# Tokenomics

CANTO is the native token of the Canto network. It is used to pay gas fees for transactions and can also be [staked with validators](https://docs.canto.io/user-guides/staking) to help secure the network.

At genesis, the initial total supply of CANTO is 1,000,000,000 (one billion) tokens. Of this, the initial circulating supply of CANTO is 150,000,000 (one-hundred and fifty million) tokens.

## Token Distribution

The initial circulating supply of CANTO tokens is allocated as follows:

* **130,000,000 CANTO (13%) for initial contributors**
* **20,000,000 CANTO (2%)** **for Settlers of Canto** who took part in the launch of the testnet

The remaining total supply of CANTO is allocated as follows, pursuant to governance votes:

* **450,000,000 CANTO (45%) for long-term liquidity mining** to be distributed over the next 5-10 years
* **350,000,000 CANTO (35%) for medium-term liquidity mining** to be distributed over the upcoming months and years
* **50,000,000 CANTO (5%) for future public goods grants**

## Inflation

In order to maintain the security of the Canto network, the total max supply of CANTO inflates over time at a rate that is constantly decreasing. All tokens from inflation are distributed to CANTO stakers, proportionally to their stake in the network.

Early Canto contributors propose these emissions be structured in 30 day periods, with rewards distributed daily:

* For the first 30 day period, CANTO will inflate at a 19.84% APR.
* For subsequent periods, governance will vote to adjust emissions as appropriate.

Over time, the inflation of CANTO should tend to zero.


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.canto.io/technical-reference/token-economics.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.