Concerns exist regarding the impending release of more than 386 million Optimism (OP) tokens as the initial vesting period for early contributors and investors approaches. Nevertheless, based on current estimates, this equates to approximately $587 million.

The greatest cryptographic unlocking event

The May 31 release of OP tokens marks out as one of the most significant unlocking events of the year due to its magnitude. This scheduled release has the potential to more than double the current circulating supply of OP tokens, which currently stands at a modest 335 million.

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Moreover, the anticipated increase in the number of available tokens generates a great deal of community interest and speculation. The community has expressed concern over the potential effects of this release on the overall supply dynamics and value of the OP token.

The forthcoming Optimism unlock has the potential to exert substantial selling pressure on the native OP token, according to insights provided by Unlock Calendar, a token unlock research firm. Notable crypto venture capital firms such as Paradigm, IDEO CoLab Ventures, and Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) hold significant positions within the Optimism network, as they are among the largest investors in the system.

According to information obtained from CryptoRank, these investment firms, including Paradigm and IDEO, have witnessed a phenomenal increase in the value of their initial investments of more than 10,000%. These extraordinary returns are evidence of the early-stage success of Optimism and the strategic foresight of these influential venture capital firms.

The average buy-in price for venture capital firms is estimated to be approximately $0.24, according to the available data. Consequently, it suggests that these companies' investments have yielded an extraordinary return of approximately 529 percent.

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Token unlock refers to predetermined events in which assets allocated to early-stage investors and significant contributors in crypto initiatives are made available for trading after a specific holding period.

Why Optimism?

Optimism is a layer-2 scaling solution designed to increase the speed, affordability, and overall efficacy of transactions and activities performed on the Ethereum network. Optimism seeks to address Ethereum's scalability issues by employing novel techniques, thereby facilitating a seamless user experience.

The OP token, meanwhile, functions as the governance digital asset of the Optimism network. It grants holders the ability to actively influence the network's decision-making processes and contribute to its evolution.

On June 1, 2022, Optimism made a significant move by initiating its first airdrop. During this event, a considerable quantity of OP tokens were distributed to roughly 250,000 addresses associated with early adopters and network users.

Optimism conducted its second significant airdrop on February 9, 2023, utilizing this momentum as a foundation. This ensuing distribution involved the distribution of over 11 million OP tokens to a maximum of 307,000 unique addresses.

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Despite temporary spikes in trading volume caused by airdrops, the price trajectory of the OP token has predominantly followed a downward trend over the past few months. In anticipation of the unlocking event, on-chain data indicates that the token is presently trading at $1.51, representing an 8.5% decrease over the past 24 hours.