Arbitrum, ApeCoin in focus ahead of big token unlocks

Arbitrum and ApeCoin prices will be in the spotlight this week as their networks unlock millions of tokens. 

ApeCoin (APE) token was trading at $0.756, up by 57% from its lowest point in August, while Arbitrum (ARB) was stuck at $0.5345, where it has been at in the past few weeks.

Arbitrum will unlock 93 million tokens

The two coins will be in focus as their dilution continues. Arbitrum will unlock 93.2 million new tokens on Monday, Sep. 16. This unlock will bring the number of coins in circulation to over 3.52 billion. 

Arbitrum will still have more unlocks to go since it has a total supply of 10 billion tokens, with the last unlock expected to happen in April 2027. 

This unlock will happen at a time when Arbitrum’s ecosystem is going through a challenging period. Data by Nansen shows that the number of active addresses has dropped to 455,000, down from the year-to-date high of 1.50 million. 

The number of daily deployments in the blockchain has dropped to 8,600 from the year-to-date high of 32,750. Also, transaction count dropped by over 24% in the last 24 hours to 1.07 billion.

Arbitrum has been passed by Base Blockchain in the decentralized exchange industry. The volume of transactions in its DEX networks dropped by 20% in the last seven days to $2.7 billion while Base handled $2.91 billion.

ApeCoin token unlock ahead

ApeCoin, the cryptocurrency started by Yuga Labs, will unlock 15.38 million tokens on Sep. 17. This event will bring the number of coins in circulation to 620 million.

ApeCoin has a maximum supply of 1 billion coins and 15.3 million are released each month. The final unlock will happen in March 2026.

There’s also the upcoming ApeChain launch. ApeChain will be a layer-2 network and enable developers to build applications across the gaming, decentralized finance, non-fungible tokens, and decentralized public infrastructure industries. 

Token unlocks are often seen as bearish events in the crypto industry because they dilute existing holders. They also reduce the staking yield received by investors since most of these tokens flow to staking pools. 

ApeCoin and Arbitrum will also react to the upcoming Federal Reserve interest rate decision on Wednesday.

Economists expect the bank to deliver its first interest rate cut since 2020 since U.S. inflation has eased while the unemployment rate remains above 4%. In most cases, cryptocurrencies and other risk assets do well when the Fed has embraced a dovish tone.