endowed with over 300,000,000 FOX Tokens and over $3 m in other Tokens — [click here to view the DAO treasury](https://gnosis-safe.io/app/eth:0x90A48D5CF7343B08dA12E067680B4C6dbfE551Be/balances). The DAO is also set to receive approximately 250k FOX per day via its Sablier stream through June 1, 2024 — [view it here](https://app.sablier.com/stream/100002). Sablier brings full transparency to your DAO compensation program.
**Creating a stream can be done in a matter of a few clicks**, and streams can have a duration spanning over multiple years. Create the stream and forget about it, the protocol handles everything for you. **Your treasury manager will love Sablier.**
The Sablier V1 protocol does not have any owner or administrator. They are as trustless as an Ethereum contract can be. On top of that, Sablier has been running on the Ethereum mainnet since 2019 with no hacks, all while reaching a record of $1.5B in TVL with tens of thousands of users all around the world.
> Sablier streams allowed the Engineering Workstream at ShapeShift DAO to be able to attract and retain talent using our native $FOX governance token, in an elegant and simple way that creates long term incentives that are aligned between contributors and the DAO, while also being a capital efficient strategy for the DAO treasury — [0xdef1cafe](https://twitter.com/0xdef1cafe), Engineering Workstream Leader
Because of these reasons (see above paragraph), it’s pretty clear that **the Sablier protocol is an ideal fit to handle all types of transactions** dealing with tokens for organizations.
Thanks to Sablier, grant recipients have the right incentives. If they don’t deliver, the Shapeshift DAO can simply stop the stream at any time and withdraw the funds which haven’t been streamed yet. On the other hand, grant recipients don’t have to trust the Shapeshift DAO that they will eventually receive their grant. Instead, **they receive their grant by the second thanks to Sablier’s battle-tested cryptoasset streaming protocol**.
## Benefits/Results
Not only do Sablier users win a lot of time by creating streams over a few months, a year, or even multiple years, they can also sit back and relax once the stream is created.
The Shapeshift team and DAO know that the battle-tested Sablier protocol will handle everything for them while they can focus on what really matters: growing their ecosystem.
Shapeshift made the right call to stream tokens with Sablier. Contributors, employees, shareholders and the DAO itself know that they only have to check Sablier in order to quickly access their new token earnings. And all of that, **in a truly decentralized, and battle-tested protocol.**
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: An in-depth look into one of Sablier’s largest users.
ghostUuid: 6e02832d-4eb1-4e9c-a29d-5c1e787fa5a5
publishedAt: '2022-08-22'
slug: how-rook-labs-uses-sablier-for-payroll
tags:
- case-study
title: How Rook Labs Uses Sablier for Payroll
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_E_ft3IGZl2-BElEWD7gOXw.webp
---
Rook Labs is building the Rook Protocol, which uses the power of coordination to create more efficient markets by capturing and redistributing MEV to the users and protocols that create it.
## The Challenge
Rook Labs, the organization which contributes to the Rook DAO, is actually not a company. Employees of Rook Labs are spread all around the world, working from different locations in full remote. Additionally, as is often the case in crypto, some of Rook Labs’ employees are anonymous, meaning that even Rook’s CEO doesn’t know their real identity.
These three reasons make it pretty much impossible for Rook Labs to compensate employees without using crypto.
But even using crypto is not enough. Simple lump payments present several problems when it comes to salaries and token-vesting:
1. It requires a lot of manual work to manage the monthly payroll for 30+ employees and keep on top of everything.
2. Employees also need to trust their employer that they will receive their compensation in due time.
## The Solution
With Sablier’s money-streaming solution, employers and employees have a mutual trust relationship, and very little work is needed to handle payroll.
Streams take 30 seconds to [create](https://app.sablier.com/), and can be created for a year or longer. Once the stream is set up, nothing needs to be done from the employer’s side.
Employees can then withdraw the streamed funds at any time. If they want to leave their funds in Sablier, that’s fine. Sablier has been running on Ethereum Mainnet since 2019, and has never been hacked. The protocol is also fully decentralized, meaning the Sablier team doesn’t have access to users’ funds.
> Sablier is one of those protocols that just makes sense and is a true disrupter. What would require a large payroll deppartment and a payroll processor acting as a middleman in the real world is now replaced by trustless, open code.
>
> Sablier has helped Rook Labs save a tremendous amount of time and effort in paying our contributors and we are excited to see how they iterate on this powerful tool.
>
> — Matt G, Treasury Specialist at Rook Labs
If employees leave the company in the middle of the month, Rook Labs can simply stop the stream and get back the funds that have not been streamed yet. This is especially useful when starting to work with an anonymous employee or a freelancer, when you are a stage where you don’t know yet if you can fully trust that person.
Thanks to money streaming, employees are paid by the second while they do the work, so they don’t have to worry about not being paid or receiving their paycheck with some latency.
## Benefits/Results
Rook Labs is a growing organization, and onboarding new employees is now a very smooth process. A stream for the salary, paid in USDC, is set up. Afterwards, another one is created for token-vesting to introduce the right incentives for employees by rewarding them with the ROOK token.
That’s it. Now the streams are live, Rook Labs doesn’t have to manage their payroll anymore until the end of their streams. There is a mutual trust relationship between both the employer and its employees, as Rook Labs can stop a stream at any time if needed, and employees are paid while they do the work.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Sablier is continuously expanding: our latest deployment is on Ronin Chain,
the network powering the very successful Axie Infinity game. Ronin is an
Ethereum si
ghostUuid: 8c192f74-77d5-4b40-a40b-a6f49ecdcefd
publishedAt: '2022-07-21'
slug: sablier-v1-expands-to-ronin-chain
tags:
- announcement
title: Sablier V1 Expands to Ronin Chain
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_D3umk-mVjdAxuzDJJ7Q5RQ.webp
metaDescription: >-
Sablier V1 now streams payments on Ronin Chain, enabling real-time funding for
grant recipients and supporting Sky Mavis's blockchain ecosystem.
---
Sablier is continuously expanding: our latest deployment is on [Ronin Chain](https://explorer.roninchain.com/), the network powering the very successful [Axie Infinity](https://axieinfinity.com/) game.
Ronin is an Ethereum sidechain and is currently the [second largest blockchain when it comes to NFT sales volume](https://mobile.twitter.com/Ronin_Network/status/1528778748035833856).
[Sky Mavis](https://www.skymavis.com/), the team behind Ronin and Axie Infinity, will be leveraging Sablier’s battle-tested streaming solution to handle grants. Instead of sending funds over to grant recipients all at once or every quarter, grant recipients will now be able to be paid in real time, by the second.
Note though that Sablier also allows streams to be canceled at any time. If grant recipients stop delivering, Sky Mavis can simply stop the stream to avoid the loss of funds.
### Getting started
Before being able to use Sablier on Ronin, you will need to bridge your funds over by using the [Ronin Bridge](https://bridge.roninchain.com/).
Next up, head over to our [stream creation interface](https://app.sablier.com/), pick Ronin as the blockchain from the dropdown menu on the upper left and connect your wallet. The Sablier interface will automatically switch your wallet to the right chain when selecting a different chain in the dropdown menu.
Alternatively, if you know that someone had started streaming money to you on Ronin, just head to our [claiming interface](https://app.sablier.com/).
You are now ready to start streaming!
### Wrap up
We continue to deliver on our mission to bring money-streaming to the masses.
We were the first ones to bring this new financial primitive to the market, and Sablier is and remains the leading money-streaming protocol in crypto, with over 30,000 users and $1.4B in cumulative payment volume to date.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
Once again, the Sablier ecosystem is expanding. This time, we have deployed
the Sablier protocol to Optimism, Arbitrum and Avalanche, making it the de
facto mon
ghostUuid: 9894dad4-44d2-419b-b389-bbb058e115e4
publishedAt: '2022-03-16'
slug: sablier-v1-expands-to-optimism-arbitrum-and-avalanche
tags:
- announcement
title: 'Sablier V1 Expands to Optimism, Arbitrum and Avalanche'
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_mQGApmHO2G-oX1nS4SVZpA.png
metaDescription: >-
Sablier V1 expands to Optimism, Arbitrum, and Avalanche, enhancing money
streaming in DeFi with improved scalability and Ethereum security.
---
Once again, the Sablier ecosystem is expanding. This time, we have deployed the Sablier protocol to Optimism, Arbitrum and Avalanche, making it the de facto money streaming solution for the Ethereum ecosystem.
Both [Optimism](https://www.optimism.io/) and [Arbitrum](https://arbitrum.io/) are [optimistic rollups](https://docs.ethhub.io/ethereum-roadmap/layer-2-scaling/optimistic_rollups/), part of the wide set of available scalability solutions built in the Ethereum ecosystem. Thanks to their rollup design, both of these networks are considered more secure than independent [EVM](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/evm/)\-chains, since they piggyback off the Ethereum network’s security.
[Avalanche](https://www.avax.network/), on the other hand, is an EVM-based chain which has seen tremendous growth over the last few months with the arrival of Aave and Curve, totaling nearly [$12B in TVL at the end of 2021](https://messari.io/article/state-of-avalanche-q4-2021).
### Getting started
Before being able to use Sablier on Optimism, Arbitrum or Avalanche, you will need to migrate your funds. This can be done using the [Optimism Gateway](https://gateway.optimism.io/), [Arbitrum Bridge](https://bridge.arbitrum.io/) and [Avalanche Bridge](https://bridge.avax.network/) respectively. Alternatively, you could use a cross-chain liquidity bridge like [Hop](https://hop.exchange/) or [Multichain](https://multichain.org/).
Once your funds are on the right chain, just go to our [stream creation interface](https://app.sablier.com/), pick your desired chain from the dropdown and connect your wallet. The Sablier interface will automatically switch your wallet to the right chain.
You are now ready to start streaming!
### Wrap up
We continue to be committed towards the growth of the money streaming category in the wider DeFi ecosystem.
Sablier is currently the largest money streaming protocol in DeFi, with over 30,000 users and $1B in cumulative payment volume to date. And we are just getting started.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
We are delighted to announce the release of the Sablier protocol on Polygon
and Binance Smart Chain (BSC), significantly lowering the barrier to entry for
new u
ghostUuid: 74427362-c0e0-42dd-b570-0a846a3da76b
publishedAt: '2021-11-16'
slug: sablier-v1-expands-to-polygon-and-binance-smart-chain
tags:
- announcement
title: Sablier V1 expands to Polygon and Binance Smart Chain
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_NesKL48CkyO6TG4IBxXOPQ.webp
metaDescription: >-
Sablier V1 now supports Polygon and Binance Smart Chain, offering lower fees
for token streaming and expanding access to decentralized finance.
---
We are delighted to announce the release of the Sablier protocol on [Polygon](https://polygon.technology/) and [Binance Smart Chain](https://www.binance.org/en/smartChain) (BSC), significantly lowering the barrier to entry for new users and bringing us a step closer to a hyper-liquid economy powered by Sablier.
Polygon and BSC have both been some of the fastest-growing blockchains out there in the past few months with the support of projects like Aave, Curve or Sushiswap and investors like Mark Cuban for Polygon, and the genesis of a completely new ecosystem for Binance Smart Chain.
Given the high gas fees on the Ethereum network, most of the usage of our protocol comes from token-vesting. The ability to stream tokens with lower fees thanks to Polygon and BSC will enable more people to use and experiment with our protocol, as well as lead to the emergence of new use cases.
### Getting started
Before being able to use Sablier on Polygon or BSC, you will need to migrate your funds. This can be done using the [Polygon Bridge](https://wallet.matic.network/bridge/) and [Binance Bridge](https://www.binance.org/en/bridge) respectively.
