TRUMP, ONDO, BGB and HYPE Headline $5.5 Billion Wave of Token Unlocks in January
More than $5.5 billion worth of crypto tokens are scheduled to hit the market in January, setting up one of the most liquidity‑heavy months in recent memory. A handful of high‑profile projects — including Ondo (ONDO), Bitget Token (BGB), Hyperliquid (HYPE) and Official Trump (TRUMP) — dominate the calendar and together account for a large chunk of the new supply.
According to data from Tokenomist’s token unlock tracker, the combined value of January unlocks exceeds $5.5 billion. Roughly $2.5 billion of that total will be released via “cliff” unlocks, where tokens become available all at once at a scheduled date. The remaining $3 billion will come through linear unlocks, where tokens are gradually released over a period of time, smoothing out the supply shock.
Token vesting lies at the core of this process. Projects typically lock up significant portions of their total supply for founders, team members, private investors and community funds. These allocations are then unlocked on predetermined schedules, often starting with a full lockup period followed by monthly or quarterly releases. The goal is to align long‑term incentives and reduce the risk of early participants flooding the market.
Even though vesting and unlocks are standard in crypto, the size and timing of releases can influence short‑term price behavior, especially when trading volumes are lower or market sentiment is fragile. Large, concentrated unlocks can add selling pressure or at least create anticipation and volatility as traders attempt to position around the event.
Four tokens dominate January’s unlock schedule
January’s unlocks are heavily concentrated in a few major names. Ondo, Bitget Token, Hyperliquid and Official Trump collectively represent about $1.94 billion of the supply set to be released, or roughly 35% of the entire $5.5 billion slated for the month.
Ondo (ONDO) leads the pack by a wide margin. On January 19, the project will unlock 1.9 billion ONDO tokens, valued at more than $840 million at current market prices. Tokenomist data indicates that this tranche is split between founders, team members, community allocations and private investors. Such a broad distribution suggests a mix of potential behaviors: some stakeholders might take profits, while others may hold, reinvest or deploy tokens into ecosystem incentives.
Bitget Token (BGB) is the second‑largest single unlock in January. On January 26, 140 million BGB are scheduled to be released, with an estimated value close to $500 million. Of that amount, 80 million tokens are earmarked for the team, while the remaining 60 million are designated for branding and promotional activities. Team allocations may raise concerns about profit‑taking, but marketing and branding reserves can also support user growth, trading campaigns and ecosystem expansion.
Hyperliquid (HYPE) will carry out one of the earliest major releases of the month. On Tuesday, 12.4 million HYPE tokens are set to unlock for core contributors, with a total value of around $327 million. Among January’s events, this is the third‑largest single drop. Despite the upcoming supply increase, HYPE recently traded at $26.41, up 5.7% over the last 24 hours, indicating that the market has, at least for now, maintained a short‑term bullish stance.
Official Trump (TRUMP), the memecoin associated with US President Donald Trump, is also on the calendar. On January 18, the project will unlock 50 million TRUMP tokens, estimated to be worth about $270 million. The release is primarily aimed at founders and team members. While smaller in dollar terms than ONDO or BGB, the event is notable given the token’s high profile and the broader interest in political and memecoin narratives.
Cliff vs. linear unlocks: why structure matters
The January schedule is split between cliff and linear unlocks, and that distinction is crucial for understanding potential market impact.
– Cliff unlocks release a large amount of tokens at a single point in time. This can create a sudden jump in circulating supply and, if many holders decide to sell, intensified short‑term volatility. Price charts around major cliff events often show sharp moves in both directions as traders speculate ahead of and immediately after the unlock.
– Linear unlocks distribute tokens gradually — for example daily, weekly or monthly — reducing the likelihood of a single, dramatic supply shock. While they still increase circulation, the market generally has more time to absorb the new tokens, and price reactions can be more muted or stretched over a longer period.
In January, approximately $2.5 billion is set to unlock via cliffs and $3 billion through linear schedules. That balance means some days could be particularly intense, while the broader month features a steady undercurrent of increasing supply.
How token unlocks can influence prices
Unlocks do not automatically translate into price crashes. Their impact depends on several factors:
– Market conditions: In a strong bullish environment with high demand and deep liquidity, new supply can be absorbed relatively easily. In contrast, during sideways or bearish phases, large unlocks may weigh more heavily on prices.
– Holder behavior: Tokens released to long‑term backers, teams and strategic partners may not be sold immediately. Conversely, unlocks for early investors who are already in significant profit may lead to more aggressive selling.
– Narrative and fundamentals: If a project is actively shipping products, expanding its ecosystem or attracting users, new tokens might be seen as fuel for growth rather than a drag on value.
