Gov/en/Portal:Economy/WikiDeal-Tokens

💡 In simple words: WikiDeals tokens are tokens you can buy to help WikiDeal grow. At first they only let you get subscription years and offer them to other people, so more people join. When other people actually pay their own subscriptions, your tokens wake up: then you can also use them to pay for real services, or change them into money.

🎯 In 20 seconds (scientific summary): WikiDeals tokens are proposed as purchased tokens with a two-stage life. Before activation they serve only to obtain subscription years and to offer them to others (via the bonding curve: for example CHF 1,000 at ×100 gives 100,000 tokens, worth 10,000 subscription years). They are activated automatically by the subscriptions actually collected from other users; distributing subscriptions does not activate the distributor's own tokens. Once activated, tokens can pay for real services covered by subscriptions and can be converted into a stablecoin. Activation depends entirely on adoption; it could take years or never happen. No guarantee.

WikiDeals tokens at a Glance

Definition	Purchased token: first usable only for subscriptions (obtaining and offering them), then activated by the subscriptions actually collected from other users
Nominal Unit	1 WikiDeals token = 1 CHF (once activated and converted)
Allocation	Via the Bonding Curve (token purchase) or Open Calls (for work)
Initial uses	Obtain subscription years and offer them to others
Activation trigger	Subscriptions actually collected from other users (subscription revenue)
Once activated	Real services covered by subscriptions, and conversion into a stablecoin (in tranches of CHF 100)
Long-term target	5% annual value increase (study replacing the multiplier)
Revenue Split	25/25/50 rule (Donors / Early supporters / Operations)
Guarantee	None (depends entirely on user adoption)

What WikiDeals tokens are (no guarantee*)

From the start, purchased WikiDeals tokens serve two purposes, and only these two at first:

Obtaining and offering subscriptions, to bring new people into the movement. Tokens can be exchanged for subscription years, and those years can be offered to others. For example, someone who contributes CHF 1,000 at a ×100 multiplier receives 100,000 tokens, worth 10,000 subscription years, and can split them freely: 1 year to 10,000 people, 2 years to 5,000 people, or 10 years to 1,000 people. WikiDeal can propose target audiences and beneficiaries, and the token holder decides whether to offer part of the years. This is an option, never an obligation.
Using services covered by subscriptions. Once the person has active subscriptions and the tokens are activated, they can buy services that actually start, and only at that point can they also convert tokens into a stablecoin.

Activation: the fruit of other people's subscriptions

It is the subscriptions actually collected on the platform from other users that automatically activate WikiDeals tokens and generate their usable value. This has clear consequences:

Offering or distributing subscriptions does not activate the distributor's own tokens. Someone who only distributes subscription years cannot, for that reason alone, spend their tokens on real services (for example a weekend of accommodation or a transport service).
Before activation, purchased tokens serve only for subscriptions: obtaining them and offering them.
Once activated, thanks to the subscriptions collected from others, tokens can serve for something other than subscriptions: real services, and conversion into a stablecoin.

In short: a purchased token starts inactive, serves only for subscriptions (obtaining and offering them), is activated by the subscriptions actually collected from other users, and once active can pay for real services or be converted.

Additional properties:

Conversion is processed by tranches of CHF 100 when funds allow.
A possible annual percentage increase is under study (draft Open Call, not decided).
Held in your personal account (Priority 2).
Tax applies at conversion.
No financial return is guaranteed. See Terms & Conditions and FINMA sandbox rules.

How to receive WikiDeals tokens

WikiDeals tokens are granted based on their origin.

Two origins:

Token purchase: WikiDeals tokens acquired by contributing funds, processed through the Bonding Curve. This covers token buyers as well as early supporters who contributed in the years preceding the launch.
Validated work: WikiDeals tokens granted for contributions validated through the Open Calls process, or for expert work invited by the initial Steering Committee.

Funds can also incubate use cases and marketplaces addressing societal challenges, in the spirit of open calls: see targeted donations for emerging User Groups.

Donation or token purchase: two distinct options. When contributing funds, each person clearly chooses between two well separated options: making a donation (including a pure donation, with no tokens at all), or buying WikiDeals tokens via the bonding curve (up to ×100 at the beginning, strictly limited by the actual funding needs). Donors are aware of the distinction between buying tokens and making a donation, and the language used during the process keeps that distinction explicit.

Where the money comes from: subscription revenue

As a reminder, a subscription is required for anyone who wishes to make a transaction using any of the marketplaces, at the very low price of CHF 10 per year. The money that people pay for their subscriptions is intended to activate the WikiDeals tokens: it is redistributed to token holders proportionally.