Once your funds are on the right chain, go to our [stream creation interface](https://app.sablier.com/) and connect your wallet (make sure to select the right network within your wallet). The Sablier interface will automatically switch to the right chain.
You are now ready to start streaming!
> _For more information,_ [_this_](https://medium.com/coinmonks/3-steps-to-move-funds-from-ethereum-to-polygon-3d694c620884) _excellent guide covers how to migrate your funds over to Polygon, and_ [_this_](https://academy.binance.com/en/articles/an-introduction-to-binance-bridge) _blog post is a great introduction to the Binance Bridge._
### Wrap up
We are excited to see new use cases for Sablier emerge thanks to the lower fees which both Polygon and Binance Smart Chain offer, and look forward to seeing new users interact and experiment with our token-streaming protocol.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
What Happened On June 30, 2021, 8pm GMT, a white-hat member of the Sablier
community notified our team of a low-severity bug discovered in a middleware
contract
ghostUuid: e906b152-c2e3-4df3-afad-ac690f4de594
publishedAt: '2021-07-27'
slug: low-severity-recipient-cancellation-bug-post-mortem
tags:
- security
title: Low Severity Recipient Cancellation Bug Post-Mortem
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
metaDescription: >-
Post-mortem on a low-severity bug affecting token streams in Sablier,
detailing the issue, fix, and steps to secure user funds.
---
## What Happened
On June 30, 2021, 8pm GMT, a white-hat member of the Sablier community notified our team of a low-severity bug discovered in a middleware contract used by the Sablier frontends.
The bug does not allow for any funds to be stolen by a third-party attacker. However, it allows recipients of streams to manipulate their stream in such a way that unstreamed tokens could become unrecoverable by the stream creator — effectively burning any unstreamed tokens. No loss of funds has occurred.
## Root Causes
Sablier v1.0 is made up of three smart contracts, all non-upgradeable:
1. [Payroll.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xbd6a40bb904aea5a49c59050b5395f7484a4203d) — Dapp middleware
2. [Sablier.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xa4fc358455febe425536fd1878be67ffdbdec59a) — Money streaming engine
3. [CTokenManager.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0x342a6596f50b4db7c3246c0f4efb1f06843d7405#code) — [Compound token](https://compound.finance/ctokens) manager
The frontends used to rely on the “Payroll.sol” middleware for creating the streams. That contract has a “createSalary” function that calls “createStream” on “Sablier.sol” under the hood. The rationale for why we decided to route streams through this contract instead of using “Sablier.sol” directly was threefold:
- Separate the payroll use-case, which our frontends were envisioned for, from the more generic money streaming protocol.
- Support the [Ethereum Gas Station Network](https://docs.opengsn.org/) through the middleware but not the money streaming engine.
- Make the middleware upgradeable but not the money streaming engine (we ended making neither upgradeable).
After creating a stream, there are two actions that can be performed on it: withdraw and cancel. The “Sablier.sol” exposes these actions via two functions:
1. withdrawFromStream
2. cancelStream
While the “Payroll.sol” middleware exposes the same two actions via these other functions:
1. withdrawFromSalary (calls “withdrawFromStream”)
2. cancelSalary (calls “cancelStream”)
The bug occurs when a stream is created via “Payroll.sol” but is cancelled via “Sablier.sol” by the recipient. In all other cases, the protocol is behaving correctly. But if the recipient triggers the “cancelStream” function on a stream created via the middleware, any remaining unstreamed tokens would end up locked in the “Payroll.sol” contract, effectively burning them.
## Resolution
Immediately after being notified, we paused all other development efforts and set out to patch the bug. Within 24 hours, we had a patched contract deployed internally, and we began working on updates for the front-end and subgraph to go live with an update as soon a possible. Specifically, we:
- Deployed a new [Sablier.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xcd18eaa163733da39c232722cbc4e8940b1d8888) contract (v1.1), which supersedes v1.0
- Updated the [subgraphs](https://docs.sablier.com/#data) to index both the v1.0 and the v1.1 contracts
- Updated the official interfaces at [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/), [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/), and the Gnosis app to use the v1.1 contract for creating streams while maintaining backwards-compatibility with v1.0 for cancelling and withdrawing from streams.
Next, we gave notice to stream creators who had the most significant exposure to the bug, giving them a chance to recreate their streams before going live with the public disclosure. Fortunately, we managed to migrate and rescue the vast majority of streams.
## Impact
The bug affects all streams created via the “Payroll.sol” middleware contract, but certain users are not affected, or they bear a very low risk:
- If you used our interfaces after July 12, 2021, 05:33:43 PM, you are NOT affected.
- If you used the [Sablier.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xA4fc358455Febe425536fd1878bE67FfDBDEC59a) contract to create the streams, instead of the [Payroll.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xbd6a40Bb904aEa5a49c59050B5395f7484A4203d) middleware, you are NOT affected.
- If your streams ended, you are NOT affected.
- If you’re streaming money to yourself, you have a VERY LOW risk of becoming affected.
- If you’re streaming money to trustworthy counterparties, you have a LOW risk of becoming affected.
Low risk means that the recipient has no economic incentive to exploit the bug. If they do, they won’t receive the unstreamed portion of the stream.
Also, the cancel stream function would have to be triggered in a programatic way, since both the official interface and the Gnosis integration do not allow users to interact in a way that could exploit the bug.
## Action Items
If your streams are affected, you can either do nothing (if you think the risk is acceptable for your circumstance) or you can cancel and recreate the streams. For your conveniency, we built a frontend utility that makes it easy for you to migrate the streams:
[Sablier: Migrator v1.1](https://app.sablier.com)
Alternatively, you can manually recreate the streams via the user interfaces:
1. Go to [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) or [gnosis-safe.io](https://gnosis-safe.io/).
2. Cancel the stream; this will automatically distribute the streamed amount to the recipient and the unstreamed amount back to you.
3. Calculate the difference between the older stream’s stop time and the current time.
4. Recreate the stream with the unstreamed amount that you received back and the duration you calculated at step 2.
If you have questions, please email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com); our team looks forward to helping you.
## Timeline
All times are in UTC.
### Jun-30–2021 08:00:14 PM
The white-hat hacker reported the bug via a private communication channel.
### Jul-01–2021 04:48:52 PM
[Removed](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/commit/dccd9b9ca6d28d3e1de2346170ffe668b9d3cfc5) the buggy “Payroll.sol” contract from the code base. Started testing a patched version of the protocol on a local development network.
### Jul-02–2021 10:35:20 AM
[Deployed](https://rinkeby.etherscan.io/tx/0x9bbbeb754a288fd2c6e4cf38a9deb500251e907245b086cfe36eaa49898d9b89) patched contract on Rinkeby, for testing purposes.
### Jul-02–2021 04:42:52 PM
[Deployed](https://etherscan.io/tx/0xb824a0a89c382fd0f1019d1d9b28cc9b8b40c4f9d2affd7ff94e7c648be215c4) patched contract on Mainnet.
### Jul-05–2021 11:49:09 AM
Finished reimplementing our subgraph so that it indexes both v1.0 and v1.1 streams. See commits [8cdfc3f](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier-subgraph/commit/8cdfc3fa583c6082a03e17f75e43ed6237a28ae0) and [06eca34](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier-subgraph/commit/06eca34417268780f63a535f9c59e6f24db51775). Created throwaway subgraphs on The Graph’s hosted service, for testing purposes.
### Jul-06–2021 09:02:35 PM
Finished reimplementing our official interfaces so that they work with the new subgraph and the new contracts, while still remaining backwards compatible with v1.0 streams. Started testing on Rinkeby.
### Jul-10–2021 08:06:00 PM
Finished reimplemented our Gnosis Safe app so that it works with the the new subgraph and the new contracts. See commit [1363fb2](https://github.com/paulrberg/sablier-safe-app/commit/1363fb2da2a5c99e8f199efeb12c2c5f8cb19527). Started testing on Rinkeby.
### Jul-12–2021 03:09:54 PM
Deployed the updated subgraph implementation [in production](https://thegraph.com/explorer/subgraph/sablierhq/sablier).
### Jul-12–2021 05:33:43 PM
Deployed the updated official interfaces to [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) and [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/).
### Jul-14–2021 07:47:12 AM
The Gnosis team [merged](https://github.com/gnosis/safe-apps-list/pull/57) our PR to update our Gnosis Safe app on [gnosis-safe.io](https://gnosis-safe.io/).
### Jul-14–2021 09:52:32 AM
Started notifying stream creators about about the bug, and recommended them to migrate the streams to the patched contract.
### Jul-27–2021 06:45:04 PM
Published this port-mortem publicly.
## Lessons Learned
First, this was a fresh reminder that high test coverage does only so much to ensure safety of use. Even if we added a test case that fended off the bug, test coverage wouldn’t have increased because all the logical branches that cause the bug to exist had already been covered. See [GitHub](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/tree/%40sablier/protocol%401.0.0) and [Coveralls](https://coveralls.io/github/sablierhq/sablier) (test coverage was around 98.19%).
Finally, the impacted contract has been within scope of audits internally, from a professional firm, and many other third-party audits from teams using Sablier for token vesting. This experience highlights one of the most significant values that comes from open-source development in continuously evaluating the security and soundness of your published work. Appropriately, you can expect that we remain committed to continue rewarding, based on severity, anyone who responsibly discloses bugs or vulnerabilities to our team.
## Bounty Payout
While the scope of circumstance in which an attacker might leverage this bug is narrow, we still feel a great sense of responsibility in ensuring that the right incentives exist for responsible disclosure. Accordingly, we’ve paid out 5,000 DAI to Jack Aldridge for his discovery and cooperation in the matter.
We remain committed to following industry best practices for security and responsible bug disclosure. Thank you for your continued support and trust in Sablier.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- max
excerpt: >-
During this Core Unit Tools session organized by MakerDAO, Paul Razvan Berg
presented the Sablier protocol and answered questions from the audience. Who
are you
ghostUuid: b331c088-dda7-468e-8bcf-fd53c4e3a976
publishedAt: '2021-03-23'
slug: sablier-x-makerdao-core-unit-tools-march-12-2021
tags:
- organizations
title: 'Sablier x MakerDAO Core Unit Tools March 12, 2021'
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1__99-MRApJPKNr2Nw7BPrOg.webp
metaDescription: >-
Sablier partners with MakerDAO to showcase real-time money streaming
solutions, providing insights into decentralized finance tools and future
protocols.
---
During this Core Unit Tools session organized by MakerDAO, Paul Razvan Berg presented the Sablier protocol and answered questions from the audience.
### Who are you and what is Sablier?
[Sablier is a money-streaming app which was created 2 years ago in 2019. In the meantime, we have been acquired by Hifi, a fixed rate lending protocol also on Ethereum.](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=34)
### Are you on any kind of layer-2?
[We are actively exploring solutions, it’s mostly a coordination problem right now where everybody is wondering what the other person is going to do. At the moment there is a community-built version of Sablier on xDai using the same contracts and almost the same user interface](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=246).
### Do I need to lock up all the funds upfront?
[Yes, that’s the current behavior. You could create several stream batches, though.](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=297)
### How efficient is Sablier in terms of gas costs?
[It costs 250K gas to create a stream and 120K gas to withdraw from a stream](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=499).
### Were you the inventor of the ERC-1620?
[Yes, I (Paul) authored it a few years ago and Sablier is an extension of ERC-1620 but with a nice user interface and a more polished implementation](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=645).
### Could you use this to stream NFT royalties?
[I (Paul) don’t see why that couldn’t happen. There is nothing stopping you from using this in your own NFT protocol. We could even tokenize streams into NFTs which would allow you to give your stream to somebody else or use them as collateral in a lending protocol](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=677).
