About Lighter

What is Lighter Protocol in simple terms?

Lighter Protocol is a decentralized perpetual futures trading platform built on Ethereum Layer 2. It uses custom zero-knowledge circuits to verify order matching and liquidations, aiming for fairness and speed. Think of it as a high-frequency trading venue on-chain, where execution feels like a centralized exchange but remains cryptographically verifiable.

Does Lighter Protocol have its own token?

Not yet. Lighter runs on a points system instead of a live coin. Traders earn "Lighter Points" through activity, liquidity provision, and referrals. Market chatter suggests these points could convert into a native token at a future TGE, but no official supply, allocation, or tokenomics have been published.

How are Lighter Points distributed?

Each week, about 250,000 points are allocated to beta participants. The distribution favors active trading, providing liquidity, and community engagement. Users even trade points in OTC markets, with valuations implying a fully diluted project worth billions of usd. Worth noting: a minimum of 100 points is required to invite new members.

How do you join the Lighter private beta?

The private beta officially started on 24 January 2025 and remains ongoing. To join, you connect your wallet on the Lighter platform, request access, and submit an application (often with a referral code from the Discord). Once approved, you can test, trade, and earn points — with additional rewards for early participants.

What about vesting or unlocks for the token?

There’s no vesting schedule because the token hasn’t launched yet. If points do convert into tokens, allocation is expected to reward long-term, consistent platform activity rather than upfront investors. So, in essence, participation during beta may serve as an informal vesting curve.

Who are Lighter’s investors?

Lighter is backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Dragonfly Capital, Lightspeed Ventures, and Coatue. The amounts raised haven’t been disclosed (the official listing shows “--”), but such names signal strong institutional belief in the project. The founder, Vladimir Novakovski, brings Citadel-level trading expertise into crypto, which adds to investor confidence.

Is there any ICO or airdrop?

No public ICO, token sale, or airdrop has been held. Instead, Lighter relies on its private beta program, referral system, and trading competitions to distribute points. You might wonder if this is just a stealth airdrop—essentially yes, but framed as merit-based rewards rather than giveaways.

Where can people trade on Lighter?

Currently, it’s invite-only. The platform lists perpetual pairs like ETH/USDC and BTC/USDC with up to 50x leverage. Other crypto tokens—SOL, DOGE, LINK, AVAX, TAO, and more—offer 8–15x leverage. Retail users enjoy zero maker and taker fees, while high-frequency traders pay for premium APIs.

What’s on the roadmap?

Key milestones include moving from private to public beta, a native token launch, and expanding beyond crypto assets. Long term, the vision is to become Ethereum’s main liquidity layer for perpetual futures. The zkLighter circuits are central to this, ensuring provably fair order matching.

What risks should users keep in mind?

Regulatory pressure is the obvious one—crypto derivatives are heavily scrutinized. Technical risks exist too: if the zero-knowledge circuits have flaws, that could be catastrophic. Then there’s competition—Hyperliquid already has more liquidity. Lastly, heavy dependence on HFT firms for revenue and speculative usd pricing of points make the model risky.

How does Lighter stand out from rivals?

Its zero-knowledge matching engine is the differentiator. Unlike typical rollups or DEXs, trades are proven correct cryptographically, not just assumed. Combined with zero fees for retail and a merit-based points system, it’s designed to lure both traders and liquidity. Whether that’s enough against entrenched exchanges remains to be seen.