Compute Bond

A zero-coupon bond collateralized by locked coinbase emissions — tokenized for liquid secondary trading.

Zero-coupon Discount-priced Coinbase-collateralized Liquid principal

The instrument

A fixed-term bond. Locked coinbase emissions form the collateral. Holders receive a tokenized principal claim that trades freely until maturity, when it redeems one-for-one against the underlying reward. Technically a zero-coupon discount instrument — a bill in classical taxonomy.

Form

Zero-coupon

No periodic interest. The note is issued at a discount to face value; yield accrues as price pulls to par. Pricing matches a Treasury STRIP or a brokered CD — well-understood instruments with decades of precedent.

Collateral

Locked coinbase

Each note is fully backed by a specific tranche of locked block rewards. Face value is the unlocked reward at maturity. The collateral is protocol-native — not synthesized, not rehypothecated.

Liquidity

Tokenized principal

The note itself is a transferable token. Holders sell into a secondary market at any time without unlocking the underlying collateral. Capital efficiency without breaking the lock.

A bond, not a staking receipt

A Compute Bond is a fixed-income instrument with a defined maturity. It is not a perpetual yield wrapper, not a liquid staking derivative, and not a rebasing token.

Liquid Staking Token

Perpetual yield share

  • No maturity date
  • Rebasing or appreciating balance
  • Redeemable on validator queues
  • Yield depends on ongoing performance
Compute Bond

Fixed-term discount

  • Defined maturity: 3, 6, or 12 months
  • Static face value, discount price
  • Redeems one-for-one at maturity
  • Yield fixed at issuance, locked at the protocol

How pricing works

Price is determined by remaining time to maturity and the prevailing rate at which the market discounts future coinbase. As maturity approaches, price pulls to face value — the same accretion mechanic as a Treasury bill.

P = F / (1 + r)t

A Compute Bond prices like any zero-coupon instrument. Face value F is fixed at issuance — the locked coinbase reward, payable at maturity. Discount rate r is set by the secondary market. Time-to-maturity t shrinks deterministically toward zero.

PCurrent secondary-market price of the bond
FFace value — the unlocked reward at maturity
rImplied discount rate from market trades
tTime remaining until the lock expires

How issuance works

A miner produces a block, elects a lock duration, and receives a tokenized bond. The bond circulates freely; the underlying collateral remains locked at the protocol level until maturity.

01

Block reward locked

A miner mines a block and elects a lock period at the protocol level. The coinbase reward is locked in place for the full term.

02

Bond issued

The lock generates a transferable token representing claim on the unlocked face value at maturity. The bond is issued at a discount.

03

Secondary trading

The miner can hold to maturity for full face value, or sell the bond immediately for present value. Either way, the lock holds.

04

Maturity redemption

At maturity, whoever holds the bond redeems one-for-one against the unlocked reward. The collateral is consumed; the bond is burned.

Term structure

Lock multipliers form the protocol-issued yield curve. Longer terms carry richer multipliers; year-one issuance carries the highest premium and tapers as the network matures.

Tenor
Year 1 Multiplier
Implied APY
Analog
2 weeks
1.000×
Standard maturity, no premium
3 months
1.035×
~14% APY
13-week T-Bill analog
6 months
1.100×
~21% APY
26-week T-Bill analog
12 months
1.250×
25% APY
1-year T-Note analog

Why it works

Real collateral

The note is backed by protocol-locked emissions — not by a counterparty's promise to pay. Default risk is governed by the protocol, not by an issuer.

Defined yield

The premium is set at issuance by the lock multiplier. Holders know the maturity payoff at the moment of purchase.

Liquid principal

Miners get capital flexibility without surrendering the lock premium. Buyers get exposure to a fixed-yield instrument without operating mining hardware.

A real yield curve

Three tenors trading simultaneously produce observable points on a discount curve — the foundation rate that all other derivatives can price against.

Paired with Compute Futures

Two halves of an energy capital market

Spot index, term structure

Compute Futures price the cost of compute today — a perpetual index settled in QUAI against an energy-denominated underlying. Compute Bonds price the cost of compute tomorrow — a fixed-term discount instrument with a defined maturity and a defined face value.

Together they form the two pillars of an energy-denominated capital market: a derivative against the spot index, and a discount curve against locked emissions. Every other instrument — basis trades, calendar spreads, structured yield products — prices off these two surfaces.

A bond on the energy economy.

Lock coinbase. Tokenize the principal. Trade it like any other discount note. Redeem at face value when the term expires.

Pair with Compute Futures Read the protocol spec