### How long is the average stream?
[Most of them are long-term for two reasons. The first one is that the highest-paying users are teams vesting their tokens. The second reason is that because of the gas costs it’s cheaper to create one long stream instead of two shorter ones.](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=820)
### Do you support any ERC-20 token?
[Yes, it’s compatible with any token. We are working on implementing token lists, but for now it’s a manually defined list of tokens](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=965).
### Are there integrations which you find interesting?
[We have an integration with Gnosis and they have been a huge avenue for us to get more users. In the future, we are looking to get Sablier listed on more DeFi lists, like DeFi Pulse for example](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=996).
### Do you make money in any way?
[It’s a public good. The contracts have no fee, it’s free to use](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1101).
### Have you had any conversations with crypto payroll providers?
[We are not focusing on the legal dimension where crypto meets the law](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1187).
### It seems like this is better for fixed-term salary payments with no changes in the amounts being paid.
[That is true. Although you could integrate a time-tracking mechanism to start and stop the stream when the person is actively working and when he or she isn’t](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1299).
### Is there a way to pause the stream instead of canceling it?
[No, we kept the implementation rather minimal for security purposes. Security is very important for us](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1354).
### Can you stream to multiple recipients?
[If you set a recipient as a contract which implements your logic which has multiple recipients, yes you can](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1373).
### Do you support any type of exponential streaming?
[We have thought about it, but we don’t support it yet. It’s certainly very interesting](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1638).
### What’s the roadmap for Sablier?
[For now we are exploring layer-2s. We do have some interesting ideas to solve the money lock-up problem](https://youtu.be/4T2FV9TsvFE?t=1688).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
This blog post was written by Nichanan Kesonpat. Sablier is a protocol for
real-time finance. The protocol allows for continuous payments — where users
essentia
ghostUuid: b5bd1c3c-bb5d-4369-83c4-592437302a98
publishedAt: '2020-05-05'
slug: how-to-build-a-sablier-v1-dapp-2
tags:
- engineering
title: How to Build a Sablier V1 Dapp
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
metaDescription: >-
Learn how to build a Sablier V1 Dapp for real-time payment streams using
React, web3-react, and The Graph with this comprehensive guide.
---
> **Deprecated:** This tutorial targets Sablier V1 and references testnets (Kovan, Rinkeby, Ropsten, Goerli) that have since been sunset. For current docs, see [Sablier Lockup](https://docs.sablier.com/lockup) and [Sablier Flow](https://docs.sablier.com/flow).
> This blog post was written by [Nichanan Kesonpat](https://twitter.com/nichanank).
[Sablier](https://www.sablier.com/) is a protocol for real-time finance. The protocol allows for **continuous payments** — where users essentially _stream_ money to each other as opposed to paying in one lump sum transaction. This opens up many possibilities in payroll transactions, micro-consultation services, and other engagements where **time is money**.
A payer’s deposit is sent to the Sablier smart contract which handles the “streaming”, or incremental allocation of the deposited funds over a time period, specified by the creator of the payment stream. Instead of having to wait for bi-weekly or monthly payroll, the recipient can withdraw from the stream at any time — every day becomes payday.
Payments can be made in any ERC-20 token, and the sender can cancel the stream any time should the engagement not work out. If a stream is cancelled before the designated stop time, the already allocated funds get forwarded to the recipient while the remaining deposit is returned to the sender.
## Some potential use cases
- 💼 Micro-consultation services. Get paid for 10 minutes of your time to answer quick questions from one-time clients
- 👩🏻💻 Beta testers are streamed DAI for giving live feedback on upcoming product releases
- 🛠 Experienced engineers and security experts streamed DAI for giving private workshops and webinars
- 📖 Pay-per-minute-stream for your attendance in online classes instead of paying a lump sum for access at the beginning
- 🎨 Virtual world architects streamed MANA for their time designing in-world estates for clients
- 🙎🏼♀️ Stream social tokens for 1–1 time with influencers
…to name a few. See [this thread](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1214239545220386819) for an extended list
We are still at the tip of the iceberg when it comes to streaming money, but Sablier serves as a tool for developers to start getting creative with this exciting new way in which we transact with one another.
## Goals
In this tutorial, we’ll walk through how you can build a React app that lets users create and withdraw from payment streams running on [Sablier protocol](https://www.sablier.com/). You’ll learn how to:
1. **Scaffold** a project folder with`create eth-app` and the Sablier template
2. **Connect** your app to the blockchain using React hooks and web3-react
3. **Create** a Sablier-powered payment stream
4. **Retrieve** stream information from the blockchain with [The Graph](https://thegraph.com/)
5. **Withdraw** from or **cancel** a payment stream
## Requirements
- Since `create eth-app` relies on Yarn Workspaces, you’ll need **yarn** on your machine. You can follow the [installation instructions](https://classic.yarnpkg.com/en/docs/install/#mac-stable) on the official website to set it up if you don’t already have it.
- You’ll need to be on **Node v8.10.0 or v10.16.0 or later** in order to avoid an incompatible Node version error upon installation. You can switch between Node versions in your project by running `nvm use`, for example:
```text
nvm use 10.16.0
```
Check that you’re on the desired Node version using nvm version. Good to go?
## 1\. Scaffold the project with create eth-app
[create eth-app](https://github.com/PaulRBerg/create-eth-app) is a neat command-line tool that bootstraps your [#DeFi](https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeFi?src=hashtag_click) application with pre-filled contract ABIs, addresses and subgraphs. Run the `create eth-app`command to create a directory with out-of-the-box project scaffolding.
```text
yarn create eth-app --template sablier
```
This gives you the following:
```text
my-app
├── README.md
├── package.json
├── packages
│ ├── contracts
│ │ ├── README.md
│ │ ├── package.json
│ │ └── src
│ │ ├── abis
│ │ │ ├── erc20.json
│ │ │ ├── payroll.json
│ │ │ └── sablier.json
│ │ ├── abis.js
│ │ ├── addresses.js
│ │ └── index.js
│ └── react-app
│ ├── README.md
│ ├── package.json
│ ├── public
│ │ ├── favicon.ico
│ │ ├── index.html
│ │ ├── logo192.png
│ │ ├── logo512.png
│ │ ├── manifest.json
│ │ └── robots.txt
│ └── src
│ ├── App.css
│ ├── App.js
│ ├── App.test.js
│ ├── ethereumLogo.png
│ ├── index.css
│ ├── index.js
│ └── setupTests.js
└── yarn.lock
```
We’ll be working mostly in the **react-app** directory that comes with the template. As you can see, the ABIs and addresses for Sablier are already included. These will become useful later when we want to interact with the Sablier smart contract.
Navigate to the react-app directory and double-check that you can spin up a local development server
```text
cd packages/react-app && yarn start
```
You should see the following on `localhost:3000`
If we take a look at what’s going on in `App.js`we can see that there is a basic example of how to connect and pull data from the [Sablier subgraph](https://thegraph.com/explorer/subgraph/sablierhq/sablier). This will be useful for later when we want to get information about our payment streams.
## 2\. Add web3 functionality with web3-react
For this tutorial, we will be using the [web3-react](https://github.com/NoahZinsmeister/web3-react) package to communicate with the Ethereum blockchain. `web3-react` ensures that certain key pieces of data (the user’s account, what network they’re on etc.) are kept up-to-date. It uses [Context](https://reactjs.org/docs/context.html) to efficiently store this data and inject it wherever you need it in your application using the `useWeb3React` hook.
The features we’ll need comes with the web3-react’s `core`module. Since we’ll be using a browser extension (Metamask) to communicate with the blockchain in this tutorial, we’ll also need `injected-connector` . Add these dependencies with
```text
yarn add @web3-react/core @web3-react/injected-connector
```
In `index.js` , import the Web3ReactProvider and make it a parent of the existing `` and `` . The `getLibrary` prop is responsible for instantiating a web3 library object from the provider.
```typescript
// index.js
import { Web3ReactProvider } from '@web3-react/core'
function getLibrary(provider) {
const library = new ethers.providers.Web3Provider(provider)
library.pollingInterval = 10000
return library
}
....
ReactDOM.render(
,
document.getElementById("root"),
);
```
To use the `useWeb3React`hook, sign transactions, and use the injected web3 provider, we’ll create three new files, `hooks.js,signer.js`and `connectors.js`. You can find the barebones code for these in this [gist](https://gist.github.com/nichanank/737f064e81ab1a33929e449a12337f1d)
```typescript
import { InjectedConnector } from "@web3-react/injected-connector";
export const injected = new InjectedConnector({
supportedChainIds: [1, 3, 4, 5, 42]
});
```
```typescript
import { useState, useEffect } from "react";
import { useWeb3React } from "@web3-react/core";
import { injected } from "./connectors";
export function useEagerConnect() {
const { activate, active } = useWeb3React();
const [tried, setTried] = useState(false);
useEffect(() => {
injected.isAuthorized().then(isAuthorized => {
if (isAuthorized) {
activate(injected, undefined, true).catch(() => {
setTried(true);
});
} else {
setTried(true);
}
});
}, [activate]); // intentionally only running on mount (make sure it's only mounted once :))
// if the connection worked, wait until we get confirmation of that to flip the flag
useEffect(() => {
if (!tried && active) {
setTried(true);
}
}, [tried, active]);
return tried;
}
export function useInactiveListener(suppress = false) {
const { active, error, activate } = useWeb3React();
useEffect(() => {
const { ethereum } = window;
if (ethereum && !active && !error && !suppress) {
const handleNetworkChanged = networkId => {
console.log("networkChanged", networkId);
activate(injected);
};
const handleAccountsChanged = accounts => {
console.log("accountsChanged", accounts);
if (accounts.length > 0) {
activate(injected);
}
};
ethereum.on("networkChanged", handleNetworkChanged);
ethereum.on("accountsChanged", handleAccountsChanged);
return () => {
ethereum.removeListener("networkChanged", handleNetworkChanged);
ethereum.removeListener("accountsChanged", handleAccountsChanged);
};
}
return () => {};
}, [active, error, suppress, activate]);
}
```
```typescript
import React from "react";
import ReactDOM from "react-dom";
import ApolloClient from "apollo-boost";
import { ApolloProvider } from "@apollo/react-hooks";
import { ethers } from "ethers";
import { Web3ReactProvider } from '@web3-react/core';
import "./index.css";
import App from "./App";
function getLibrary(provider) {
const library = new ethers.providers.Web3Provider(provider)
library.pollingInterval = 10000
return library
}
// This is the official Sablier subgraph. You can replace it with your own, if you need to.
// See all subgraphs: https://thegraph.com/explorer/
const client = new ApolloClient({
uri: "https://api.thegraph.com/subgraphs/name/sablierhq/sablier",
});
ReactDOM.render(
,
document.getElementById("root"),
);
```
```typescript
import * as ethers from 'ethers'
export default class UncheckedJsonRpcSigner extends ethers.Signer {
constructor(signer) {
super()
ethers.utils.defineReadOnly(this, 'signer', signer)
ethers.utils.defineReadOnly(this, 'provider', signer.provider)
}
getAddress() {
return this.signer.getAddress()
}
sendTransaction(transaction) {
return this.signer.sendUncheckedTransaction(transaction).then(hash => {
return {
hash: hash,
nonce: null,
gasLimit: null,
gasPrice: null,
data: null,
value: null,
chainId: null,
confirmations: 0,
from: null,
wait: confirmations => {
return this.signer.provider.waitForTransaction(hash, confirmations)
}
}
})
}
signMessage(message) {
return this.signer.signMessage(message)
}
}
```
You can read the web3-react [documentation](https://github.com/NoahZinsmeister/web3-react/tree/v6/docs) to better understand how this works. It may seem like a lot of boilerplate code now, but the `useWeb3React` hook will become your best friend when the project becomes more complex.
