API3 (API3) Price

API3 is the governance and staking token of API3 DAO. The API3 project addresses the fact that smart contracts cannot independently read off-chain API data: data must be written on-chain through an oracle mechanism before contracts can execute based on it. API3's token layer and data-service layer have different roles. Airnode, dAPI, and the request-response protocol are responsible for bringing data on-chain; the API3 token is used for governance participation and reward mechanisms in the DAO staking pool. The Ethereum mainnet API3 Token contract listed in the official DAO documentation is 0x0b38210ea11411557c13457D4dA7dC6ea731B88a.

API3's oracle services bring off-chain API data to on-chain smart contracts. Airnode is operated by API providers, enabling them to provide data to blockchain applications through either dAPI or request-response methods. dAPI is suited to data interfaces that applications read continuously: the application reads the on-chain data-source result, while data delivery is completed within the oracle architecture. In request-response mode, the application initiates a specific request, and Airnode returns the result on-chain. The difference is how the application obtains data; the API3 token itself should not be treated as data or gas fees.

To receive API3 DAO staking rewards and governance eligibility, users must first deposit API3 into the staking pool and then stake the tokens there. Completing only the deposit does not generate rewards or grant governance rights. Tokens deposited but not yet staked remain a withdrawable balance and can be removed from the pool at any time. Staking brings the corresponding amount into reward and governance calculations. This two-stage design means that “pool balance” and “staked balance” are not the same state, and eligibility or withdrawable amounts should be confirmed separately.

API3 DAO governance rights come from staked API3 in the staking pool, rather than simply holding tokens in a wallet. Staked tokens can be used to participate in governance; creating a proposal additionally requires meeting requirements such as the staked-share threshold and proposal interval set by DAO rules. Therefore, “being able to vote” and “being able to create a proposal” have different thresholds. Depositing tokens into the pool without staking them does not grant these rights; tokens for which unstaking has begun also cease earning rewards. Participants should consider the effect on their governance and reward status before initiating an operation.

API3 staking rewards are minted once per epoch of one week and added to the staking pool. After mintReward is called, rewards are credited to the pool as staked API3. Therefore, a user's share of the pool determines the share of rewards received, rather than every staker receiving the same amount. Reward APR has no pre-fixed schedule. At each weekly mint, the system compares total staked amount against a staking target of 40% of total supply: below the target, the next period's APR rises by 1 percentage point; above the target, the next period's APR falls by 1 percentage point, subject to minimum and maximum APR limits set by governance. APR here is an annualized-rate measure, not a guaranteed return; the actual amount received also depends on the staking share, the APR for the period, and whether rewards are successfully minted.

They cannot be withdrawn immediately. After unstaking is initiated, there is a 7-day waiting period. During that time, the relevant tokens are shown as pending unstake and cannot complete unstaking until the timer ends. This waiting period helps reduce the risk of governance proposal spam. After the 7 days, users can choose to “unstake and withdraw to wallet,” or only unstake and leave the tokens in the DAO pool; in the latter case, they may be withdrawn later or staked again. Tokens for which unstaking is initiated no longer earn rewards, and unstaking revokes the most recent weekly reward distribution.

Each weekly reward must remain locked for 1 year before it can be withdrawn, so rewards unlock on a rolling basis: a reward received this week unlocks one year later, while a reward received next week unlocks one year and one week later. This lock applies only to rewards and should not be confused with the user's originally staked principal. To claim unlocked rewards, the official process requires unstaking; at the same time, unstaking may revoke the most recent period's reward. Therefore, the decision to act should take into account the waiting period, unlocked rewards, and the status of the most recent reward.