What Are “Vesting Schedules” and How Do They Impact the Distribution of Governance Tokens?

Vesting schedules are contractual agreements that dictate when and how a certain amount of tokens (usually allocated to founders, team members, and early investors) will be released over a specified period. They impact the distribution of governance tokens by preventing a large, sudden dump of tokens that could crash the price or grant excessive voting power to insiders immediately after launch.

A typical schedule includes a "cliff" period followed by linear release, which promotes long-term commitment and gradual decentralization of governance power.