Token
blockchain · asset
A transferable or accountable unit defined by a blockchain protocol, smart contract, or application ledger.
A token is a unit whose ownership or state is tracked under specified rules. It can represent a fungible balance, unique item, claim, permission, vote, receipt, or purely digital asset.
Tokens may be native consensus primitives, smart-contract records, sidechain assets, or custodial database entries. The same name or ticker can exist under many unrelated category IDs, contract addresses, or networks.
Issuance, burning, freezing, upgrading, and transfer restrictions depend on the specific rules and admin keys. "Decentralized token" is not meaningful without identifying who can change or bypass those rules.
A token does not automatically confer legal ownership, redemption, utility, liquidity, or value. Verify network, identifier, supply authority, contract or protocol, metadata source, and any bridge or custodian before relying on it.
Related terms
Fungible Token
→A fungible token has interchangeable units, so each unit of the same token is equivalent for payment, accounting, or trading.
token · standard
Non-Fungible Token (NFT)
→A token unit whose identifier, commitment, or contract state makes it distinguishable from other units.
token · asset
CashTokens
→Native Bitcoin Cash primitives for fungible tokens and non-fungible tokens attached to UTXOs.
bitcoin-cash · token · protocol
ERC-20 Token
→ERC-20 is Ethereum's common fungible token standard, defining transfers, balances, approvals, and supply queries.
eth · token · standard
Tokenomics
→The economic design of a token, including supply, issuance, distribution, utility, incentives, and unlocks.
token · economics