When it comes to cryptocurrency projects, there's always one unavoidable question: how well is the token economic model designed? Walrus Protocol's $WAL token has recently attracted a lot of attention because its design approach is somewhat unique.

Let's first look at the distribution plan. With a total supply of 5 billion, over 60% is allocated to ecosystem participants—this proportion is indeed significant. Of this, 10% is dedicated to user airdrops (4% already distributed, with an additional 6%), and 43% is locked as community reserve funds, with linear unlocking until 2033. In other words, the project team has genuinely distributed the tokens, and they are released gradually and in a decentralized manner over the long term.

In contrast, the allocation for investors and the team is much tighter. Investors only receive 7%, and their tokens can only be unlocked 12 months after the mainnet launch; core contributors are allocated 30%, with a maximum unlocking period of four years. The benefits of this approach are obvious—investors cannot dump tokens easily, and the team is less likely to run away, ensuring ecosystem stability.

Now, let's consider the application scenarios. WAL is not a pure governance token; it serves multiple functions. Users need storage services? They prepay fees with WAL, and these fees are determined by node voting, then distributed to nodes and stakers—essentially, the token circulates within the ecosystem. Holders have voting rights to decide on fee rates, penalty mechanisms, and even the integration of new assets. Nodes also need tokens to ensure ecosystem security...

This design tightly integrates payment, governance, and security functions. WAL's demand stems from the actual operation of the ecosystem, not from arbitrary imagination. From an investment perspective, this multi-faceted application scenario provides genuine support for the token.