Ondo Finance is set to release 1.94 billion ONDO tokens on January 18, a move that will unlock over 130% of the current circulating supply of the token. This substantial unlock is part of a broader wave of token releases expected to stir volatility in the altcoin market. According to Tokenomist’s unlock schedule, this week’s events will free up a total of $3 billion worth of tokens across various projects, including ONDO, ARB, STRK, and SEI—marking the largest unlocking since November.

The ONDO token is at the forefront of this release, as it will see $2.23 billion worth of tokens unlocked. This is far higher than ONDO’s typical daily trading volume, which has been fluctuating between $250 million and $300 million.

Token unlocks involve gradually releasing tokens that were initially frozen to prevent early investors and project teams from dumping large amounts of coins into the market. While these releases are designed to avoid disrupting the market, large unlocks, such as the ONDO release, can sometimes lead to increased volatility, especially when the amount being unlocked is much greater than the average trading volume.

Research from The Tie suggests that when token unlocks match or exceed the daily trading volume, volatility is often seen both leading up to and following the event.

Currently, ONDO’s price has fallen to $1.14, marking a 5% drop for the day and nearly a 15% decrease month-to-date. The price has been on a decline since reaching an all-time high of over $2.10 in mid-December, as per TradingView data.