Perpetual Trading Protocol GMX Bags Biggest Chunk of $40M Arbitrum Grant

Several projects built on the Arbitrum blockchain have secured a cumulative supply of $40 million worth of ARB tokens as part of a short-term incentive program (STIP) round that ended late Thursday.

A tally shows that 29 Arbitrum projects have pitched their products and services to token holders over the past week, hoping to win votes for a share of the 50 million ARB tokens, worth nearly $40 million at current prices.

The STIP is a one-time distribution and beneficiaries cannot convert ARB rewards into other tokens or participate in board activities. The grant proposal was launched and approved earlier in September.

Perpetual trading protocol GMX delivered the most rewards with 12 million ARB, worth just over $10 million, followed by Gains Network with 7 million ARB.

Ether staking powerhouse Lido Finance was among the surprise duds, failing to gain approval over concerns it could control a third of all ether tokens staked.

It is now expected that these projects will use the tokens to offer higher rewards to users who support these protocols, for example by providing liquidity or using services, in a move that could attract money to the blockchain as traders look for to investment strategies.