We can use this hook in`App.js` to automatically connect to the injected provider and listen to any change in the provider — e.g. if a user switches their account or network on Metamask.
Now the user’s account, the network they’re on, and the current web3 library is accessible via `useWeb3React()`
```solidity
const { account, chainId, library } = useWeb3React()
```
## 3\. Create a payment stream
From the [official documentation](https://docs.sablier.com/streams), a Sablier stream has four properties:
- It is enacted between two different Ethereum addresses, a **sender** and a **recipient**
- It has a fixed **value** (dictated by the deposit)
- It has a fixed **duration**
- It is funded with an [**ERC-20**](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-20) token that can’t be changed
These four properties are reflected in Sablier’s`createStream` [method](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/develop/packages/protocol/contracts/Sablier.sol).
```text
function createStream(
address recipient,
uint256 deposit,
address tokenAddress,
uint256 startTime,
uint256 stopTime
)
returns (uint256) // this is the streamId
```
In `App.js`we can add some basic HTML input and button elements to call on this function from the UI. The datetime picker is from [react-datetime-picker](https://github.com/wojtekmaj/react-datetime-picker#readme) and provides an intuitive interface and converts the input automatically to a UNIX timestamp, which is accepted for the time parameters in our contract call.
We’re almost ready to start a stream! Link each of these user inputs to their respective states that correspond to each of the parameters we need in our `createStream`method:
- deposit
- recipient
- startTime
- stopTime
- tokenAddress
One of the “gotchas” of Sablier v1 is that the **deposit must be a multiple of the difference between the start time and stop time**. Otherwise, the transaction reverts.We can get around this by modding the user deposit with the time delta, and then shaving off this remainder from the original deposit. Because the ERC-20 token has 18 decimals, the difference should be negligible in most cases.
```typescript
// yarn add bignumber.js
// import BigNumber from 'bignumber.js'
// BigNumber.config({ EXPONENTIAL_AT: 30 }) <--- add this after your imports, it will prevent the number from being formatted like "1e+21"
// call this when the user presses the "Create Stream" button
const sablier = new ethers.Contract(addresses[chainId].sablier, abis.sablier, getProviderOrSigner(library, account))
let convertedStartTime = Math.round(startTime.getTime() / 1000)
let convertedStopTime = Math.round(stopTime.getTime() / 1000)
let convertedDeposit = new BigNumber(deposit).multipliedBy(10 ** 18).toFixed(0)
let remainder = new BigNumber(convertedDeposit) % (convertedStopTime - convertedStartTime)
let amountToDeposit = new BigNumber(convertedDeposit).minus(remainder).toString()
const token = new ethers.Contract("0xc3dbf84abb494ce5199d5d4d815b10ec29529ff8", abis.erc20, getProviderOrSigner(library, account));
const approveTx = await token.approve(sablier.address, amountToDeposit);
await approveTx.wait();
const createStreamTx = await sablier.createStream(recipient, amountToDeposit, token.address, convertedStartTime, convertedStopTime);
await createStreamTx.wait();
```
🕔 Ensure that the **start time is some time in the future** and that the **stop time is after the start time.** Otherwise, the transaction will revert. You can use [https://www.epochconverter.com/](https://www.epochconverter.com/) for easy conversion from epoch to human-readable date and vice versa.
We’re now ready to test the stream creation feature of our app. For this tutorial, we are using Testnet DAI on Rinkeby as the ERC-20 token to stream.
## Get yourself some Testnet DAI
Testnet DAI is an ERC-20 token that was made for the purposes of testing decentralized applications. It is available on all the Ethereum test networks (Rinkeby, Kovan, Ropsten etc.). Here is the token’s [source code](https://github.com/PaulRBerg/contractz/blob/e8f89b20a2531f9f126b3ba1f6f6687a09414c09/contracts/TestnetDAI.sol)
You can mint yourself some Testnet DAI by going to the contract on their respective Etherscan-s, navigating to Contract and then Write Contract.
- Kovan: [https://kovan.etherscan.io/token/0x7d669a64deb8a4a51eea755bb0e19fd39ce25ae9#writeContract](https://kovan.etherscan.io/token/0x7d669a64deb8a4a51eea755bb0e19fd39ce25ae9#writeContract)
- Rinkeby: [https://rinkeby.etherscan.io/address/0xc3dbf84abb494ce5199d5d4d815b10ec29529ff8#writeContract](https://rinkeby.etherscan.io/address/0xc3dbf84abb494ce5199d5d4d815b10ec29529ff8#writeContract)
- Ropsten: [https://ropsten.etherscan.io/address/0x2d69ad895797c880abce92437788047ba0eb7ff6#writeContract](https://ropsten.etherscan.io/address/0x2d69ad895797c880abce92437788047ba0eb7ff6#writeContract)
- Goerli: [https://goerli.etherscan.io/address/0xf2d1f94310823fe26cfa9c9b6fd152834b8e7849#writeContract](https://goerli.etherscan.io/address/0xf2d1f94310823fe26cfa9c9b6fd152834b8e7849#writeContract)
1. Click **Connect to Web3** to sign in with your wallet and get your tokens by calling the **mint** function.
2. Because Testnet DAI adheres to the ERC-20 standard, whose # token decimals is 18, remember to add 18 zeros to the amount you want to mint. For example, if you wanted to mint 9999 TestnetDAI you would put 9999000000000000000000. Double-check that the testnet Etherscan that you’re on matches the one on your Web3 wallet.
Congratulations, you can now start streaming payments from your app! Bear in mind that when the stream starts, the payment _does not_ get sent directly to the recipient’s wallet. The recipient will have to `withdraw` from the stream, which we’ll see how to do later.
There’s currently no way to see what’s happening inside the stream and no way for the recipient to withdraw from it, so let’s add the ability to do this from our UI.
First, we have to look to the blockchain to get information about the streams that we’ve been involved in. We _could_ just filter through the **CreateStream** events for the Streams in which we are the **sender** or **recipient**. But there is a much simpler and more efficient way thanks to the [Sablier subgraph](https://thegraph.com/explorer/subgraph/sablierhq/sablier), let’s explore this how we can achieve this.
## 4\. Pulling stream data from The Graph
[The Graph](https://thegraph.com/) is a decentralized protocol for indexing and querying data from blockchains. Until recently, getting chain data required teams to write their own indexing server that they had to run and operate themselves. The Graph uses [GraphQL](https://graphql.org/) to provide us with a neat API to get the data we need from the blockchain in a single request.
Let’s modify The Graph API source that came with the template in `index.js` to correspond to the testnet we’re using.
```text
// in index.js - append the testnet name to the ApolloClient uri
const client = new ApolloClient(
{uri:"https://api.thegraph.com/subgraphs/name/sablierhq/sablier-rinkeby"});
```
We can now make a query to get the streams that we’re interested in. Let’s query for ones where the **account** we’re signed in with is either the **sender** or **recipient** of a stream. In `App.js` :
```text
// this returns two arrays, one containing Streams where the user was the sender (senderStreams) and another in which the user was a recipient (recipientStreams)
const MY_STREAMS = gql`
query streams($account: String!) {
senderStreams:streams(where: {sender: $account}){
id
recipient
deposit
startTime
stopTime
}
recipientStreams:streams(where: {recipient: $account}) {
id
sender
deposit
startTime
stopTime
}
}
```
We can get the streams using the same method as included in the template, passing in our **account** as a variable for the query. This step asks for the streams in which we are either the sender or recipient.
```text
const { loading, error, data } = useQuery(
MY_STREAMS,
{variables: {account},})
```
Now we have access to the Stream objects that involve the user. We can access it with `data.senderStreams` and `data.recipientStreams` , and render these arrays along with the cancel/withdraw buttons for each of them. We can now call the cancel/withdraw functions on the smart contract as we know the `streamId` s
You can call **withdraw** and **cancel** like so:
```text
const sablier = new ethers.Contract(
addresses[chainId].sablier,
abis.sablier,
getProviderOrSigner(library, account))
const withdrawTx = await sablier.withdraw(
stream.id,
stream.deposit);
```
Note that withdraw takes `streamId` and `balance` You can add an input where the user specifies how much they want to withdraw from the stream. Withdrawing `stream.deposit` will only work if we’ve passed the stopTime.
```text
const sablier = new ethers.Contract(
addresses[chainId].sablier,
abis.sablier,
getProviderOrSigner(library, account))
const cancelTx = await sablier.cancel(stream.id);
```
Here is the [official documentation](https://docs.sablier.com/streams) that details how each of these functions work.
## Congratulations!
You’re now on your way to making a dapp for real-time finance, powered by Sablier. I got a chance to use it for the first time during the [DragonQuest hackathon](https://hackathon.metacartel.org/) and made a Peer Discovery platform where individuals can go and find mentors, domain experts, consultants, and all kinds of service providers to engage in a 1–1 video chat while streaming money with Sablier. You can check it out at [https://peerstream.netlify.app](https://peerstream.netlify.app/)
Sablier is less than a year old, but it is realizing the long-talked-about meme of [money streaming](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF_ZQ_eijPs&t=1s). This will unlock many new ways we can interact and engage with online service providers
You can already use Sablier today and there are many things to look forward to in their next release. If you’re a developer who wants to play around with money legos, I hope this tutorial has been helpful. If you found anything confusing or missing please leave a comment.
💻 [Official Website](https://app.sablier.com/)
⚡️ [Sablier.me](https://sablier.me/)
🗺 [Product Roadmap](https://www.notion.so/e6fa6198bea149cd9551679421ae33ec?v=807f6528930e40d694af3bd7b54460fb)
📜 [Official Documentation](https://docs.sablier.com/)
🛠 [Tutorial Repo](https://github.com/nichanank/create-sablier-dapp-demo)
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
Sablier is built on top of Ethereum, a blockchain that has been running
uninterruptedly since its inception. This means that even if MetaMask, Wallet
Connect or
ghostUuid: 28838e76-9852-4415-b0b8-62d18e10e268
publishedAt: '2020-02-07'
slug: operating-the-sablier-v1-protocol-manually
tags:
- engineering
title: Operating the Sablier V1 Protocol Manually
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_7H8gN1CLAkJORcjGZd1tZQ.webp
metaDescription: >
A detailed guide for manually operating the Sablier V1 protocol on Ethereum,
covering stream creation, withdrawal, and cancellation using Etherscan.
---
> **Deprecated:** This post documents Sablier V1, which is no longer the active protocol. For current information on token vesting and streaming, see [Sablier Lockup](https://docs.sablier.com/lockup) and [Sablier Flow](https://docs.sablier.com/flow).
Sablier is built on top of Ethereum, a blockchain that has been running uninterruptedly since its inception. **This means that even if MetaMask, Wallet Connect or the** [**Sablier Interface**](https://app.sablier.com/) **are malfunctioning, you are always able to interact with the Sablier protocol.**
This is a guide aimed at technical users familiar with Ethereum and smart contract technology. We will use the [Etherscan](https://etherscan.io/) blockchain explorer, but you can use any other web interface with dapp capabilities, such as [MyEtherWallet](https://myetherwallet.com/).
## Contracts, ABI, and descriptions
Smart contract architecture, addresses, ABIs, and function descriptions for the protocol are available at [docs.sablier.com](https://docs.sablier.com/).
