## Token Unlock Wave Approaching: Over $566 Million Stress Test Hits Crypto Market

The crypto market is facing a liquidity test this week. According to data compiled by Wu Blockchain from CoinGecko, over the next seven days, the market will experience token unlock events exceeding $566 million. This wave of releases includes two main sources of pressure: sudden large unlocks and continuous releases. Together, they are expected to significantly impact market sentiment and price trends in the short term.

## Large Unlocks Trigger On-Chain Liquidity Surge

This week’s most notable events are those with single unlocks exceeding $5 million. Tokens such as HYPE, XPL, JUP, KMNO, OP, ZORA, H, and SAHARA are among them. Early investors and supporters of these projects will gain substantial liquidity, creating clear profit-taking opportunities.

Particularly, the ecosystem star tokens JUP and OP have large institutional and retail backing. When these projects release large amounts of tokens, the market typically faces a tug-of-war between two opposing forces: holders eager to realize gains and new buyers seeking to buy the dip. In the short term, this struggle often leads to increased price volatility.

In contrast, for relatively newer projects like ZORA, H, and SAHARA, their unlock events may trigger more intense selling pressure. Investors in these projects tend to hold for shorter periods, and once the unlock period arrives, there is a higher probability of concentrated selling. This not only releases a large volume of tokens into the market but also shakes market confidence in the project’s fundamentals.

## Linear Releases Create Long-Term Pressure

Unlike single large unlocks, daily releases of tokens such as SOL, TRUMP, WLD, DOGE, ASTER, AVAX, TAO, ZEC, and ETHFI—though each day’s amount (over $1 million) appears moderate—form a sustained outflow that creates psychological pressure that is harder to digest. The total linear unlock of over $566 million indicates that selling pressure is not a one-day event but a continuous bearish factor throughout the week.

Among these tokens, SOL and AVAX, as major ecosystem hubs, their unlock events will directly impact liquidity supply within the DeFi ecosystem. As the supply of infrastructure tokens increases, transaction costs and slippage across the entire ecosystem may rise, potentially suppressing trading activity.

The market’s ability to absorb this wave of unlocks will directly influence the volatility this week. If institutional investors and on-chain market makers continue to buy to hedge against selling pressure, prices may remain relatively stable; conversely, if there is insufficient buying support, token unlocks could serve as clear downward catalysts.

## What Investors Should Watch

This week’s key focus is on monitoring on-chain liquidity indicators and exchange net inflow data. When large amounts of tokens flow into exchanges, it often signals imminent sell-offs. Additionally, the fundamental strength of different tokens will influence how well they can handle unlock events—strong projects may absorb unlocks without losing momentum, while weaker tokens could be severely suppressed by these events.