NEAR Protocol Seeks Second Token Issuance Reduction

NEAR Protocol is considering another reduction in its token issuance rate, this time to 1.6% over two years. The proposal, put forth by Sal Ternullo, CEO of SVRN, would lower the network's maximum annual issuance rate from 2.5%. This change could keep approximately 66 million NEAR tokens out of circulation, equivalent to about $329 million at current prices.

The reduction in token issuance would be phased in over 24 months through small increments every epoch. The plan keeps the existing distribution of new supply intact, with stakers receiving 90% and the remaining 10% flowing to the treasury. There is also a 90-day grace period built in for wallets, staking providers, and other ecosystem players to adjust before the changes take effect.

The design includes guardrails to prevent sudden reversals of policy. Governance could pause the reduction mid-schedule but not reverse course and push issuance back up. This change would likely reduce projected staking yields from about 5.4% to 3.5%, impacting validators and staking providers.