### Contract
Sablier v1.1 (the latest version of the protocol) runs on top of one monolith contract, which is not upgradeable and has no owner:
- [0xCD18eAa163733Da39c232722cBC4E8940b1D8888](https://etherscan.io/address/0xcd18eaa163733da39c232722cbc4e8940b1d8888)
This guide will focus on interacting with this contract on Ethereum Mainnet. But the same logic applies to all other networks Sablier is deployed on.
### Connect to Etherscan
Go to the smart contract page on Etherscan:
- [https://etherscan.io/address/0xcd18eaa163733da39c232722cbc4e8940b1d8888#writeContract](https://etherscan.io/address/0xcd18eaa163733da39c232722cbc4e8940b1d8888#writeContract)
You will notice that the source code is verified, which means you can use Etherscan’s “Write Contract” feature.
Connect to MetaMask by clicking “Connect to Web3”.
### How to get the stream id?
Throughout this article, we will make references to a “stream id”.
To find this value, you have to look at your transaction history and inspect the event logs. Specifically, you have to find the `CreateStream` event for the Money Streaming Engine. Here’s an example for the stream with id 100,048:
- [https://etherscan.io/tx/0x648d7d7bf7935fbf3df0a2e5fb4ac55106e411ae7249fdba4e0263e5bb7a9829#eventlog](https://etherscan.io/tx/0x648d7d7bf7935fbf3df0a2e5fb4ac55106e411ae7249fdba4e0263e5bb7a9829#eventlog)
Alternatively, if you know the URL of your stream on [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) or [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/), the number at the end of the URL is the stream id.
## 1\. Create Streams
To create streams using Etherscan, use the `createStream` function on the Money Streaming Engine:
### Steps
1. Enter the address of the intended recipient under `recipient`.
2. Enter the amount you wish to stream, in token units, under `deposit` — you can use this [Ethereum unit converter](https://www.etherchain.org/tools/unitConverter) to get the proper values.
3. Enter the contract address of the ERC20 token you wish to send under `tokenAddress`.
4. Enter the time you wish to start the stream, in seconds since epoch, under `startTime`.
5. Enter the time you wish the stream to end, in seconds since epoch, under `stopTime`.
6. Click “Write”, and confirm the transaction on MetaMask.
To get the proper timestamp for step 4 and 5, you can use [this epoch converter](https://www.epochconverter.com/).
### Warning
The transaction must be processed by the Ethereum blockchain BEFORE the `startTime` of the stream, or otherwise the contract will revert with the following error:
> _start time before block.timestamp_
## 2\. Withdraw from Streams
To withdraw from streams using Etherscan, use the `withdrawFromStream` function on the Money Streaming Engine:
Steps:
1. Enter the id of the stream you wish to withdraw from under `streamId`.
2. Enter the amount of tokens you wish to withdraw, in token units, under `amount` — you can use this [Ethereum unit converter](https://www.etherchain.org/tools/unitConverter) to get the proper values.
3. Click “Write”, and confirm the transaction on MetaMask.
_Side note: you can trigger this action only if you’re either the sender or the recipient of the stream. For all other third-party accounts, the contract call will revert._
## 3\. Cancel Streams
To cancel streams using Etherscan, use the `cancelStream` function on the Money Streaming Engine:
1. Enter the id of the stream you wish to cancel under `streamId`.
2. Click “Write”, and confirm the transaction on MetaMask.
_Side note: you can trigger this action only if you’re either the sender or the recipient of the stream, otherwise the contract call will revert._
## Wrap Up
There is a number of other secondary functions you can call on the Money Streaming Engine, but we will let you discover them on your own. All functions are thoroughly documented in our [protocol documentation](https://docs.sablier.com/).
Many thanks to [Kaden Zipfel](https://medium.com/u/12a4b56374e?source=post_page-----e6569092c533--------------------------------) for his contribution and feedback on this blog post.
If you ever have trouble operating the Sablier protocol, please email us at [contact@sablier.com](mailto:contact@sablier.com); our team looks forward to helping you.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
Big thanks and kudos to the talented engineers who cracked on our bounties
during the #TakeBackTheWeb hackathon organised by Gitcoin. We are humbled by
your int
ghostUuid: 0f57de1a-76b7-4797-b502-db60691bfdfd
publishedAt: '2020-02-01'
slug: judging-submissions-for-the-take-back-the-web-hackathon
tags:
- events
title: Judging Submissions for the “Take Back The Web” Hackathon
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_IZXj8CFXuAA-j1EiXUl5-Q.webp
metaDescription: >-
Discover the winning projects from the Take Back The Web hackathon by Sablier
and Gitcoin, showcasing innovative blockchain solutions.
---
Big thanks and kudos to the talented engineers who cracked on our bounties during the [#TakeBackTheWeb](https://twitter.com/hashtag/TakeBackTheWeb) hackathon organised by Gitcoin. We are humbled by your interest in Sablier.
Judging turned out to be way harder than expected, due to the quality of the submissions being very high. We went through each individual project, tried it out and provided commentary to each hacker.
## Winners
### Irreversible Token Streaming
This bounty received four submissions from:
- [TripleSpeeder](https://github.com/triplespeeder)
- [cameronfr](https://github.com/cameronfr)
- [mccallofthewild](https://github.com/mccallofthewild)
- [brianspha](https://github.com/Brianspha)
We were impressed by TripleSpeeder’s submission and his agility in responding to and implementing our feedback, therefore he is the winner of the 750 SAI bounty.
[Web3Inheritance](https://triplespeeder.github.io/web3Inheritance)
Use TripleSpeeder’s [dapp](https://triplespeeder.github.io/web3Inheritance/) today to leave your inheritance web3 style — no paperwork involved. Just a Sablier stream that unlocks a drip of money to your heirs on a per-second basis.
The second place is taken by cameronfr. His codebase is neat, the user flow is smooth, but users cannot claim the streamed money directly in his dapp. As a token of appreciation, we decided to tip Cameron with 250 SAI.
## Streamed Atomic Swaps
Unfortunately, we received only one submission for this bounty:
- [masaun](https://github.com/masaun)
After reviewing it, we found it to be incomplete and not functional. We do thank masaun’s for his effort though, so we will tip him with 100 SAI.
## Irreversible Token Streaming
### Web3 Inheritance
[GitHub - TripleSpeeder/web3Inheritance](https://github.com/TripleSpeeder/web3Inheritance)
### Cons
- Thorough documentation
- Smart hack to use a proxy contract
- Super duper cool to have [draw.io](https://draw.io/) diagrams
- Works on testnet
- Simple and nice UI
### Cons
- No linter or formatter like prettier used
## Cameron’s Irreversible Token Streaming
[GitHub - cameronfr/IrreversibleTokenStreaming: Setup ERC20 token streaming using the Sablier contract](https://github.com/cameronfr/IrreversibleTokenStreaming)
### Pros
- Thorough documentation
- Smart way to prevent dangerous actions
- Works on testnets
- Nice UI
### Cons
- ERC20 transfer does not have enough pre-defined gas
- No way to withdraw from the UI
## Dashwood
[GitHub - mccallofthewild/dashwood: 😇 The Elegant Way to Pass on Your Inheritance](https://github.com/mccallofthewild/dashwood)
### Pros
- Dope storytelling
- Nice and simple UI
- Neat codebase
### Cons
- Pending mode is static (prints “need to get erc20 token balance too” in the console though)
- Not working on testnets
- Not usable with any ERC20 address
- Temporary wallet generated but stream not created
## 2Mush Wealth
[GitHub - Brianspha/sablier-finance-poc: POC project using the sablier protocol for streaming erc20 tokens](https://github.com/Brianspha/sablier-finance-poc)
### Pros
- Nice user flow
- Beautiful time picker
### Cons
Little documentation on how to run the dapp
- No token dropdown
- Temporary wallet generated but stream not created
# Streamed Atomic Swaps
[GitHub - masaun/streamed-atomic-swaps: This is dApp for “Streamed Atomic Swaps” by using sablier protocol.](https://github.com/masaun/streamed-atomic-swaps)
### Pros
- Simple implementation via a wrapper
### Cons
- Couldn’t be run
- Codebase is verbose and contains a lot of unnecessary contracts
## Wrap Up
Check out all awesome submissions on the [Gitcoin issue pages](https://gitcoin.co/hackathon/take-back-the-web?org=sablierhq). Once again, thanks to everyone for participating and Gitcoin for putting this together. Stay tuned for more juicy hackathons by giving them a follow on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/gitcoin).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
Update Jan 29, 2021: We burned the admin keys. We don’t have any
administrative rights anymore. This article should be consulted for historical
purposes only. I
ghostUuid: 68ebca58-1722-4b48-8499-e990f6bf252c
publishedAt: '2020-01-13'
slug: exploring-the-trustfulness-of-the-sablier-v1-protocol
tags:
- engineering
title: Exploring the trustfulness of the Sablier V1 protocol
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_17l_y04lHeszPfTlwecJ1g.png
metaDescription: >-
Sablier V1 protocol offers secure, trustless money streaming on Ethereum, with
burned admin keys and simplified architecture ensuring transparency.
---
**Update Jan 29, 2021:** [We burned the admin keys](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1355262405195026432). We don’t have any administrative rights anymore. This article should be consulted for historical purposes only.
## Introduction
Sablier has two building blocks:
1. End-user products: [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) and [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/)
2. Money streaming engine powered by Ethereum smart contracts
In this article, we will focus on the second item. We will shed light on the administrator rights we have as protocol authors and maintainers, as well as on the security measures we’ve taken.
## Architecture
Let’s start with a primer on the technical design.
[Sablier v1](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1205533344886411264) has three smart contracts, all non-upgradeable:
1. [Payroll.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xbd6a40bb904aea5a49c59050b5395f7484a4203d) — Dapp Proxy
2. [Sablier.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0xa4fc358455febe425536fd1878be67ffdbdec59a) — Money Streaming Engine adhering to [ERC-1620](https://github.com/ethereum/EIPs/issues/1620)
3. [CTokenManager.sol](https://etherscan.io/address/0x342a6596f50b4db7c3246c0f4efb1f06843d7405#code) — [Compound token](https://compound.finance/ctokens) manager
## User Flow
1. User goes to [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) to stream some money
2. They fill the form and submit the blockchain transaction
3. The transaction is sent to the Dapp Proxy
4. The Dapp Proxy pings the Money Streaming Engine to create a new stream
5. (Optionally) If the stream is a compounding stream, the Money Streaming Engine pings the Compound Token Manager to ensure that the requested token had been previously whitelisted
## Simplicity = Key
As you may have noticed, we designed the protocol with simplicity in mind. There’s no fluff or unnecessary complexity — just the bare minimum required to kick off real-time finance on Ethereum.
To see the source code, head to our GitHub repository:
[GitHub - sablier-labs/v1-protocol: Core smart contracts of the Sablier V1 protocol](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v1-protocol)
And for a more in-depth account, we provide you with these resources:
- [Protocol Documentation](https://docs.sablier.com/)
- [Frequently Asked Questions](https://docs.sablier.com/)
## Administrative Rights
We [burned](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1355262405195026432) the admin keys and don’t have any admin permissions anymore.
All of our smart contracts inherits from a [forked version](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/shared-contracts%401.0.0/packages/shared-contracts/lifecycle/OwnableWithoutRenounce.sol) of OpenZeppelin’s [Ownable.sol](https://github.com/OpenZeppelin/openzeppelin-contracts/blob/v2.3.0/contracts/ownership/Ownable.sol), which means they each have an “owner” property, further referred to as the administrator.
The administrator is the same across all contracts:
- [0x217A46Aa92aFd9f4F4E170Bc85AEe6f36E14eddF](https://etherscan.io/address/0x217A46Aa92aFd9f4F4E170Bc85AEe6f36E14eddF)
Which is an account controlled by Sablier Labs Ltd, the developer of the protocol— a private limited company incorporated in the United Kingdom.
