> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://zerotick-trade.gitbook.io/documentation.v1.2/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://zerotick-trade.gitbook.io/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections.md).
# Bonding Curve Protections
Every token launched on the ZeroTick bonding curve carries a set of fairness protections. Some are always on and cannot be switched off. Others are set by the creator at launch, and every value the creator picks is published on the token card and the trade page, so buyers can read a launch before they buy it. This page covers what each protection does, how the colour badges work, what a creator can and cannot change, and what happens at graduation.
### Two kinds of protection
Protections fall into two groups.
**Always on.** Anti-Insider and Anti-Bundle apply to every launch. There is no setting, no toggle, and no way for a creator to weaken them.
**Configurable.** Anti-Whale, Buy limit, Anti-Snipe (fee and window), and Sell throttle are chosen by the creator at launch. Each one ships with a recommended value already filled in. Quick launch uses those recommended values as they are. Advanced launch lets the creator change them.
Once a token launches, every protection value is frozen into the curve. There is no instruction, for the creator or for ZeroTick, that can change them later. What you see on the token card is what the token will run on for the whole of its curve.
### The traffic light
Each configurable protection gets its own colour badge, and the actual value is always shown next to it. There is no single score and no combined rating: a token can be green on one protection and red on another, and both are shown plainly.
| Colour | What it means |
| ------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Green | Inside the recommended range. |
| Orange | Beyond the recommended range, but moderate. |
| Red | Well beyond the recommended range, or the protection is switched off. |
Two rules explain every badge:
* **Lower is safer.** For every configurable protection, a smaller number is tighter and greener. A larger number gives more room to whales, to large single trades, or to a longer elevated fee window.
* **Off is red.** Turning off a cap (Anti-Whale, Buy limit, or the Anti-Snipe fee) means no protection at all, which is the riskiest setting, so it shows red rather than green.
Orange and red are allowed. A creator can set a loose cap and the token still launches. It simply launches wearing the colour, with the number beside it, everywhere the token appears.
#### Recommended values and accepted ranges
The defaults below are recommendations. The accepted range in the last column is the real boundary, and it differs by protection: Anti-Whale and the Buy limit run the whole way from off to 100%, while the Anti-Snipe fee, its window, and the sell throttle accept only the values shown. A value outside its accepted range is rejected when it is set, rejected again by the server, and rejected on-chain. Out-of-range values are never quietly brought back down to the nearest allowed number, and the allowed range is shown when a value is refused.
| Protection | Default | Green | Orange | Red | Accepted values |
| --------------------------- | ---------- | ----------------- | --------------------- | ----------------------------- | ----------------------- |
| Anti-Whale | 2% | above 0 up to 10% | above 10% up to 25% | above 25%, or off | 0% (off) to 100% |
| Buy limit (per transaction) | 1% | above 0 up to 5% | above 5% up to 12.5% | above 12.5%, or off | 0% (off) to 100% |
| Anti-Snipe start fee | 75% | 60% to 75% | above 75% up to 82.5% | above 82.5% up to 90%, or off | 0% (off), or 60% to 90% |
| Anti-Snipe window | 75 seconds | 0 to 75 seconds | 76 to 300 seconds | 301 to 600 seconds | 0 to 600 seconds |
| Sell throttle | 60 seconds | 0 to 300 seconds | 301 to 1800 seconds | 1801 to 3600 seconds | 0 to 3600 seconds |
Percentages are shares of total supply.
{% hint style="warning" %}
A creator can set a 50% or 60% wallet cap and the launch will go through. It will show deep red on the token card, with the number next to it, for as long as the token is on the curve. Read the badges before you buy.
{% endhint %}
### Always-on protections
#### Anti-Insider
Anti-Insider is a fair reveal. ZeroTick does not disclose the contract address before go-live, and it is revealed to everyone at the same moment, so nobody can buy before everyone else can.
This is a platform guarantee about how ZeroTick handles the launch, not a rule enforced inside the contract. It does not stop the creator from buying once trading is open: they can buy like anyone else, at the same price, and paying the same elevated Anti-Snipe fee, which goes entirely into the pool. The per-transaction buy limit and the Anti-Whale cap apply to them exactly as to any other wallet. A team allocation is a separate thing, set aside at creation and held in a vesting escrow rather than bought on the curve.
#### Anti-Bundle
Anti-Bundle is structural. A buy can only deliver tokens to the wallet that signed for them. On Solana the receiving token account must be owned by the buyer; on EVM chains the tokens go to the sending address. One transaction therefore cannot fan supply out across a set of prepared wallets.
The alternative, splitting a bundle across many separate transactions, runs into the other rules: each transaction is capped by the Buy limit, and each one pays the elevated Anti-Snipe fee while the window is open. There is no separate penalty layered on top; the structure is the protection.
### Configurable protections
#### Anti-Whale
Anti-Whale caps how much of the total supply any single wallet can buy from the curve. The recommended value is 2%, which means one wallet cannot buy more than 2% of the token from the curve. A higher cap lets one buyer corner a larger share, which gives that wallet more influence over the price if it decides to sell.
