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What is SNX?

SNX is an ERC-20 token that acts as the capital base of Synthetix. The protocol issues synthetic assets, with the stablecoin sUSD at the center, and runs derivatives markets that settle against pooled liquidity; SNX staked as collateral is what stands behind those liabilities.

The project launched as Havven after a token sale in early 2018 and was renamed Synthetix later that year. Synthetix v2 arrived in 2019 with staking and synthetic assets on Ethereum, perpetual futures followed on OP Mainnet, and v3 brought multi-collateral pools to Base and Arbitrum, so the protocol's own token deployments span Ethereum, OP Mainnet and Base.

How SNX works

Stakers deposit SNX and mint sUSD against it, which places them in a shared debt pool: their debt moves with the aggregate value of what the system has issued, not just with their own position. In exchange they earn a share of the trading fees Synthetix markets generate.

That design changed materially in 2025, when SIP-420 introduced a protocol-owned staking pool that absorbs historical staker debt over time and lowered the collateralization requirement from 500% to 200%. Pooled debt simplified staking, but it also removed the old incentive for individual stakers to buy discounted sUSD to repay debt.

SNX supply and tokenomics

The token launched with 100 million SNX. Inflationary staking rewards were added in March 2019 to bootstrap participation and were wound down as fees took over: SIP-2043, passed in the first week of December 2023, set weekly inflation to zero, leaving total supply a little above 340 million once escrowed rewards finished minting.

Since then the protocol has pointed fee revenue at buybacks and burns, beginning with fees from its Base deployment, so supply is flat to gently declining rather than growing. There is no fixed cap; new issuance would require a governance decision.

Who builds SNX

Synthetix was founded by Kain Warwick in Australia, and its contributors operate under council-based governance rather than inside a single company. Warwick remains the protocol's most visible voice, returning to hands-on involvement during the 2025 restructuring of staking and the push to bring derivatives trading back to Ethereum mainnet.

How SNX is governed

Protocol changes go through Synthetix Improvement Proposals and configuration change proposals, approved by the Spartan Council, a small body elected by SNX holders each epoch. Council members sign off on parameter changes and upgrades, and elections re-run regularly, so seat composition tracks staker sentiment.

What people use SNX for

SNX is working capital more than a medium of exchange, and everything holders do with it flows through the protocol's staking system:

• Stake SNX to back sUSD and Synthetix markets and earn fees.
• Delegate stake into the protocol-owned 420 pool introduced in 2025.
• Vote in Spartan Council elections.
• Provide SNX liquidity on Ethereum, OP Mainnet or Base.

SNX risks and considerations

Staked SNX backs the system's liabilities, so stakers carry debt-pool risk: their obligations can grow even when their own position is untouched, and undercollateralization lands on the collateral. The mechanism has been stressed in practice: sUSD lost its dollar peg in early 2025, trading near $0.68 in April, after SIP-420 weakened the arbitrage loop that had defended it, and recovery measures took months.

The protocol has redesigned itself repeatedly, from synth trading to perpetuals to v3 pools, and each redesign changes what backing SNX means. A token whose value case rests on fee generation is exposed if trading volume migrates to competing venues.