Aero for Token Operators

Questions and answers for sAERO holders: what a Token Operator is, how Allocation Power works, how to stake, and how Exchange Revenue is earned and claimed.

Getting started

What is a Token Operator?

A Token Operator is an sAERO holder who directs Allocation Power to liquidity pools and keeps a share of the protocol's Exchange Revenue in return. The role sits at the center of Aero's flywheel: Token Operators stake AERO to receive sAERO, direct AERO Rewards to productive pools, those rewards attract liquidity providers, trading generates revenue, and that revenue flows back to the Token Operators who directed it.

What is sAERO?

sAERO is what AERO becomes when it is staked. It is an ERC-721, not a fungible token: each sAERO stake is an NFT with its own amount, stake period, and accrued revenue, and it holds the Allocation Power for that stake.

How does a Token Operator earn?

By holding sAERO and allocating it to pools. Exchange Revenue from the pools a stake allocates to accrues to that stake continuously. The more Allocation Power a stake directs to a pool, the larger its share of that pool's revenue.

Allocation Power

What is Allocation Power?

Allocation Power is the amount of AERO Rewards an sAERO stake can direct to liquidity pools. It is also the measure that sets a stake's share of Exchange Revenue from each pool it allocates to.

What determines how much Allocation Power a stake has?

Two things: the amount of AERO staked and the length of the stake period. More AERO increases Allocation Power proportionally. A longer staking period raises the starting Allocation Power. All Fixed stakes decay at the same rate. A Perpetual Stake does not decay.

Stake periods

What is a Perpetual Stake?

AERO is staked for the maximum 4-year period and Allocation Power stays at full strength for the entire duration without decaying. The stake remains active indefinitely at full Allocation Power unless the Token Operator chooses to withdraw, at which point the decay begins.

What is a Fixed stake period?

AERO is staked for 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, or 4 years. Allocation Power decays linearly as the period winds down and reaches zero when it ends, at which point the underlying AERO becomes available for withdrawal. Fixed periods return capital sooner but with declining influence over time.

How does Allocation Power decay on a Fixed stake?

Allocation Power equals the AERO staked times the time remaining divided by 4 years, so every stake loses the same amount per year. A 4-year stake starts at 100% and reads 75%, 50%, 25% and 0% at years 1 to 4. A 2-year stake of 1,000 AERO starts at 50% (500) and reaches 0 after 2 years.

What happens when a Fixed stake period ends?

Allocation Power is zero and the AERO is available to withdraw. Withdrawal is manual: the Token Operator visits the dashboard and claims the AERO from the expired stake.

Autopilot and Manual

What is the difference between Autopilot and Manual?

They are the two management styles for an sAERO stake, chosen at staking time. With Autopilot, an Aero-governed strategy directs Allocation Power and processes rewards automatically. With Manual, the Token Operator selects which pools receive Allocation Power, adjusts allocations over time, and claims rewards on their own schedule.

Can a stake switch from Autopilot to Manual?

Yes, but the Perpetual Stake period stays in place. Switching to Manual later does not unstake the stake or shorten the stake.

How does Autopilot handle rewards?

According to the reward processing option chosen at staking time. Compounder compounds Exchange Revenue back into the sAERO stake, converting it to additional AERO staked within the stake so Allocation Power grows over time. Converter converts Exchange Revenue to a liquid token, typically USDC, and sends it to the Token Operator's wallet without any manual claiming.

Allocating

How does allocation work?

Token Operators direct Allocation Power to pools on Aero continuously. There are no epochs or proposal windows. Allocation is a direct action on pools with simple rules and a cooldown.

How does a Manual Token Operator direct Allocation Power?

They select which pools should receive their Allocation Power and in what proportion. Allocation can be concentrated in a single pool or split across several. Once submitted, the allocation takes effect immediately and begins accruing Exchange Revenue right away.

What makes a pool productive for a Token Operator?

Trading volume and the revenue it generates. A pool that carries more trading produces more Exchange Revenue for the Token Operators allocating to it.

What is the 47-hour cooldown?

