Super Validator (SV) Locking & Long-Term Commitment Framework

Withdrawal of locked CC follows a mandatory vesting-based model:

• An SV may initiate an unlock of any size at any time
• Once initiated, 1 / 365.25 of the requested unlock amount vests and becomes liquid each day
• Only the fully locked (non-vesting) portion counts towards maintaining SV Weight
• All locked CC, including any balance above the applicable tier threshold, must be withdrawn through the vesting process
• Any withdrawal of locked CC that circumvents vesting constitutes a lock violation (the sole exception being the Lock Substitution provision defined in the operational guidelines)

3. Motivation

The Canton community knows that Super Validators are deeply committed to the network. Many have invested years of engineering effort, institutional credibility, and commercial relationships to make Canton successful.

However, as Canton becomes increasingly visible to external markets, reputation alone is insufficient. Public blockchains are evaluated not just on technology, but on:

• Who governs them
• Whether incentives favor short-term extraction or long-term stewardship

Today, Canton relies primarily on reputation to communicate this alignment. This framework provides a way to make that commitment publicly observable and cryptographically verifiable.

This proposal does not impose an obligation on Super Validators. Rather, it creates a transparent mechanism by which SVs may elect to demonstrate long-term alignment through durable economic commitments.

The framework preserves freedom of choice while ensuring that network influence increasingly accrues to those willing to make long-term commitments to Canton.

4. SV Locking Requirement

To earn forward Super Validator Weight, an SV must actively lock a defined percentage of its aggregate lifetime earned SV rewards.

• This includes all historical SV rewards earned prior to CIP activation
• This includes all SV rewards earned after CIP activation
• Locking is evaluated across the SV’s aggregate position

Only actively locked CC counts toward the SV weighting algorithm.

For any organization that has or does operate more than one Super Validator, the lock up calculation is based on the aggregate lifetime earnings of any/all operating SVs. Any reduction in weighting will apply to total SV Weight for that organization. For the avoidance of doubt this provision applies to SVs identified as Digital Asset -1, DigitalAsset -2 Cumberland -1 and Cumberland -2.

5. SV Locking and SV Weight Schedule

SV Weight going forward is affected by the percentage of aggregate lifetime SV earnings that are actively locked. The maximum required lock declines over time. SV Weight is awarded according to the schedule presented below..

Example 1 :

• SV with Weight 10
• Locks 70% of historical earnings
• Auto-locks 70% of forward earnings
• Earns rewards associated with Weight 10 each reward interval

Example 2 :

• SV with Weight 10
• Locks 45% of historical earnings
• Auto-locks 45% of forward earnings
• Earns rewards associated with Weight 6 each reward interval

If the lowest tier threshold is less than or equal to zero, that tier is removed and any SV below the next tier earns zero SV Weight.

The Lock-up requirement will automatically terminate 30 days after the date of next step down in rewards/halving currently forecast to occur late summer 2029.

6. Under-Locked SV Weight Enforcement

To prevent opportunistic behavior and reward stable, long-term commitments, the following enforcement rules apply:

• If an SV becomes under-locked relative to its current tier:
  • The under-locked portion of its SV Weight is removed from the active SV pool within 7 days
• The SV has 30 days from the initial under-lock event to restore its lock and return to the higher tier
• If the SV fails to re-lock within 30 days:
  • The removed SV Weight is permanently removed from the SV pool
  • The SV may not reclaim that weight in the future This mechanism:
• Limits gaming of SV Weight based on market conditions
• Creates incentives for SVs that maintain consistent, long-term locks

Example 3 :

• SV with Weight 10 and historical earnings of 1b CC
• Locks 70% (700m CC) of historical earnings
• Auto-locks 70% of forward earnings
• Earns rewards associated with Weight 10 each reward interval
• After 1 day, unlocks 100m CC
  • 100m/365.25 unlock every 24 hours for the next year
  • Now has locked 60% of historical earnings
  • Falls into Tier 2 and earns rewards associated with Weight 6 SV going forward
• After 10 days, relocks 100m CC
  • Now has locked 70% of historical earnings
  • Returns to Tier1 and earns rewards associated with Weight 10 SV going forward
  • Later decides to unlock 100m CC permanently
  • After 7 days, W4 is temporarily removed from the SV pool
  • After 30 days, W4 permanently removed from the SV poo

7. Locking Infrastructure and Custody

The implementation of this CIP must support locking from:

• Self-custody wallets
• Institutional custodians
• Qualified third-party custody providers

SVs must not be forced into holding their CC on their validator, a specific wallet, custodian, or custody model to participate.

The locking mechanism must allow transparent verification of locked balances while preserving operational flexibility for SVs.

It must be possible to lock from multiple wallets, custodians, and PartyIds and meet the locking threshold requirements in aggregate.

Example 4 :

• SV with Weight 10
• Locks 10% at Custodian1, Locks 20% at Custodian2, Locks 20% in their Validator, Locks 20% in Wallet1 (aggregate 70% locked)
• Auto-distributes proportionally and locks 70% in aggregate of forward earnings
• Earns rewards associated with Weight 10 each reward interval

8. Implementation

Phase 1 — Transitional Enforcement

• Begins within 30 days of CIP approval
• SVs disclose a segregated PartyId(s) holding locked CC to the Foundation
• SV Weight evaluated weekly
• Under-locked enforcement rules apply

Phase 2 — On-Chain Enforcement

• Activates upon deployment of CC locking contracts to MainNet
• Only on-chain locked CC counts
• Vesting-based unlocks apply automatically
• SV Weight updates continuously

9. Exemptions

None.

This framework applies uniformly to all Super Validators.

No exemptions are provided for the Foundation, ecosystem funds, or any other entities.

Uniform application eliminates subjective decision-making and ensures the framework remains objective, predictable, and governable over time.

Copyright

This CIP is licensed under CC0-1.0: Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal

Changelog

2026-03-02: CIP Approved.

2026-02-27: proposed

2026-02-26: draft published