Tokenomics

Tokenomics and Fee Structure

The Cambi protocol operates with a straightforward fee structure designed to ensure sustainability while aligning incentives with users. Unlike complex DeFi protocols with multiple tokens and convoluted mechanics, our economics are simple: we take a share of the yield we generate for users.

The primary revenue comes from a 10% performance fee on yields above the base rate. If a vault generates 15% annually against a 5% base rate (Bitcoin lending yield), Cambi takes 10% of the 10% excess, or 1% of the total. This ensures users always receive competitive yields while funding protocol development and security. Additionally, a 1% annual management fee covers operational costs including RWA analysis, portfolio rebalancing, and smart contract maintenance.

Early withdrawal penalties of 2% discourage short-term speculation while rewarding committed users – these penalties are redistributed to remaining vault participants, creating an incentive for longer-term thinking. The protocol treasury, funded by these fees, serves multiple purposes: providing buffer capital for RWA investments, covering gas costs for rebalancing operations, funding security audits and development, and eventually distributing profits to $CMB token holders.

While we've kept the initial protocol design simple, the path to a $CMB governance token is clear. Token holders would gain rights to vote on vault parameters, approve new RWA categories, adjust fee structures, and receive a share of protocol revenues. However, we're intentionally delaying token launch until product-market fit is proven – too many protocols have failed by prioritizing token speculation over product development.

Governance Token Vision

The $CMB token represents ownership in the protocol's future, not just fee sharing. Beyond voting on parameters and receiving revenue distributions, $CMB holders will:

• Direct treasury allocation across new RWA categories and geographic expansion

• Curate vault strategies through expert committees incentivized by performance

• Bootstrap new markets by staking $CMB to underwrite initial liquidity in new countries

• Create meta-governance over partner protocols (Liqi, Etherfuse) as Cambi becomes their largest client

• Enable permissionless vault creation where anyone can propose new strategies with $CMB stake

Long-term, $CMB becomes the index token for LatAm DeFi yields – as essential as MKR for stablecoins but focused on emerging market opportunities.