> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.berachain.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# BERA Token
> Gas token, staking, tokenomics, and how to get BERA.
BERA serves as the native gas and staking token of Berachain, the first blockchain powered by Proof-of-Liquidity.
## Role of BERA
BERA is both the gas token and the PoL emission token (as WBERA):
### Transaction fees
BERA pays for transactions on Berachain. Fees are burned, reducing circulating supply. [Explore the Berachain Ecosystem](https://ecosystem.berachain.com/).
### PoL emissions
Block rewards are emitted as \$WBERA (wrapped BERA, 1:1). Each block emits a **base rate** (0.4 WBERA) to the validator operator and a **reward rate** (1.305 WBERA) routed through BeraChef to Reward Vaults. WBERA is the single emission token for Proof of Liquidity.
### Validator staking
Validators stake BERA to enter the active set (top 69 by stake). Block-production probability is proportional to staked BERA. Additional stakers can deposit BERA to a validator directly via `BeaconDeposit.deposit()` or through a [Staking Pool](/nodes/staking-pools/overview) via `submit()`.
### \$sWBERA staking
Depositing BERA or WBERA into the [Staking Vault](/general/tokens/swbera) yields \$sWBERA, which earns yield from the [Incentive Auction](/general/proof-of-liquidity/incentives#incentive-fee-settlement).
See [Block Rewards](/general/proof-of-liquidity/block-rewards) for how BERA staking affects block production and emissions.
## Tokenomics
The following documents the fixed supply, allocation, and release schedule for BERA.
### Overview
| Property | Value |
| ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Token name | BERA |
| Total supply at genesis | 500,000,000 BERA |
| Inflation | \~5% annually via PoL reward emissions (distributed as WBERA), subject to governance |
| Decimals | 18 |
### Distribution and allocation
The genesis supply of 500,000,000 BERA is allocated as follows:
**Initial core contributors — 84,000,000 (16.8%)**\
Allocated to advisors and members of Big Bera Labs, the core contributors to the Berachain blockchain.
**Investors — 171,500,000 (34.3%)**\
Allocated to Seed, Series A, and Series B investors.
**Community allocations — 244,500,000 (48.9%)**
**Airdrop — 79,000,000 (15.8%)**\
Distributed to testnet users, Berachain and ecosystem NFT holders, social supporters, ecosystem dApps, and community builders. See the [Blog airdrop overview](https://blog.berachain.com/blog/berachain-airdrop-overview) for details.
**Future community initiatives — 65,500,000 (13.1%)**\
Reserved for incentive programs, grants, and other initiatives, with community input via Snapshots, RFPs, and similar mechanisms.
**Ecosystem & R\&D — 100,000,000 (20%)**\
Used for ecosystem development, R\&D, growth, and Berachain Foundation operations: developer programs ([Boyco](https://boyco.berachain.com/)), node operator delegations, and Proof-of-Liquidity evolution. At launch, 9.5% of total BERA supply from this bucket is unlocked for ecosystem growth, developer tooling, liquidity provisioning, and related uses.
### Token release schedule
All allocated parties share the same vesting terms:
* **Cliff:** 1 year; no tokens unlock before the cliff.
* **Initial unlock:** After the cliff, 1/6 of the allocated amount unlocks.
* **Linear vesting:** The remaining 5/6 vests linearly over the following 24 months.
