December Token Unlocks: $5.08 Billion Set to Hit the Market

The crypto market is set for several major token unlocks this month, with $5.08 billion worth of assets scheduled for release in December.

BeInCrypto highlights the top five cliff unlocks that will bring a significant influx of tokens into the market.

December Token Unlocks: What to Expect

Tokenomist (formerly Token Unlocks) reports that $1.99 billion of December’s token unlocks are classified as cliff unlocks. In these events, tokens are released on a periodic schedule — such as weekly, monthly, or yearly — rather than daily.

Investors and traders closely watch token unlocks because they introduce previously locked tokens into circulation, impacting market dynamics. While these events can create growth opportunities, they also pose the risk of increased selling pressure.

This month’s most notable cliff unlocks include Sui (SUI), Jito (JTO), Aptos (APT), Arbitrum (ARB), and Optimism (OP).

Sui (SUI)

On December 1, Sui will unlock 64.19 million tokens, valued at $221.47 million at current prices. The distribution of these tokens is as follows:

• Series A: 19.84 million SUI ($68.44 million)
• Series B: 19.32 million SUI ($66.66 million)
• Community Reserve: 12.63 million SUI ($43.57 million)
• Early Contributors: 10.34 million SUI ($35.67 million)
• Mysten Labs Treasury: 2.07 million SUI ($7.14 million)

Jito (JTO)

On December 7, Jito plans to release 135.71 million tokens, worth roughly $498 million. This unlock will exceed JTO’s existing circulating supply. The token allocation is as follows:

• Core Contributors: 81.67 million JTO ($299.72 million)
• Investors: 54.05 million JTO ($198.35 million)

Aptos (APT)

Aptos is set to unlock 11.31 million APT tokens on December 11, representing 2.12% of its total supply. These tokens have a total value of $149.85 million. The distribution will be as follows:

• Foundation: 1.33 million APT ($17.56 million)
• Community: 3.21 million APT ($42.28 million)
• Core contributors: 3.96 million APT ($52.13 million)
• Investors: 2.81 million APT ($36.98 million)

Arbitrum (ARB)

On December 16, Arbitrum will release 92.65 million ARB tokens, worth $88.80 million. This significant unlock represents 2.26% of ARB’s circulating supply. The distribution of these tokens will be as follows:

• Team, future team, and advisors: 56.13 million ARB ($53.79 million)
• Investors: 36.52 million ARB ($35 million)

Optimism (OP)

On December 31, Optimism will unlock 31.34 million tokens. These tokens, worth approximately $75.85 million, account for 2.50% of its circulating supply. The distribution of freshly released OP will be as follows:

• Investors: 14.80 million OP ($35.82 million)
• Core contributors: 16.54 million OP ($40.03 milliom)

Beyond these major events, the market will also see cliff token unlocks from other notable projects in December, including Cardano (ADA), ZetaChain (ZETA), Immutable (IMX), ApeCoin (APE), Starknet (STRK), and Sei (SEI).