The rights the administrator has are different for each smart contract.
## Dapp Proxy
[View the source code of this contract here.](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/payroll%401.0.0/packages/payroll/contracts/Payroll.sol)
The administrator has the exclusive permission to call these two functions:
- whitelistRelayer
Adds a new account as a relayer tied to a specific [stream](https://docs.sablier.com/#what-is-a-stream). The relayer can then withdraw money for end users.
- discardRelayer
Removes a previously whitelisted relayer.
_For more information about how our relayer system works, head to this_ [_section_](https://docs.sablier.com/#what-is-a-relayer) _of the FAQ._
## Money Streaming Engine
[View the source code of this contract here.](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/protocol%401.0.0/packages/protocol/contracts/Sablier.sol)
The administrator has the exclusive permission to call these two functions:
- updateFee
Updates the fee charged by using [compounding streams](https://docs.sablier.com/compounding-streams). This is a percentage that can take integer values between 0 and 100. The fee is currently set to 0 and we have no plans to update it in the near future.
- takeEarnings
Withdraws any earnings that accrued in the smart contract.
_For a thorough explanation of how compounding streams work, and how our business fee can technically be mandated, head to this_ [_section_](https://docs.sablier.com/compounding-streams) _of our protocol documentation._
## Compound Token Manager
[View the source code of this contract here.](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/protocol%401.0.0/packages/protocol/contracts/CTokenManager.sol)
The administrator has the exclusive permission to call these two functions:
- whitelistCToken
Adds a new cToken to the whitelist, so that users can create compounding streams with it.
- discardCToken
Discards a previously whitelisted cToken. Previously created compounding streams are not affected.
_There aren’t many cTokens in circulations, so one might wonder why we added this limitation in the first place. The answer is that the math surrounding the Compound protocol is_ [_complex_](https://docs.sablier.com/compounding-streams#exponential-math) _and we wanted to limit the risk._
## Security
On top of the core business logic, we’ve taken a few security measures in the form of a “dead man’s switch”.
The “Sablier.sol” contract inherits from a [forked version](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/shared-contracts%401.0.0/packages/shared-contracts/lifecycle/PausableWithoutRenounce.sol) of OpenZeppelin’s [Pausable.sol](https://github.com/OpenZeppelin/openzeppelin-contracts/blob/v2.3.0/contracts/lifecycle/Pausable.sol), which means it has a “pauser” property. Its value is:
- [0x7c25bb1dd0fb91c69664c461909161a14dee9782](https://etherscan.io/address/0x7c25bb1dd0fb91c69664c461909161a14dee9782)
Which is also an account controlled by Sablier Labs Ltd, the developer of the protocol.
## What can the pauser do?
The security of the Sablier protocol is our outmost priority. Our team, accompanied by [external auditors and consultants](https://certificate.quantstamp.com/view/sablier), has invested considerable effort to create a protocol that is safe and reliable, but we can’t rule out the possibility that there may be undiscovered vulnerabilities.
If a major bug is to be found, we will use the pauser account to set the “paused” property from “false” to “true”, which will break the following functions:
- [createStream](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/protocol%401.0.0/packages/protocol/contracts/Sablier.sol#L471)
- [withdrawFromStream](http://withdrawfromstream/)
**Now, it is of extraordinary importance to note that this does \*not\* make the Sablier protocol a custodial, and it neither means users have to trust us, because we \*cannot\* touch any of the funds sitting in the smart contract.**
We purposely left the [cancelStream](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/blob/%40sablier/protocol%401.0.0/packages/protocol/contracts/Sablier.sol#L634) outside of the pauser’s reach. As long as this function is free of bugs, any stream can be cancelled by either the sender or the recipient, a contract call that transfers all remaining funds back to both parties on a pro rata basis.
## Wrap Up
We think we found an equilibrium with Sablier v1. We sought to make it robust to errors but also retain its trustless and decentralised dimensions. Nonetheless, we can do better.
As we evolve as a company and find product/market fit, we may migrate the administrator keys to a community-managed DAO. It is likely though that, by then, Sablier v2 will be out, which will bring significant changes to the smart contract architecture.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
TL;DR use our web interfaces at app.sablier.com and app.sablier.com
Today, we’re excited to launch Sablier v1, the protocol for real-time finance
on Eth
ghostUuid: 918dd383-3ee0-4f1e-acd1-fbf7e61cfbdf
publishedAt: '2019-12-13'
slug: sablier-v1-0-is-live
tags:
- announcement
title: Sablier v1.0 is Live
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_502nVal4t02_RHF0biEVXA.png
metaDescription: >-
Experience real-time finance on Ethereum with Sablier v1.0, a protocol
designed for secure, seamless money streaming and decentralized payroll
solutions.
---
**TL;DR** use our web interfaces at [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) and [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/)
Today, we’re excited to launch Sablier v1, the protocol for real-time finance on Ethereum. This is a release for which we set a high bar for the user experience of our products and the security of our smart contracts.
## Brief History
The app launched in June 2019 was cute, but had several shortcomings:
- No mobile version
- Only compatible with MetaMask, which had to be enabled before the UI could load
- Many bugs caused by keeping the payer and the recipient’s interface under the same domain
- There was a bit of math involved in deciding how much money to deposit
Finally, but most importantly, the web interface did a poor job at making money streaming easy to use. We rolled up our sleeves and redesigned everything.
## The New Web Interfaces
Hosted at [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/) and [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/), in order to make a distinction between the web interface for streaming money and the one for receiving the streamed money.
Overall features:
- Responsive design, working on mobile and desktop
- Accessible via [MetaMask](https://medium.com/u/17995a9c1d1c?source=post_page-----5a5350db16ae--------------------------------), [Coinbase Wallet](https://medium.com/u/beeba73b6047?source=post_page-----5a5350db16ae--------------------------------) or any other wallet that accepts the WalletConnect protocol, such as [Trust Wallet](https://medium.com/u/d3191ca07046?source=post_page-----5a5350db16ae--------------------------------)
- Support for [DAI](https://etherscan.io/token/0x6b175474e89094c44da98b954eedeac495271d0f), [SAI](https://etherscan.io/address/0x89d24a6b4ccb1b6faa2625fe562bdd9a23260359), [USDC](https://etherscan.io/token/0xa0b86991c6218b36c1d19d4a2e9eb0ce3606eb48) and Compound’s [cDAI](https://etherscan.io/token/0x5d3a536E4D6DbD6114cc1Ead35777bAB948E3643) and [cUSDC](https://etherscan.io/token/0x39aa39c021dfbae8fac545936693ac917d5e7563)
- Streams are computed as a payment rate/ second_,_ so you don’t have to do any math anymore — just write your desired deposit amount and the streaming duration
## Payer’s Web Interface
A demo for how anyone in the world can start streaming money right away:
1. Go to [app.sablier.com](https://app.sablier.com/)
2. Sign in with your Ethereum wallet
3. Select a token from the list
4. Type an amount
5. Type an ENS domain or Ethereum address
6. Select a duration, e.g. 30 days
After the blockchain validates your transaction, you will be shown a payment link. Share this with the owner of the ENS domain/ Ethereum address from before.
Congratulations. You just on-boarded someone to real-time finance, probably for the first time in their life!
**Recipient’s Web Interface**
The receiving party doesn’t have to do much beyond using an Ethereum wallet. Here’s a demo for what they would be seeing the first time they open the app.
Note that the money is streamed to your Sablier wallet, not directly to your Ethereum address, which gets us to two borders that get filled in the white circle:
- The blue border = how much has been streamed from the beginning of the stream until now (1.47% in the demo)
- The orange border = how much money has been withdrawn to your Ethereum wallet from the Sablier contract (0% in the demo, which means no money had been withdrawn yet)
Having to submit a manual transaction to get the money to your Ethereum address is not terribly bad, but there’s room for improvement. We’re toying with a feature that automates these withdrawals for you. Stay tuned on [Twitter](https://x.com/Sablier)!
## A Different Kind of Payroll
These web interfaces combined make up a beautiful product for continuous, autonomous and trustless payroll. We’re dog-fooding it and using it to pay ourselves.
We believe in a future where:
- Paydays become a thing of the past by earning your salary in real-time
- The need for payday loans becomes greatly diminished
- You can verify you’re being paid and don’t have to trust your employer
- Organisations stop wasting billions of $ on accounting, invoicing and timestamping, where money streaming can do better
## Sablier, the Protocol
Our smart contracts have been [audited by Quantstamp](https://certificate.quantstamp.com/view/sablier) and [ConsenSys Diligence](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier/tree/audit-v1). Sablier depends on new technology that may contain undiscovered vulnerabilities; we encourage you to verify our contracts by yourself.
[GitHub - sablier-labs/v1-protocol: Core smart contracts of the Sablier V1 protocol](https://github.com/sablier-labs/v1-protocol)
The protocol is accessible via our branded web interfaces, but no one stops you from rolling your own. If you’re a wallet developer, we’d love to help you build a plugin for Sablier.
## Wrap Up
We couldn’t have built this without the huge support we received from MakerDAO, which awarded us a community grant in August 2019 to fund the development of Sablier v1. Thank you so much.
Similarly, we thank MetaCartel for their help with sourcing more user pilots. We [joined](https://medium.com/metacartel/metacartel-cohort-1-6336cdca05db) the 1st cohort of their programme in November 2019.
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
When you’re building a dapp for continuous salaries, writing accurate
time-dependent tests is a necessity. I recently learned how to do it the hard
way, bashing
ghostUuid: af932137-7723-4c85-adfb-74cbc6891cd9
publishedAt: '2019-08-10'
slug: writing-accurate-time-dependent-truffle-tests
tags:
- engineering
title: Writing Accurate Time-Dependent Truffle Tests
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_Lqr2IvZ5lDtNGctB-_ILIA.webp
metaDescription: >+
Learn to write precise time-dependent tests for Ethereum dApps using Truffle
by managing time manipulation effectively in your test cases.
---
[When you’re building a dapp for continuous salaries](https://sablier.app/), writing accurate time-dependent tests is a necessity. I recently learned how to do it the hard way, bashing my head against the wall, so I wrote this article to spare you the hassle.
I will further assume that:
1. Your testing framework is [Truffle](https://www.trufflesuite.com/), [Ganache](https://www.trufflesuite.com/ganache) + [Mocha](https://mochajs.org/).
2. You want to your tests to be as accurate as possible (<5 seconds error margin).
Manipulating time in tests written for Ethereum smart contracts comes with some gotchas.
## Gotcha #1: RPC
While it is totally possible to jump forwards and backwards in time in Ganache, there are multiple ways to achieve this. However, to get accurate results, you should use the `evm_mine` RPC method in the following way:
```json
{
"jsonrpc": "2.0",
"method": "evm_mine",
"params": ["NUMBER_OF_SECONDS"],
"id": 1
}
```
As a promise in Javascript:
```text
const advanceBlockAtTime = (time) => {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
web3.currentProvider.send(
{
jsonrpc: "2.0",
method: "evm_mine",
params: [time],
id: new Date().getTime(),
},
(err, _) => {
if (err) {
return reject(err);
}
const newBlockHash = web3.eth.getBlock("latest").hash;
return resolve(newBlockHash);
},
);
});
};
```
Notes:
1. Without the `NUMBER_OF_SECONDS` parameter, the RPC call increases only the block height but doesn’t jump in time.
2. The “id” parameter is optional but good to have. It doesn’t really matter what value you put in there while testing.
There is also `evm_increaseTime`, which increases the “internal clock” of Ganache so that whenever the next block is mined it has a timestamp offset. This adds overhead though:
```text
// Not what you want
advanceTimeAndBlock = async (time) => {
await advanceTime(time)
await advanceBlock()
return Promise.resolve(web3.eth.getBlock('latest'))
}
```
That’s right, you’d have to make two RPC calls, compared to only one with the first approach.