– Communication and transparency: Clear messaging about the purpose of unlocked tokens — for example, ecosystem incentives, liquidity provision or marketing — can reduce uncertainty and panic selling.
Because of these variables, traders often watch unlock calendars closely, not just for the raw numbers, but for context: who is receiving the tokens, what they are likely to do with them, and how the project is positioned fundamentally.
What January’s leaders reveal about the market
The composition of January’s largest unlocks also offers a snapshot of current trends in crypto:
– Ondo sits at the intersection of real‑world assets and decentralized finance, an area that has attracted increasing attention. A large unlock there underscores how quickly newer narratives can scale in value.
– Bitget Token reflects the continued importance of exchange tokens, which often serve as loyalty assets, fee‑reduction tools and gateways to launchpads or other platform features.
– Hyperliquid demonstrates the rising prominence of on‑chain derivatives and perpetual trading platforms, where native tokens can be tied to governance, fee discounts and liquidity incentives.
– TRUMP highlights how memecoins and politically flavored tokens continue to command significant capital despite their speculative nature, reinforcing that attention and narrative remain powerful drivers in crypto.
Together, these unlocks show that both infrastructure‑oriented projects and narrative‑driven tokens are moving substantial value into circulation at the start of the year.
Risk management for traders and investors
For market participants, major unlocks like those in January are both a risk factor and a potential opportunity. Some common approaches include:
– Pricing in the unlock: Markets often begin to react before the actual unlock date, as traders front‑run anticipated selling pressure. Prices can drift lower in the weeks leading up to a major event, then stabilize or even recover afterward if selling turns out to be less aggressive than feared.
– Watching on‑chain data: For tokens with transparent vesting contracts, on‑chain movements can indicate whether newly unlocked tokens are being transferred to exchanges (a bearish sign) or to long‑term wallets and staking contracts (often more neutral or bullish).
– Scaling positions: Rather than making all‑in bets around a specific date, some traders choose to scale into or out of positions over time, reducing exposure to a single, binary event.
– Diversification: Given that January’s unlocks are concentrated in a few names, spreading risk across different sectors and projects can mitigate the impact of any one token’s volatility.
None of these approaches eliminate risk, but they reflect how experienced market participants respond to predictable supply changes.
How projects can turn unlocks into catalysts
From the project side, unlocks do not have to be purely negative events. Teams can use them strategically:
– Incentive programs: Newly unlocked tokens can be directed toward liquidity mining, staking rewards or user acquisition campaigns that strengthen the ecosystem.
– Team alignment: Releasing tokens to team members and core contributors can reinforce long‑term commitment, especially if accompanied by new product launches or roadmap milestones.
– Governance expansion: Unlocks can be paired with governance initiatives, broadening tokenholder participation and decentralizing decision‑making.
– Communication campaigns: When projects clearly explain why tokens are unlocking and how they will be used, it can turn a potentially bearish headline into a narrative about growth and development.
How Ondo, Bitget, Hyperliquid and TRUMP deploy their newly circulating supply in the coming months will play a crucial role in shaping market perception beyond the immediate unlock dates.
Historical patterns around large unlocks
Past cycles of major unlocks show that market reactions can be highly project‑specific:
– Some tokens have experienced short‑term dips followed by recovery, as early selling is quickly absorbed and long‑term holders step in.
– Others have seen prolonged downtrends when unlocks coincided with weak fundamentals, lack of adoption or broader bear‑market conditions.
– In a few cases, strong product releases or ecosystem news timed around unlocks have overshadowed supply concerns, leading to price gains even as circulating supply increased.
This history suggests that while unlocks are an important factor to monitor, they are only one piece of a broader puzzle that includes adoption, revenue models, technology and macro sentiment.
What to watch as January unfolds
As the month progresses, several elements will be worth tracking:
– Price action in the days before and after the key dates: January 18 (TRUMP), January 19 (ONDO), and January 26 (BGB), along with Hyperliquid’s early‑month release.
– Trading volumes and open interest on major exchanges around each unlock.
– On‑chain flows of newly unlocked tokens — whether they head toward exchanges, staking contracts or remain with the original recipients.
– Project announcements related to marketing, ecosystem growth or protocol upgrades, particularly for those tokens whose unlocks are partially earmarked for branding and community initiatives.
With more than $5.5 billion in value entering circulation, January’s token unlocks will be a key structural factor shaping crypto market liquidity in the near term. Whether they act as a headwind or a catalyst will depend less on the raw numbers and more on how participants — from project teams to traders — respond to this predictable wave of new supply.