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Did you know?Livepeer’s token distribution had no ICO.

Instead, the initital 10 million LPT supply was distributed via a community Merkle Mine, allowing a wide set of participants to claim tokens at network launch.
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LP Token

Livepeer is a utility token and core component of the Livepeer Protocol. Used to secure and incentivise the decentralised network to deliver its key value proposition of reliable, cost-efficient, powerful AI and video streaming workflows.
LPT is akin to a membership key for Liveper or LPT is like the loyalty token for useful network participants.
  • You need it to join and earn in the Livepeer system.
  • If you hold LPT, you can rent out your GPU (participate) or vote on network rules.
  • Over time, the network prints new LPT (adds to the money supply) to reward people who help run it. Those who have put their LPT into the system (staked) get extra tokens.
One of the biggest competitive advantages of Livepeer is its decentralisation - creating free markets and competitive pricing. This network of decentralised nodes, orchestrators, gateways and broadcasters, and the flow of payments in the network for doing useful work, is underpinned by the Livepeer Token (LPT).

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Token Purpose

The Livepeer Token (LPT) has several key functions within the protocol:
  • Staking: LPT must be staked (bonded) in the protocol via the BondingManager contract to operate as an Orchestrator or to delegate.
  • Governance: Any staked LPT can vote on proposals. Delegators’ votes are cast via their chosen Orchestrator.
  • Security: The protocol is secured by stake. If an Orchestrator misbehaves, its staked LPT (and its Delegators’) can be slashed.
LPT is not used for service payments for video and AI compute (e.g. transcoding, AI inference) -> those are paid in ETH or other currencies via separate payment channels.
Use CaseLPT Functionality

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Supply & Distribution

  • Initial Supply: 10,000,000 LPT at genesis (2018), distributed via Merkle Mine (no ICO or pre-mine).
  • Current Supply: ~37,900,000 LPT (as of early 2025) – all additional supply comes from the protocol’s inflationary rewards.
  • Inflation Model: The protocol dynamically mints new LPT. If the percentage of tokens staked falls below 50%, inflation increases to attract more stakers. If staking is above 50%, inflation decreases.
    • Example: In early 2025, ~44% of LPT was staked. The inflation rate was ~25.6% APR. Since only 44% of tokens were earning inflation, this meant stakers saw about 25.6% / 0.44 ≈ 58% effective APR on their staked LPT.
  • Staked vs Unstaked: Roughly 44% of LPT is staked (June 2025). The rest (56%) is freely tradable/unbonded. Only the staked portion earns inflation rewards.

LPT Inflation Rate

View the LPT Inflation Rate on Livepeer Explorer

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Dynamic Inflation Model

Livepeer ties LPT emissions to bonding participation. This model ensures:
  • Stake velocity remains active
  • Dilution impacts only unstaked participants
  • Governance participation scales with protocol security
This mechanism introduces meaningful opportunity cost for passivity, encouraging active delegation and rebalancing.
Livepeer’s inflation is dynamic - designed to calibrate toward a target bonding rate (β*) and secure the protocol with sufficient staked LPT.
Inflation Update Rule
If B(t)/S(t) < β*:
r(t+1) = min(r(t) + Δ, r_max)
Else:
r(t+1) = max(r(t) - Δ, r_min)
where:
- S(t) = total circulating supply of LPT
- B(t) = total bonded supply
- β* = target bonding rate (e.g. 50%)
- r(t) = current inflation rate
- Δ = step rate (e.g. 0.05%)
- r_min, r_max = protocol-set bounds (e.g. 0.5% to 7%)
Minting Function
M(t) = r(t) * S(t)

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Rewards Distribution

#TODO
  • Orchestrators: pro-rata by bonded stake
  • Delegators: share of orchestrator rewards, split by rewardCut
  • Treasury: fixed % (currently 10%) of M(t) per round
Move majority of this to token section. This section will just give a product/design decision overview

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Governance

#TODO Only bonded LPT grants voting rights on Livepeer protocol proposals (LIPs). Governance Tools:
  • Forum: forum.livepeer.org
  • Snapshot Voting: Used for off-chain signaling
  • Governor Contract: Executes on-chain proposals post-vote
Voting power is proportional to bonded stake at snapshot block. Voters can delegate voting power to others via bonded LPT.

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Treasury

#TODO A portion of LPT emissions flows to a community treasury. The treasury is meant to fund ecosystem-wide projects (public goods). Livepeer’s social consensus is that treasury funds should primarily go to SPEs, which then deploy them to specific initiatives.
#MOVE THESE

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Technical Mechanics

#TODO

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Bonding & Unbonding

LPT must be actively bonded to participate in inflation and governance.
  • Bonding: Stake LPT to an orchestrator
  • Unbonding: Initiate 7-day period before withdrawal
  • Rebonding: Move bonded stake to another orchestrator instantly
  • Each bonded LPT contributes to orchestrator selection weight and inflation share.

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Slashing & Penalties

Bonded LPT is subject to slashing if an orchestrator is caught:
  • Submitting invalid transcoding results
  • Cheating on ticket redemption (fraudulent claims)
  • Being challenged and failing on-chain verification
Slashed LPT is:
  • Partially burned
  • Partially redirected to the treasury
  • Results in delegator collateral loss

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Additional Resources

Obtain Livepeer Token

Looking for places to get LPT? Follow this link.

LPT on Arbiscan

Livepeer Explorer

Livepeer Blog: Token Design

Livepeer Contracts GitHub

#REVIEW

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Economic Flow Diagrams

Show:
  • Inflation → Orchestrators + Treasury
  • Fees (ETH) → Orchestrators
  • Delegation → Shared rewards
  • Governance → Treasury allocation
(-> Staking, Rewards, Fees & Slashing)
Last modified on February 18, 2026