Props to
[Jakub Wojciechowski](https://medium.com/u/103291ad7b4c?source=post_page-----8febc827acb5--------------------------------)for coming up with[PR #13](https://github.com/trufflesuite/ganache-core/pull/13)for ganache-core. It would’ve been hard to write accurate tests without a deterministic and atomic way to jump in time in Ganache.
## Gotcha #2: Run Time
Code itself takes time to execute. Specifically, javascript promises take a non-negligible amount of time to resolve.
This is obvious, right? When writing time-dependent tests for Ethereum smart contracts, things get delicate.
Consider the following:
1. The time it takes for the test case to run
2. The amount of seconds you want to jump in the future
3. The unix timestamp for the moment when you submit `yarn run test` in your console
**Contingent on these variables, your test block may get caught in between the passage of one or more seconds, hence your assertions may break.**
For instance:
```text
describe("when the stream did start but not end", function() {
beforeEach(async function() {
await advanceBlockAtTime(
now
.plus(STANDARD_TIME_OFFSET)
.plus(5)
.toNumber(),
);
});
describe("when the withdrawal amount is within the available balance", function() {
const amount = new BigNumber(5).multipliedBy(1e18).toString(10);
it("makes the withdrawal", async function() {
const balance = await this.token.balanceOf(recipient);
await this.sablier.withdraw(streamId, amount, opts);
const newBalance = await this.token.balanceOf(recipient);
balance.should.be.bignumber.equal(newBalance.minus(amount));
});
});
});
```
What this does is that it calls the Sablier contract to withdraw a previously deposited wad of money. The rules that dictate how much the caller can withdraw are [specified in ERC-1620](https://github.com/ethereum/EIPs/issues/1620).
I expected the test to pass consistently, but I was wrong. So wrong. It started to break ~1 in 8 times and the thing I feared most happened, that is, non-deterministic variance.
I logged the unix timestamp in mocha’s `before` block and I measured how long it takes for the test to run using node’s [performance timing api](https://nodejs.org/api/perf_hooks.html):
```text
t0 1565455128964
Call to sablier.withdraw took 115.92673601210117 milliseconds.
1) makes the withdrawal
```
If you add 115 to 1565455128964, you end up with a number that ends with 9079, thus the number of seconds increases from 8 to 9. This is what broke the assertion, because I was expecting a balance of x, when I was actually getting x + 1 (more seconds passed = more money).
While it’s impossible to write a program P1 that can compute how long it takes for another program P2 to finish (see Turing’s Halting Problem), we could safely assume that no more than 1 second should pass between your `beforeEach` and `it` blocks. This is assuming the back and forth communication between your node instance and ganache is almost instantaneous, even when running coverage.
Here’s the fix:
```text
balance.should.bignumber.satisfy(function(num) {
return (
num.isEqualTo(newBalance.minus(amount)) || num.isEqualTo(newBalance.minus(amount).plus(ONE_UNIT))
);
});
```
Where `ONE_UNIT` is one monetary unit allocated per second, as per the Sablier model. It is imperfect, but way better than using a “greater than” or “less than” equality check.
Finally, as [the OpenZeppelin team argues here](https://github.com/OpenZeppelin/openzeppelin-test-helpers/blob/master/src/time.js), you might not need this level of precision. If your dapp doesn’t involve timestamps or block numbers directly, tolerating larger chronological offsets is perfectly fine. Nonetheless, it’s good to be aware of run time.
## Gotcha #3: BeforeEach and AfterEach
Your mileage may vary, but you may want to jump **forwards** in “beforeEach” and jump **backwards** in “afterEach”. This is because your contract might have some variables defined in the scope of the “describe” block and you want to run a sequential set of “it” blocks that all assume the same state. Not reverting back in “afterEach” would only increase the timestamp forever.
Example:
```text
describe("when the stream did start but not end", function() {
const amount = new BigNumber(5).multipliedBy(1e18).toString(10);
beforeEach(async function() {
await web3.utils.advanceBlockAtTime(
now
.plus(STANDARD_TIME_OFFSET)
.plus(5)
.toNumber(),
);
});
it("test1", function() {});
it("test2", function() {});
it("test3", function() {});
afterEach(async function() {
await web3.utils.advanceBlockAtTime(now.toNumber());
});
});
```
As you can see in the snippet above, we have three tests in which we assume the amount withdrawn is 5. In the context of Sablier, advancing in time 15 seconds would yield a withdrawable amount of 15, thus we have to go back to the original state in the “afterEach” block.
## Gotcha #4: Snapshots
While truffle provides its own [clean-room environment](https://www.trufflesuite.com/docs/truffle/testing/testing-your-contracts#clean-room-environment), it’s not a bad idea to implement your own snapshotting mechanism. That is, going back to the original state after all tests are done. It may be helpful in CI or other external environments.
```text
takeSnapshot = async () => {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
web3.currentProvider.send(
{
jsonrpc: "2.0",
method: "evm_snapshot",
id: new Date().getTime(),
},
(err, snapshotId) => {
if (err) {
return reject(err);
}
return resolve(snapshotId);
},
);
});
};
revertToSnapshot = async (id) => {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
web3.currentProvider.send(
{
jsonrpc: "2.0",
method: "evm_revert",
params: [id],
id: new Date().getTime(),
},
(err, result) => {
if (err) {
return reject(err);
}
return resolve(result);
},
);
});
};
```
Define those functions in your codebase and then insert this in one of your root test files:
```text
let snapshot;
let snapshotId;
before(async () => {
snapshot = await takeSnapshot();
snapshotId = snapshot.result;
});
after(async () => {
await revertToSnapshot(snapshotId);
});
```
Voilà, now your blockchain will revert to its original timestamp after all magical time jumpings.
## Wrap Up
Some of the bits and pieces used throughout this article are inspired or taken from other writings, such as [Ethan Wessel](https://medium.com/u/7cbea9b40fa3?source=post_page-----8febc827acb5--------------------------------)’s amazing [Standing the Time of Test with Truffle](https://medium.com/fluidity/standing-the-time-of-test-b906fcc374a9). ̶T̶h̶e̶ ̶o̶n̶l̶y̶ ̶c̶a̶v̶e̶a̶t̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶a̶r̶t̶i̶c̶l̶e̶ ̶i̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶u̶s̶a̶g̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶b̶o̶t̶h̶ ̶e̶v̶m̶\_̶m̶i̶n̶e̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶e̶v̶m̶\_̶i̶n̶c̶r̶e̶a̶s̶e̶T̶i̶m̶e̶,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶w̶e̶ ̶e̶x̶p̶l̶a̶i̶n̶e̶d̶ ̶a̶b̶o̶v̶e̶ ̶w̶h̶y̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶i̶s̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶i̶d̶e̶a̶l̶.̶
**Update:** [**Ethan**](https://medium.com/u/4ba156f9698?source=post_page-----8febc827acb5--------------------------------) was really cool and he updated his post and [ganache-time-traveler](https://www.npmjs.com/package/ganache-time-traveler) package with a few methods that use `evm_mine` as indicated in this article.
Also, [here’s a very good StackExchange thread](https://ethereum.stackexchange.com/questions/413/can-a-contract-safely-rely-on-block-timestamp) on the inherent security of `block.timestamp` and some GitHub threads that shed some light on the history of deterministic time jumping in Ganache ([1](https://github.com/trufflesuite/ganache-cli/issues/463) and [2](https://github.com/trufflesuite/ganache-core/pull/13)).
Thanks for reading! More on Sablier:
- Website: [https://sablier.app](https://sablier.app/)
- Twitter: [https://x.com/Sablier](https://x.com/Sablier)
- Telegram: [https://t.me/sablier](https://t.me/sablier)
- GitHub: [https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier)
If you want to get in touch personally, I’m on [Twitter](https://twiter.com/PaulRBerg) and [Keybase](https://keybase.io/PaulRBerg).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
We’re excited to announce that we raised a grant from MakerDAO to take our
endeavours further. We will use the funds to expand the team and ship a
beautiful mob
ghostUuid: b87c98e5-6198-41c4-8a37-4c2f600f9bc9
publishedAt: '2019-08-08'
slug: big-day-for-sablier-we-raised-a-grant
tags:
- announcement
title: 'Big Day for Sablier: We Raised a Grant'
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_Jq7WBxpWYy5hxtmpQFaP6w.png
metaDescription: >-
Sablier raised a grant from MakerDAO to enhance team expansion and develop a
mobile-first dapp for real-time salary streaming on Ethereum.
---
We’re excited to announce that we raised a grant from [MakerDAO](https://medium.com/u/743224aba00c?source=post_page-----bde00a9a31e3--------------------------------) to take our endeavours further. We will use the funds to expand the team and ship a beautiful mobile-first dapp for continuous salaries.
The grant package includes a smart contract security audit from a top security firm in the industry, but we will get an additional pair of eyes to inspect the codebase. More information on this over the following months.
## Context
[We announced Sablier in early June](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1134773451888238592) and people’s reactions took us by surprise in a very positive way:
> Streaming money on Ethereum
>
> Guys wake up. The future of money is happening on Ethereum right now [https://t.co/SViSTcsZAO](https://t.co/SViSTcsZAO)
>
> — RYAN SΞAN ADAMS - rsa.eth (@RyanSAdams) [June 3, 2019](https://twitter.com/RyanSAdams/status/1135517120840835072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> I dunno about you, but I'm looking forward to a future where you can get paid in real-time rather than every 2 weeks [https://t.co/Oc9ugaxwon](https://t.co/Oc9ugaxwon)
>
> — Cooper (@cooper\_kunz) [June 2, 2019](https://twitter.com/cooper_kunz/status/1135017319866880000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
We were also happy to see the community coming up with new use cases for Sablier and the general concept of [money streaming](https://github.com/ethereum/EIPs/issues/1620):
> undercollateralized lending in defi might be a while away but certainly not an unsolvable problem
>
> combine something like @SablierApp with [@3boxdb](https://twitter.com/3boxdb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) and zero knowledge range proofs
>
> — Matteo Leibowitz (@teo\_leibowitz) [July 23, 2019](https://twitter.com/teo_leibowitz/status/1153783858044604416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> Why aren't we all advocating for daily payroll?
>
> I ran the numbers over 1 yr with hypothetical $100K salary, using average APR for [$DAI](https://twitter.com/search?q=%24DAI&src=ctag&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) across [@compoundfinance](https://twitter.com/compoundfinance?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [@Dharma\_HQ](https://twitter.com/Dharma_HQ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [@dydxprotocol](https://twitter.com/dydxprotocol?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) (13.48%).
>
> Of course, model makes some unsustainable assumptions but fascinating nonetheless. [pic.twitter.com/S4Ms3QlqtR](https://t.co/S4Ms3QlqtR)
>
> — Ash Egan (@AshAEgan) [July 28, 2019](https://twitter.com/AshAEgan/status/1155293332127399936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
## Talking with Users
Now, it wasn’t all sunshine and roses. Some users didn’t like the fact that the beta doesn’t have a mobile version, while others found the [deposit page](https://imgur.com/gX1otyj) rather counter-intuitive.
The major limiting factor though was the inability to use Sablier from the comfort of a multisig wallet. Most organisations store money in a wallet secured by several stakeholders’ keys. We must adjust for this.
We greatly appreciate and encourage this sort of feedback and criticism. Building a great product is an iterative, experimental process. Please do [reach out](https://t.me/sablier) if you want to report anything.
