Decentralized Finance yield platform Pendle is ready to interchange its vePENDLE token as its main governance and reward token, arguing the earlier design held again broader adoption.
In an announcement by way of X on Monday, Pendle unveiled sPENDLE, its new “liquid staking token” that can quickly substitute vePENDLE as the first governance token on the protocol.
“We’re excited to introduce sPENDLE, the following evolution of Pendle tokenomics. This improve is designed to deal with essential limitations of the vePENDLE system, whereas unlocking new alternatives for PENDLE holders and the protocol,” Pendle mentioned.
sPENDLE is a liquid charge and governance token with a 14-day withdrawal interval, the crew added.
sPENDLE staking will go dwell on Tuesday, whereas vePENDLE locks shall be paused on Jan. 29. A snapshot will then be taken of person vePENDLE balances to help with the switchover.
On the identical day, the brand new governance construction beneath sPENDLE will totally roll out.
In response to information from DeFi Llama, Pendle is the Thirteenth-largest decentralized finance (DeFi) platform by way of complete worth locked at nearly $3.5 billion.
Higher tokenomics a doable boon for Pendle customers
Within the publish, Pendle mentioned that regardless of sturdy platform progress over the previous couple of years, vePENDLE finally precipitated “vital limitations” that restricted “broader adoption.”
One key issue was the lengthy lock-up occasions for the asset, by which customers couldn’t get their funds again till the set time durations have been over.
Pendle mentioned it was designed to drive long-term dedication to the protocol, however failed to attain its aim. To handle this, sPENDLE may be locked up and withdrawn at any time following a 14-day unwinding interval, or immediately for a 5% charge.
Different issues included the shortage of interoperability of vePENDLE, because it was non-transferable, which means that it couldn’t be utilized throughout different DeFi platforms.
To handle this, sPENDLE shall be built-in with a variety of DeFi platforms, enabling the asset for use for functions resembling restaking.
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Pendle additionally mentioned the governance construction was too sophisticated for almost all of customers, because it required energetic weekly engagement to earn rewards from governance contributions.
“The weekly vote-to-earn system required a deep understanding of DeFi and market dynamics to optimize rewards,” Pendle mentioned.
“Regardless of producing over $37M in 2025, the complicated voting mechanics meant that rewards concentrated amongst vePENDLE holders with sufficient experience to navigate the system successfully — a tiny fraction of customers,” Pendle added.
To resolve this, Pendle is introducing a brand new governance construction that makes it a lot simpler for holders. As a substitute of weekly engagement, holders will solely have to vote for “essential” Pendle Protocol Proposals (PPP) to stay eligible for governance rewards.
When there is no such thing as a PPP to vote on, they may robotically stay eligible.
Beneath this construction, Pendle may even conduct PENDLE token buybacks utilizing “as much as 80% of protocol income” to distribute as governance rewards.
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