Concretely: when a person buys a CHF 10 yearly subscription to use WikiDeal, this person obtains the right to vote, and the CHF 10 feed the activation and redistribution to WikiDeals token holders. The usable value of the tokens is funded by subscriptions, and subscriptions are not invasive: the platform can be used without paying, a subscription is only required to sign a contract in a marketplace.

One point remains open and still has to be defined: whether 100% of each subscription is redistributed to WikiDeals token holders, or only a part of it. What is already set: for the first tranche of CHF 200,000 contributed for Prototype 1, subscription revenue is entirely (100%) attributed to WikiDeals tokens. If this allocation is modified later, at least 50% of subscription revenue on average would remain attributed to WikiDeals token holders (contractual commitment). This is explored in the open call: subscription redistribution to WikiDeals tokens.

Conversion mechanism (tranches of CHF 100)

Only activated tokens can be converted. Conversion occurs in tranches of CHF 100. As subscription revenue accumulates in the redistribution pool, it is allocated to WikiDeals token holders based on the proportion of tokens they hold. When a holder's allocated share reaches CHF 100, that tranche becomes available for conversion into a stablecoin.

The system is sized so that WikiDeals tokens are fully honoured once the platform has reached CHF 100 million in cumulative collections. With roughly 1 million active users, reaching this could take on the order of 10 years.

How long until activation and conversion? Indicative trajectory (no guarantee)

The time needed to activate and convert WikiDeals tokens depends entirely on how much the platform is used. This chapter gives an order of magnitude so that a supporter can picture the possible time horizon. It is explicitly not a commitment: it is an approximate, average projective estimate between a total success and a total failure of the project, shown only to give an idea of the tendency.

Illustrative trajectory of subscribing users

One possible adoption path, among many:

Time elapsed	Subscribing users (illustrative)
After 24 months	100,000
After 36 months	2,000,000
After 48 months	8,000,000
After 60 months	20,000,000

With an average in the order of 5 million users each paying about CHF 10 per year, subscriptions amount to about CHF 50 million per year, that is in the order of CHF 200 million over 4 years. At the 25% allocation rate (or pro rata of actual adoption), this is the level at which WikiDeals tokens for a value of CHF 50 million can be fully activated and paid out.

What this means for you

If adoption follows a trajectory of this kind, the estimated average horizon for conversion is 3 to 4 years once the platform approaches the 5 million user range. Based on Wikipedia's success, the model could start working within 1 to 2 years. Assuming strong resistance or low initial community involvement, it could take up to 10 years, or it might never work at all.

⚠️ These figures are purely theoretical. There is no guarantee whatsoever. A faster uptake shortens the horizon; slow adoption lengthens it. Activation happens at the pace of real subscription revenue, never faster.

How WikiDeals tokens work: the mechanisms

How WikiDeals tokens work

1. You buy tokens (or perform validated work). 2. You receive a WikiDeals token allocation. The tokens start inactive: they serve only to obtain subscription years and to offer them. 3. They are activated by the subscriptions actually collected from other users; once active, they can pay for real services or be converted.

The amount you receive is processed through the Bonding Curve, a mathematical formula that determines how many WikiDeals tokens you receive per CHF contributed. Early funders get more tokens per CHF to recognise their early commitment. Everything moves based on real expenses: no speculation, no invented values.

Need-Driven Funding

The Need-Driven Funding mechanism regulates the availability of WikiDeals tokens. We strictly use the Need-Driven concept.

Two blocks of WikiDeals tokens (Prototype 1)

Within the Prototype 1 framework, WikiDeals tokens are split into two distinct blocks:

Early supporters: 50 million WikiDeals tokens, obtained through contributions and allocated via the founder / the Foundation
Token buyers / funders: 50 million WikiDeals tokens, tied to the first CHF 1 million of cash contributed

That is 100 million WikiDeals tokens in total, activated and drawn down from subscription revenue as it accrues.

Transparency and Replicability

Replicable Model: Every User Group can launch its own funding campaign using the exact same methodology (bonding curve, WikiDeals tokens, Gift mechanism) as WikiDeal Core. The Babysitting User Group or Street Fundraising User Group can attract funders specifically for their infrastructure.
Tax Implications: WikiDeals tokens are not taxable when received. Tax implications arise only at the moment of conversion.
Honest Accounting: All Commissions are charged at cost. WikiDeals tokens only gain usable value when real revenue exists. WikiDeal operates under Swiss FINMA sandbox rules.

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