Concept Library | TokenIntel

Tokenomics & Value Accrual

13

How tokens capture value, supply mechanics, vesting, and fee models.

Bitcoin Halving Cycles & Supply Dynamics Understanding Bitcoin halving cycles, supply shocks, miner economics, and historical price patterns. Learn how the 210,000-block reward sche… ERC Token Standards Explained A comprehensive guide to Ethereum token standards including ERC-20, ERC-721, ERC-1155, and ERC-4626. Understand how token interfaces work an… Fundamental Factor Investing in Crypto How on-chain fundamentals like DAU growth, revenue quality, and MC/Fees valuation predict which crypto tokens outperform. Factor constructio… Restaking & EigenLayer Risks Understanding restaking, EigenLayer, and the compounding risks of using staked ETH to secure additional protocols. Slashing exposure, LRT ri… RWA Risk Checklist: How to Evaluate Tokenized Assets Practical due diligence checklist for evaluating tokenized real-world assets, onchain lending, and RWA protocols. Yield red flags, custody r… Token Buybacks Explained Understand token buybacks: what they are, when they make sense, the debate around them, and alternatives. A guide to this increasingly popul… Token Generation Events (TGE): Red Flags, Supply Dynamics & Investor Playbook How to evaluate tokens at launch. Understand TGE supply/demand dynamics, low float traps, market maker risks, and the red flags that separat… Token Vesting and Supply Dynamics Understanding token vesting schedules, supply overhang, cliff events, and how unlock calendars impact price. Essential knowledge for crypto … Tokenization & Real World Assets (RWAs) Explained Understand how tokenization is bringing real-world assets on-chain. From treasuries to private credit, learn how RWAs are bridging TradFi an… Tokenomics Frameworks & Valuation Master tokenomics analysis: token vs equity, valuation frameworks, supply mechanics, allocation benchmarks, and vesting schedules explained. Value Accrual Empirics: which mechanisms actually work? TokenIntel Vote Understand how vote-escrow and ve(3,3) models align incentives in DeFi. The mechanism behind Curve, Velodrome, Aerodrome, and other leading … Why Token Holders Are Not Shareholders Crypto tokens are not equity. Holders have no legal claim on protocol profits, no enforceable governance rights, and no liquidation priority…

Valuation Frameworks

5

TI-original and adapted frameworks for valuing crypto assets.

Crypto Custody Fundamentals Complete guide to crypto custody: how private keys work, self-custody vs exchange custody, hardware wallets, institutional solutions, and le… Eligibility A disciplined version of P/S for tokens: only count the market cap of supply eligible to receive cashflow against the cashflow it actually r… Impermanent Loss Explained Understanding impermanent loss in DeFi liquidity provision. Learn the math behind IL, how it compares to fee revenue, concentrated liquidity… Protocol Revenue Frameworks Understand crypto protocol revenue: fees vs revenue, active vs passive claims, P/S ratios, and how to analyze sustainable protocol economics… Valuing Layer 1 Blockchains Understand frameworks for valuing L1 blockchains: why DCFs fall short, demand-based valuation, monetary premium, and fee capture dynamics.

Lending & Money Markets

12

Lending architectures, vaults, curators, and money-market dynamics.

Crypto Market Makers Explained Understand how crypto market makers work: bid-ask spreads, liquidity provision, major firms like Wintermute and GSR, business models, and th… DeFi Money Markets Explained Understand DeFi lending and borrowing: how Aave and Compound work, interest rate models, liquidation mechanics, risks, and key metrics for e… Euler V2 Explained Understand Euler V2: the Euler Vault Kit (EVK), Ethereum Vault Connector (EVC), nested vaults, synthetic assets, and how it compares to Morp… Flash Loans Explained How flash loans work: uncollateralized borrowing in a single transaction, use cases for arbitrage and liquidations, attack vectors, and $300… Leverage, Margin & Liquidation Mechanics Understanding leverage, margin requirements, liquidation prices, and position management for crypto trading. Learn how cross margin, isolate… Liquidation Cascades Explained How liquidation cascades work in crypto markets: margin mechanics, cascade dynamics, insurance funds, auto-deleveraging, and what they mean … Modular Lending & Morpho Explained Understand modular lending protocols: Morpho Blue isolated markets, MetaMorpho vaults, risk curation, and how modular design solves DeFi len… Monolithic, Modular, and CeDeFi: The Three Architectures of Onchain Lending Unified pools, modular isolated markets, and vertically integrated CeDeFi credit platforms serve different parts of the risk spectrum. How t… The Curator Economy: Onchain Asset Management Explained A specialist class manages DeFi Under How DeFi lending protocols like Maple Finance, Goldfinch, TrueFi, and Clearpool enable under-collateralized and uncollateralized loans throu… Understanding DeFi Vaults Learn how DeFi vaults work, from yield aggregators to lending vaults and the ERC-4626 standard. Understand the risks and opportunities in va… Vault Credit Risk: Five Metrics for Measuring What a Vault Can Lose A depositor

Risk & Security

8

Smart-contract risk, oracle risk, systemic risk, centralization, and protocol safety.