Also, to be the first one to have access to Sablier 1.0, [sign up here](https://sablier.app/)!
## Wrap-Up
Sablier’s mission is to give everyone instant access to their income and make the payday loan industry obsolete, while remaining fully decentralised by virtue of being built on Ethereum and using stablecoins like DAI.
This is just the beginning! Stay tuned below for more updates:
- Website: [https://sablier.app](https://sablier.app/)
- Twitter: [https://x.com/Sablier](https://x.com/Sablier)
- Telegram: [https://t.me/sablier](https://t.me/sablier)
- GitHub: [https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier)
If you want to get in touch personally, I’m on [Twitter](https://twiter.com/PaulRBerg) and [Keybase](https://keybase.io/PaulRBerg).
---
---
---
---
authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
In this article, we explore the long-term vision for Sablier. We’re going to
walk through the rationale behind the initial focus on continuous salaries and
how
ghostUuid: bad2df12-e0c2-4262-a155-93c972a4296c
publishedAt: '2019-06-15'
slug: making-money-flow
tags:
- meta
title: Making Money Flow
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_gYUQGW559O_6kf2n0ScHSg.png
metaDescription: >-
Sablier envisions a future of continuous, instant payrolls through Ethereum
smart contracts, reshaping how salaries and payments flow seamlessly over
time.
---
In this article, we explore the long-term vision for Sablier.
We’re going to walk through the rationale behind the initial focus on continuous salaries and how we plan to leverage that in the future.
## Tweaking the Mental Model
Employers shoot us a pay check once every so often — two weeks in the US and one month in Europe or Asia. This led society to imagine money as a collection of discrete payments.
We believe that makes for a highly inefficient payment system.
**Salaries should be paid continuously and instantly available for employees to withdraw as they’re going to work.**
When I arrived in the UK and started my job as a blockchain engineer at [AZTEC](https://aztecprotocol.com/), I had to open up my [Compound](https://medium.com/u/70eaed7677f9?source=post_page-----f1d18330cd20--------------------------------) savings account to pay for the following:
1. First month of rent and an initial deposit as guarantee for the landlord
2. Day-to-day costs
Ideally, I should’ve been able to withdraw a little bit of money once every so often to pay for my living costs and also redistribute a fraction of my incoming “stream” towards the landlord.
Humankind has been using [cash and various other forms of physical money](https://nakamotoinstitute.org/shelling-out/) for so long that it got everyone entrenched in an archaic mental model.
Thanks to Ethereum and smart contracts, we can do better.
## MONIAC
The Monetary National Income Analogue Computer (MONIAC) is a hydro-mechanical machine created in 1949 by Bill Phillips to model the economy of the United Kingdom.
He used water to portray the continuous flow of money — which is, in fact, money’s natural state.
**Across salaries, consumer expenditure, investment funds and government spending, there’s only one property that gracefully connects all of them: time.**
Time dictates people’s net worth. And tax duties. And interest rates. Why don’t we let it do its job?
Kudos to Bill and the [Reserve Bank of New Zealand](https://twitter.com/reservebankofnz) for envisioning Sablier before it was cool:
## The Rise of the Stablecoins
Stablecoins such as [MakerDAO](https://medium.com/u/743224aba00c?source=post_page-----f1d18330cd20--------------------------------)’s DAI rose like a phoenix after the market crash of 2018.
They are one of the hottest trends in crypto — and rightly so, bringing the stability of fiat currencies to the digital world of blockchains will unlock a lot of untapped potential.
How are they different to fiat currency and why are they important to our goal of making money flow?
For one, the cost of settlement is stupendously low — we are international from day one and can do business across borders with almost no fee.
Then, the vast majority of people wouldn’t accept their salary paid in a volatile currency such as Ether or Bitcoin (there are of course exceptions).
At the moment, Sablier works with [DAI](https://makerdao.com/en/dai/), [USDC](https://www.coinbase.com/usdc) and [GUSD](https://gemini.com/dollar/), but we’re looking forward to integrating with more stablecoins. Feel free to [get in touch](https://x.com/Sablier) if you want to chat about yours!
## The Sablier Economy
Inspired by MONIAC and capitalising on the rise of the stablecoins, the first chapter of the Sablier story will be about continuous salaries.
Our mission is to grant employees instant access to earnings as they’re going to work — everything done trustlessly via Ethereum smart contracts.
That said, for the long haul, the vision is a bit more nuanced.
Once salaries become streams, we can use them as **collateral** for other applications.
- Freelancing
- Subscriptions
- Taxes
- Consultancy (lawyers, doctors)
- Rent
- Car parking
Our ape CPUs would benefit immensely from using this kind of payment system.
**We could abstract away recurring payments, as the Sablier smart contracts could automate and even net them out.**
Let’s imagine the following scenario:
1. Alice pays Bob every month
2. Bob pays Carol every month
3. Carol pays David every moth
4. David pays Alice every month
Fiat money is not programmable and certainly not interoperable, so Alice, Bob, Carol and David all have to manage these recurrent payments manually now — or, if the local jurisdiction allows that, trust a bank with a direct debit.
With Sablier, there won’t even be 4 discrete payments, but rather only 1 stream that distributes the deposit to 4 people based on their pre-defined rate of payment.
This is particularly cool if everyone pays the same amount, because the stream becomes stale (i.e. nobody has to pay anyone else anymore) until one of the participants interrupts it.
For more discussions around chains of payments, check out this [Twitter thread](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1137441744369401861).
## Reach Out
We hope you enjoyed reading about our long-term vision. We’d love to get in touch if you’re interested in what we’re doing!
- Website: [https://www.sablier.com](https://sablier.app/)
- Twitter: [https://x.com/Sablier](https://x.com/Sablier)
- Telegram: [https://t.me/sablier](https://t.me/sablier)
- GitHub: [https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier)
If you want to get in touch personally, I’m on [Twitter](https://twiter.com/PaulRBerg) and [Keybase](https://keybase.io/PaulRBerg).
Peace out ✌️
---
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authors:
- prb
excerpt: >-
Update: this is an old article that refers to an old release of Sablier. See
Introducing Sablier V2 and our launch thread on Twitter. I recently announced
the l
ghostUuid: dd5d14b6-0ebd-4782-9bd6-802c5edfb96c
publishedAt: '2019-06-02'
slug: introducing-sablier-continuous-salaries-on-ethereum
tags:
- announcement
title: 'Introducing Sablier: Continuous Salaries on Ethereum'
updatedAt: '2024-09-23'
featureImage: /content/images/2023/09/1_QHz2yZHhBv3sbSuvfFTOwA.png
metaDescription: >-
Sablier enables continuous, real-time salary payments on Ethereum, providing
flexible, instant access to earnings via blockchain technology.
---
**Update:** this is an old article that refers to an old release of Sablier. See [Introducing Sablier V2](https://medium.com/sablier/introducing-sablier-v2-b72f1aa7e458) and our [launch thread on Twitter](https://x.com/Sablier/status/1679567031795056645).
I recently [announced the launch of Sablier on Twitter](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1134773451888238592) and I was delighted to see the response of the Ethereum community:
> This is awesome. I'm thinking of asking clients to pay us by the minute or hour [@deepwork\_studio](https://twitter.com/deepwork_studio?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw). Q: could they cancel a continuous payment in progress? For example, we offer them a security that if we don't hit a milestone they can cancel at any time...
>
> — Charlie Ellington (@charlie\_surf89) [June 2, 2019](https://twitter.com/charlie_surf89/status/1135198640962789376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> I dunno about you, but I'm looking forward to a future where you can get paid in real-time rather than every 2 weeks [https://t.co/Oc9ugaxwon](https://t.co/Oc9ugaxwon)
>
> — Cooper (@cooper\_kunz) [June 2, 2019](https://twitter.com/cooper_kunz/status/1135017319866880000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
I feel we should provide a bit more context on why we’re building this and what are some interesting use cases.
## First things first
### What is Sablier?
An Ethereum dApp that you can start [using](https://www.sablier.com/) today to pay your employees continuously_._ You make a one-off deposit and then the contract starts “allocating” the funds to the employee at a rate you set in advance.
Why is this helpful? Maybe they need the money for a personal urgency. Or they have to [pay rent](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1135107776793972736). Or they just moved to the big city, need food and wouldn’t open up their savings account.
[Sablier](https://sablier.app/) is about providing insurance and optionality.
If you’re an employee wanting to use our dApp, please [reach out](https://x.com/Sablier) so we can get in touch with your employer.
### What do you mean by “continuously”?
The first version of the dApp allows users to select one of the pre-defined intervals from below. There is no constraint though, we can easily expand to other fixed intervals or even custom values.
### How do you measure time?
The trick is to use the so-called [block time average](https://etherscan.io/chart/blocktime) as a time proxy. On Ethereum, blocks are broadcast once every ~15 seconds, which makes 1 minute to be the equivalent of 4 blocks.
If you want to see the implementation, check out our [open-source repository](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier).
### Can the payer get their money back?
Indeed, they can at any time before the end of the stream! Read this [tweet](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1135220695351353345) for more information.
### Is it safe?
We can’t be evil. The backend of [Sablier](https://sablier.app/) is composed strictly of trustless smart contracts deployed on Ethereum Mainnet. Check them out on [Etherscan](https://etherscan.io/address/0x45f918d15d58e38a41a712798a0b9e5ab7d81dd7).
They have been audited using [MythX](https://medium.com/u/1ed8be629bde?source=post_page-----c2bf04446d31--------------------------------). You can inspect the report [here](https://github.com/SablierApp/sablier/blob/%40sablier/contracts%400.0.1/packages/contracts/truffle-security-report.txt).
## Use Cases
### Payroll
We are currently focused on payroll, as I believe there is huge untapped potential in using crypto to pay salaries.
In spite of all the hype that blockchain had over the last years, most companies still prefer using a bank account for paying their employees (even for remote workers).
That made sense, until of now:
- Stablecoins such as [MakerDAO](https://medium.com/u/743224aba00c?source=post_page-----c2bf04446d31--------------------------------)’s DAI rose like a phoenix after the market crash of 2018
- Many easy to use fiat on-ramps for those stablecoins ([Circle Team](https://medium.com/u/d7b292505fc?source=post_page-----c2bf04446d31--------------------------------), [Wyre](https://medium.com/u/eaf6087c3e95?source=post_page-----c2bf04446d31--------------------------------))
- Regulatory uncertainty slowly faded away, as more countries updated their stance on crypto and more [legal services startups](https://www.producthunt.com/posts/atrium) popped up
Finally, projects like [Sablier](https://sablier.app/) provide an extra incentive for companies to switch to a crypto-native solution and provide optionality to their employees.
Other Use Cases
In the original [tweet storm](https://twitter.com/PaulRBerg/status/1134773451888238592), I talked about how it’s up to you to decide what to use our product for.
We do focus on companies and employees and payroll, but the beauty of decentralised applications is that you can start using them **right away** without trusting or asking us for permission.
Here are some interesting applications:
- Freelancing
- Subscriptions
- Taxes
- Consultancy (lawyers, doctors)
- Rent
- Car parking
Please let us know if you used [Sablier](https://sablier.app/) for any of the use cases above — or anything else that’s non-obvious!
## Reach out
- Website: [https://www.sablier.com](https://sablier.app/)
- Twitter: [https://x.com/Sablier](https://x.com/Sablier)
- Telegram: [https://t.me/sablier](https://t.me/sablier)
- GitHub: [https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier](https://github.com/sablier-labs/sablier)
If you want to get in touch personally, I’m on [Twitter](https://twiter.com/PaulRBerg) and [Keybase](https://keybase.io/PaulRBerg).
Peace out ✌️
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