KCS (KuCoin Token, previously known as KuCoin Shares) is the utility token that belongs to cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin and serves as the native token for the KuCoin Community Chain blockchain project. KCS was initially launched in 2017 on the Ethereum network as an ERC-20 standard token, and in 2021, it was reissued on the KCC chain.
According to the KCS Whitepaper, the token aims to build a payment system with an economic model that can sustain and incentivize a large customer base.
The introduction of KCS has widened its range of capabilities and given focus to a new project.
With KCS, the KuCoin Community Chain network calculates the computational efforts required to perform transactions in decentralized applications, and fees are charged for services. It is considered to be the primary token for all products developed on this network by default.
KCS serves also as a governance token: its holders join the KuCoin community and may cast their vote in favor of a particular community proposal.
KuCoin Community Chain is a decentralized, open-source blockchain launched by the community of KuCoin and KCS developers in 2021. It was designed to tackle poor network performance and high transaction fees.
The first version of KCC runs on the Ethereum code with Ethereum Virtual Machine(EVM) smart contracts compatibility. KCC enables the deployment of diverse dApps, using tools designed to work with the Ethereum blockchain. It takes up to 6 seconds to add transactions to a block. The number of active KCC addresses exceeds 100,000.
KuCoin Community Chain homepage
KCS holders' benefits
The exchange rewards its users with bonuses, discounts, rewards, and other loyalty programs by sharing a portion of its profits. For instance, KCS holders may cut the platform’s fees up to 80%. This makes KCS a valuable tool for improving the exchange's liquidity.
Also, KuCoin pays dividends to their customers, which require a user to hold at least 6 KCS on their account. The more tokens held and the higher the trading volumes, the greater the potential payouts.
KuCoin is a centralized cryptocurrency exchange that originated in China and was founded by Michael Gan and Eric Don in 2017. The platform is now based in Singapore and offers P2P trading, spot trading, staking, lending, and other popular crypto market services across 200 countries.
KuCoin Crypto Exchange homepage
KCS Tokenomics
The KCS token has a market cap of $901 million, bringing it to the 57th position in the cryptocurrency ranking. There are currently 98 million tokens in circulation (58% of the total supply).
The KCS token was originally set to have a maximum supply of 200 million, with 90 million KCS being locked up for gradual release. However, a buyback and burning mechanism will gradually reduce the total volume of the tokens to 100 million coins.
Upon release, the KCS token was distributed as follows:
- 100 million tokens went to early holders;
- 65 million tokens were allocated to the KuCoin founders and team (with a 4-year lockup period);
- 25 million tokens were for investors with a 2-year lockup period;
- 10 million tokens were set aside for user rewards.
KCS Tokenomics infographic. Source — kcs.foundation
Out of the 65 million KCS tokens that belonged to the token developers, 20 million were burned, 20 million were transferred to the team responsible for supporting the entire KCS ecosystem, and 25 million were sent to the KCS Management Foundation. This resulted in the founders no longer holding the previously locked funds.
Out of the 25 million KCS tokens allocated to investors, 7 million were transferred to the Management Foundation, while the remaining 18 million are still held by the sponsors.