Bitcoin and Quantum Computing Understand the quantum computing threat to Bitcoin: what DeFi Security Deep Dive Comprehensive DeFi security guide: smart contract vulnerabilities, frontend exploits, liquidation attacks, risk rating frameworks, and how t… DeFi Systemic Risk & Contagion How DeFi contagion cascades work: the Terra-to-FTX chain, composability risk, network fragility, and lessons from $2 trillion in losses. Und… Finality & Settlement Risk Understanding blockchain finality: probabilistic vs deterministic, reorg risks, settlement guarantees, and why finality matters for capital … Government Monetary Risk: When States Rewrite the Rules How governments freeze deposits, confiscate assets, demonetize cash, and impose capital controls, and what it means for crypto holders. Oracle Risk Explained Understanding oracle risks in DeFi: price manipulation attacks, TWAP vs Chainlink, flash loan exploits, and how to evaluate oracle security. Smart Contract Security Explained Understand smart contract security fundamentals: what audits are, why audited contracts still get hacked, and the layers of security beyond … Understanding DeFi Yield and Risk Learn why yield is a risk signal in DeFi. Understand the cash-to-risk spectrum, the onchain risk-free rate, and how to evaluate any DeFi yie…

Governance

3

DAO structures, voting, proposals, multisigs, and decision-making models.

DAO Governance Explained Understand how DAOs work, why decentralized governance matters, and the key mechanisms that power on-chain decision-making. A beginner-frien… DAO Voting Mechanisms Explained Compare quadratic voting, conviction voting, futarchy, and other DAO voting systems. Understand the tradeoffs between different governance m… Futarchy: Prediction Market Governance How futarchy uses prediction markets for governance: vote on values, bet on beliefs. MetaDAO rollout, advantages over token voting, and prac…

DeFi Mechanics & Strategy

9

AMMs, perps, derivatives, MEV, yield, intents, and DeFi-native primitives.

AMM Mechanics Explained How Automated Market Makers work: constant product formula, liquidity provision, impermanent loss, concentrated liquidity, and AMM security … DeFi GTM & TVL Bootstrapping How DeFi protocols launch: go-to-market strategies, TVL bootstrapping, pre-deposit vaults, yield syndicates, risk curators, and lessons from… DeFi Intents Explained Understand intent-based trading: how solvers, RFQs, and intent protocols work. CoWSwap, UniswapX, 1inch Fusion, and the future of decentrali… Institutional DeFi Explained Understanding institutional DeFi: the custody trilemma, MPC vs multisig, prime brokerage, yield infrastructure, compliance frameworks, and s… MEV Explained Understand Maximum Extractable Value: sandwich attacks, frontrunning, arbitrage, Flashbots, L2 MEV, and how MEV affects your transactions an… Open Interest Analysis How to analyze open interest as a derivatives market indicator. Understanding OI divergence patterns, their connection to liquidation cascad… Perpetual Futures Explained Understand perpetual futures: funding rates, leverage mechanics, liquidations, and how crypto perps differ from traditional futures. Complet… Prediction Markets Explained Understand how crypto prediction markets work: Polymarket, Kalshi, Azuro mechanics, order books vs AMMs, sports vs politics, and the future … The Solver Field in Intent Who actually fills your swap on CoW Swap, 1inch Fusion, or UniswapX? A framework for understanding the bifurcation between market-maker and …

Stablecoins & Real-World Assets

4

Stablecoin models, RWA tokenization, treasury bills on-chain.

Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) Explained Understanding Digital Asset Treasuries: the Strategy/MSTR model, premium to NAV mechanics, convertible debt, BTC yield, valuation frameworks… Ethena & USDe Explained Understanding Ethena Stablecoins: The Complete Guide Master stablecoins: types, mechanisms, risks, yield-bearing stables, GENIUS Act regulation, and the $300B market reshaping global payments. The RWA Composability Framework Tokenized AUM is not the same as composable AUM. A framework for thinking about which real-world assets actually get used inside DeFi, why, …

Infrastructure & Layer-1/2

11

Consensus, rollups, bridges, data availability, EVM, and scaling.

