Time-locked Voting

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Pronunciation

[time-lokt voh-ting]

Analogy

Think of time-locked voting as placing your votes in a time capsule, unlocking greater influence the longer you wait.

Definition

A governance mechanism where holders lock their tokens for a defined period to gain voting power that increases with the lock duration.

Key Points Intro

Time-locked voting aligns long-term commitment with governance influence.

Key Points

Lockup period: tokens are non-transferable until expiry

Vote weight: often scales linearly or exponentially with duration

Withdrawal restrictions: early unlock may incur penalties

Incentive alignment: rewards long-term stakeholders

Example

Curve DAO’s veCRV model locks CRV tokens for up to four years, granting boosted voting power to long-term holders.

Technical Deep Dive

Vote-escrow contracts track lock start, end timestamps, and compute voting power via piecewise functions. Unlock functions enforce .timestamp checks. Penalty modules can or redistribute tokens for early withdrawal.

Security Warning

Long lockups can centralize power among early adopters and reduce governance flexibility.

Caveat

Illiquid locked tokens may disenfranchise participants needing early access to funds.

Related Terms

Governance Token

Blockchain & Cryptocurrency Glossary

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