After an allocation is submitted, a 47-hour cooldown begins for that sAERO stake before its allocation can be changed again. The cooldown applies per stake, so a Token Operator with several stakes can adjust them on independent schedules. Revenue continues to accrue during the cooldown. The cooldown prevents rapid manipulation of allocations and gives allocation decisions a consistent time horizon.

How does Autopilot allocate?

An automated strategy governed by Aero allocates the stake's Allocation Power to pools continuously, aiming to direct rewards toward productive pools without any action from the Token Operator. Once Autopilot is selected, allocation adjustments happen automatically based on the strategy's logic.

Does allocation work across networks?

One sAERO stake on the home network, Base, can direct Allocation Power to pools on every connected network. There is no separate stake per network.

Is there a penalty for allocating differently from other Token Operators?

No. Minority allocations do not trigger slashing or any loss of staked capital. Allocation is a governance mechanism, not a consensus mechanism with punitive outcomes.

Exchange Revenue

What is Exchange Revenue?

The share of pool revenue that flows to the Token Operators who allocated Allocation Power to that pool. It comes from trade fees, MEV capture, Liquidity Payments and Launch Payments (incentives funded by projects), and other protocol fees.

How is Exchange Revenue divided among Token Operators?

In proportion to Allocation Power. A Token Operator's share of a pool's Exchange Revenue equals their Allocation Power directed to that pool relative to all Allocation Power directed there. If one Token Operator directs 30% of a pool's Allocation Power, they receive 30% of that pool's Exchange Revenue.

Which trading fees flow to Token Operators?

All of the trading fees from AERO-earning liquidity deposits, where the liquidity provider takes AERO Rewards instead of fees. This is the primary revenue source. Token Operators also keep a portion of the fees generated by fee-earning deposits, where the liquidity provider keeps fee income instead of AERO Rewards. The size of that portion is set by protocol governance.

How is Exchange Revenue paid?

It accrues continuously to sAERO stakes as pools generate trading activity. With Manual management, the Token Operator claims it through the Aero dashboard whenever they choose. With Autopilot, it is processed automatically by Compounder or Converter.

Is Exchange Revenue guaranteed?

No. It fluctuates with protocol adoption and trading volume. Pools with higher volume generate more revenue, and if trading volume falls, Token Operator earnings fall with it. Governance votes may also adjust allocation rules or fee splits, which affects future revenue.

Claiming

How does claiming work with Manual management?

Revenue accrues continuously and can be claimed at any time through the Aero dashboard. There is no window to wait for, no epoch to complete, and no required claim frequency. A Token Operator can claim as often as they like or let revenue accumulate.

Can claims be batched?

Yes. Long-running stakes can accumulate substantial revenue, and the Aero interface supports batch claiming so claims can be processed in chunks to manage transaction costs.

Does Autopilot require claiming?

No. Rewards are processed automatically by the Compounder or Converter option chosen at staking time. Accrued revenue is still visible on the dashboard.

Staking AERO

How do I stake AERO and receive sAERO?

Open the Aero app, go to the Stake section, and select Create New. The flow then runs:

• Choose Autopilot or Manual management. This sets allocation behavior and reward processing for the life of the stake.
• Set the stake period (Manual only): Perpetual Stake, or a Fixed period of 6 months to 4 years. Autopilot uses a Perpetual Stake and skips this step.
• Enter the amount of AERO to stake. The interface shows the resulting sAERO stake details and confirms the stake period.
• Purchase AERO if the wallet does not hold enough. A purchase option appears in the interface.
• Review the sAERO amount, management style, and stake period. Approve the token transfer if prompted, then confirm.

What should I understand before staking?

The stake commitment. A Perpetual Stake is a 4-year minimum commitment. A Fixed period is shorter but its Allocation Power decays. The choice of Autopilot or Manual is also made at this point and sets how the stake is managed.

What can I do once the stake exists?

The sAERO stake appears on the Aero dashboard. From there a Token Operator can view current Allocation Power and stake period, direct Allocation Power to pools (Manual only), monitor accrued Exchange Revenue, claim revenue (Manual only), and extend or adjust stake periods (Manual only).