Bitcoin Mining Economics & Difficulty Adjustment Understanding Bitcoin mining economics, hash rate, difficulty adjustment, miner profitability, and the cost-of-production model. A fundament… Blockchain Forks Explained Soft forks vs hard forks: what they are, how they work, famous examples like Bitcoin Cash and SegWit, and what forks mean for your investmen… Consensus Mechanisms Explained Understand blockchain consensus: Proof of Work vs Proof of Stake vs BFT. Security tradeoffs, attack vectors, finality types, and how validat… Cross How blockchain interoperability works: bridges, messaging protocols, token standards (OFT, xERC20), and the $2.87B in bridge hacks reshaping… Data Availability Explained Understanding data availability: why it matters for rollups, how DAS works, Celestia vs EigenDA comparison, and the modular blockchain thesi… HTTP 402 & x402: The Payment Protocol for AI Agents Understand how HTTP 402 and the x402 protocol enable native internet payments and micropayments for AI agents using stablecoins. L1 Investment Scorecard: ETH vs SOL vs BNB vs HYPE A standardized eight-dimension fundamentals framework for evaluating Layer 1 assets as investments. Scoring Ethereum, Solana, BNB Chain, and… Layer 3 Scaling & Aggregation Layers Understanding L3 blockchains, rollup business models, L3 vs aggregated L2 architecture, and Polygon AggLayer. Comprehensive guide to scaling… Lightning Network & Bitcoin Layer 2s How the Lightning Network enables instant, near-free Bitcoin payments through off-chain payment channels. Understanding Bitcoin On Learn how to read on-chain data for crypto investing. MVRV ratio, SOPR, long-term holder supply, exchange flows, whale watching, and network… Parallelized EVM Explained Understanding parallel blockchain execution: Monad, Sei v2, Solana Sealevel, Aptos Block-STM. State models, optimistic vs deterministic para…

Trading & Market Structure

1

Market makers, order books, leverage, funding rates, and execution venues.

Funding Rates as a Market Indicator How to read crypto funding rates as a market sentiment indicator. Understanding funding rate mechanics, historical patterns at regime transi…

Cycle & Macro Strategy

3

Market regime, cycle position, thesis discipline, and portfolio construction.

Alt Season vs. BTC Dominance: When to Rotate & When to Wait Understand the capital rotation cycle between Bitcoin and altcoins. Learn to use the TOTAL3/BTC ratio, BTC dominance, and the risk cascade f… Crypto ETPs Explained: 6 Types Every Investor Should Know A complete guide to the 6 types of crypto Exchange Traded Products (ETPs): spot, futures, leveraged, index, staking, and active. Understand … Crypto Portfolio Diversification & Correlation How to diversify a crypto portfolio effectively when most tokens are highly correlated. Position sizing frameworks, drawdown management, and…

AI, DePIN & Emerging

6

Crypto-AI intersections, decentralized infrastructure, and forward-looking primitives.

AI Agents in Crypto Comprehensive guide to AI agents in crypto: how they differ from bots, agent frameworks (ELIZA, G.A.M.E, ZerePy), launchpads (Virtuals, ai16… Decentralized AI Training Explained Understand how decentralized training works, why it matters for AI development, and the technical innovations making it possible. A beginner… Decentralized Compute Explained Understand how decentralized compute networks work, why GPU infrastructure matters for AI, and the crypto x AI investment thesis. A beginner… DePIN Explained Understand Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks: tokenomics models, evaluation frameworks, key sectors (compute, telecom, energy),… Privacy Tech: TEE, FHE & MPC Explained Understand blockchain privacy technologies: Trusted Execution Environments, Fully Homomorphic Encryption, and Multi-Party Computation compar… Smart Wallets & Account Abstraction Comprehensive guide to smart wallets and account abstraction: ERC-4337, key management, social recovery, gas sponsorship, session keys, and …

Other Frameworks

3

Standalone concepts that span multiple categories.

Reading TVL: when the headline number lies TVL is the most-cited metric in DeFi and the most distortion-prone. A practical guide to telling real economic activity from manufactured nu… Technical Analysis Basics for Crypto Learn the fundamentals of technical analysis for cryptocurrency markets. Candlestick charts, support and resistance, moving averages, moment… Zero Understand zero-knowledge proofs: what they are, how SNARKs and STARKs differ, and why ZK technology matters for blockchain scaling and priv…