A disclosed team allocation sits in the vesting escrow and is never counted against Anti-Whale.
#### Buy limit
The Buy limit caps the size of any single transaction, on buys and on sells. The recommended value is 1% of supply per transaction. A higher limit allows larger single trades, which move the price further in one step. This limit is also what makes multi-transaction bundling expensive rather than free.
#### Anti-Snipe
For the opening moments of a launch, trades pay an elevated fee that decays back to the standard 2% over the Anti-Snipe window. The recommended start is 75%, decaying over 75 seconds. The point is to make it uneconomic to snipe the first block of a launch, while an honest buyer who waits a minute pays the normal fee.
Everything above the standard 2% goes to the pool. It is added to the curve reserve and rides into the graduation pool, which benefits every holder. Neither the creator nor ZeroTick receives any part of it; both keep only their share of the base 2%. That removes any reason for a creator to snipe their own launch.
A longer window means the elevated fee lasts longer, which is harder on snipers and equally hard on fast honest buyers.
#### Sell throttle
The Sell throttle paces how often one wallet can sell, which softens a coordinated dump into something slower and more visible. The recommended value is 60 seconds between sells per wallet. A longer throttle slows selling further, but it also slows down anyone who simply wants out.
### Allocation and vesting
In Advanced launch, a creator can allocate part of the supply to team, marketing, or community wallets. There is no cap on that allocation, but there is no hiding it either: the amount is disclosed on the token and on project cards, and a large unvested allocation shows honestly on the insider badge.
That allocation can be vested. The cliff anchors at graduation, so nothing starts unlocking until the token has graduated to a DEX. After the cliff, release is linear and continuous, and the vested portion can be claimed at any time as it accrues.
* **Cliff options:** none, 1 week, 2 weeks, 3 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 6 months, or 12 months.
* **Vesting period options:** none, 1 week, 2 weeks, 3 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, or 24 months.
### Coming in V2
#### Anti-MEV
Anti-MEV combines randomized ordering with commit-reveal, so the sequence and content of pending trades cannot be read and front-run. It is shown in the app as coming in V2 and is not settable yet.
### What changes at graduation
When a token reaches its graduation threshold, it migrates to a DEX and trades from a normal liquidity pool. From that point it is an open market, and the trade-time protections stop applying.
| | On the curve | After graduation |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------ |
| Anti-Whale | Active | Ends |
| Buy limit | Active | Ends |
| Anti-Snipe fee and window | Active at launch, then decays to the standard fee | Already ended |
| Sell throttle | Active | Ends |
| Anti-Bundle | Active | Ends |
| Anti-Insider (fair reveal) | Applies once, at go-live | Complete |
| Allocation vesting | Held in escrow | Continues, cliff starts here |
| Migrated liquidity | Not yet created | Locked or burned, depending on venue |
The two things that outlast the curve are the vesting schedule, which only begins at graduation, and the liquidity itself. See [ZeroTick Bonding Curve](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/zerotick-bonding-curve.md) for what happens to liquidity on each migration venue.
### Common questions
Can a creator change protections after the token launches?
No. Every protection value is frozen into the curve state at launch. There is no instruction for anyone, including ZeroTick, to change them afterwards. The values shown on the token card at launch are the values it runs on.
Does an orange or red protection block a launch?
No. A creator can set values well beyond the recommended range and the token still launches. What changes is the badge: the protection shows orange or red, with the actual value next to it, on the token card and the trade page.
Is there an overall safety score?
No. Each protection stands on its own, with its own colour and its own number. There is no composite rating that could average a red away.
Who receives the elevated Anti-Snipe fee?
The pool. The portion above the standard 2% is added to the curve reserve and carried into the graduation pool, so it benefits every holder. The creator receives none of it, and neither does ZeroTick.
Does a team allocation count against the Anti-Whale cap?
No. A disclosed allocation sits in the vesting escrow, which is separate from the Anti-Whale cap. The allocation is shown on the token and on project cards instead.
What happens if a value outside the accepted range is entered?
It is refused, and the allowed range is shown. The value is checked when it is set, again by the server, and again on-chain. It is never adjusted down to the nearest allowed number without the creator knowing.
### Related pages
| Page | What it covers |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| [Anti-Insider](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/anti-insider.md) | Fair reveal: the contract address is published to everyone at the same moment. |
| [Anti-Bundle](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/anti-bundle.md) | Why one transaction cannot spread a buy across many wallets. |
| [Anti-Snipe](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/anti-snipe.md) | The elevated launch fee, the decay window, and where the extra goes. |
| [Anti-Whale](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/anti-whale.md) | The cap on how much supply one wallet can buy from the curve, and its bands. |
| [Buy limit](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/buy-limit.md) | The cap on the size of any single buy or sell. |
| [Sell throttle](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/sell-throttle.md) | How often one wallet can sell, and what that does to a dump. |
| [Vesting](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/vesting.md) | Cliffs that start at graduation, then linear release. |
| [Anti-MEV](/documentation.v1.2/token-launch/bonding-curve-protections/anti-mev.md) | Randomized ordering and commit-reveal, coming in V2. |