Total supply is not sellable supply
Total issued units, circulating supply, free float, and immediately transferable inventory are different definitions. A provider's holder percentage may use total supply while your screen uses tradable float. State the denominator and avoid inventing a precise float when custody or restrictions are unknown.
Pool reserves, inaccessible burned units, locked allocations, treasury inventory, and normal owner balances need separate treatment. Token-transfer ability is also different from the liquidity available to sell them.
What does locked mean?
A token lock or vesting arrangement restricts when a holder can access inventory. A cliff releases units at a specified point; linear or staged vesting releases portions over time. A lock delays potential selling rather than guaranteeing a holder will sell or permanently removing supply.
A liquidity lock restricts control over a liquidity position; it is not a lock on every team token. The next chapter explains that distinction. Locking is not universally mandatory for creating a token. Platform requirements and project promises must be checked individually.
How to investigate it
| Question | Evidence to inspect | What can remain unresolved |
|---|---|---|
| What is locked? | Exact mint, units, locking contract or position ID | An unrelated lock badge or a screenshot |
| When does it release? | Start, cliff, schedule, already vested and claimable units | Remaining lock time alone may hide accrued claimable inventory |
| Who benefits? | Beneficiary, controller, claim/transfer rights | Economic ownership behind an address |
| Can terms change? | Revocation, cancellation, upgrade, admin and release rights | A “locked” label without actual contract terms |
| How much is sellable now? | Current owner balances plus already available releases, with restrictions identified | Unknown wallets, other custody, unsupported float definitions |
Use the explorer and documented vesting tool to open the real arrangement. Record next unlock amount and date alongside present holdings. Do not subtract every treasury balance or LP holding as if it were permanently unsellable.
Practical case — illustrative
A team has a disclosed 20% allocation, of which 5% is already transferable and 15% vests later. Immediate attributed owner pressure differs from a fully unlocked 20% holding, but the next releases matter. A nominal 12-month vesting label does not tell you whether some units are claimable today.
What does the result mean?
Your 3% rule is a screen you choose for the relevant available ownership, not a universal rule for every builder allocation. Keep locked concentration visible as future supply context. A promise of later unlocking is not proof of malicious distribution; it is a condition the trader must plan to reassess.
Check your understanding — answered
Locked means burned? No. Unlocked dev tokens automatically scam? No; they are potentially sellable inventory. Concentration drops after splitting addresses? No change in economic control is established by splitting alone.
Illustrations teach mechanisms; they are not live token assessments. Inspect can orient sampled trades; wallet attribution and control checks may require external evidence.