The March Edition of the Astar Community Call marked one of the most important moments in recent months for the Astar ecosystem. During the call, several key topics were covered, each helping define the network’s new direction more clearly: from the activation of Tokenomics 3.0 to the major overhaul of dApp Staking, along with the new Astar Portal, governance updates, and a more concrete first introduction to AstarFi within the broader Astar Stack vision.
The overall message was very clear: Astar wants to evolve, simplify its structure, improve the user experience, and most importantly build more sustainable mechanisms and products for the long term. This is no longer just about infrastructure. It is about an ecosystem that wants to focus on quality, real utility, and long-term value for the $ASTR token and the wider community.
One of the central topics of the call was, naturally, Tokenomics 3.0, which is now live and was presented as the result of a long community-driven process that began in May 2025. During the call, it was emphasized several times that this evolution was not born from a unilateral decision, but from a process built with contributions from the community, the Foundation, and the ecosystem’s governance bodies.
Among the most important changes is the move to a maximum supply fixed at 10 billion $ASTR. This was described as a real hard cap, not just an indicative threshold. At the same time, it was also noted that through future burn initiatives and possible developments related to Burndrop, the effective supply could end up being even lower.
Another key change is the reduction of maximum inflation from 7% to 5.5%. It was also clarified that this figure represents the theoretical upper ceiling, while current real inflation is said to be around 3%. This matters because it helps correct superficial interpretations of the numbers and shows that the new economic structure is designed to be far more disciplined and sustainable than before.
On top of that, annual emissions are being reduced by around 129-130 million $ASTR, while 80% of gas fees continue to be permanently burned. In short, Tokenomics 3.0 is intended to push Astar toward a more structured, less inflationary model that is better aligned with protecting value over time.
One of the strongest ideas that emerged during the call was the concept of “collective execution.” Astar clearly wanted to frame Tokenomics 3.0 not as a reform imposed from above, but as the outcome of a shared process of listening, discussion, and refinement.
The Foundation certainly played an important role in starting the conversation and shaping the initial draft, but the final result was described as the product of months of dialogue involving contributors, councils, community members, stakers, and other ecosystem participants. It was also explained that Astar’s structure itself, thanks to governance-adjustable parameters, allows tokenomics to evolve in a flexible way over time.
This matters not only from a communication standpoint, but also from a broader governance perspective. Astar wants to present itself as a network where governance is not just symbolic, but a real mechanism capable of shaping major decisions.
Another fundamental section of the call focused on the major overhaul of dApp Staking, one of the core mechanisms of the Astar ecosystem. Here, the change was significant and direct.
The new model reduces the number of eligible projects from 72 to 16, with the stated goal of moving away from quantity and toward quality. According to the call, the previous system suffered from several issues: rewards were too diluted, too many inactive or low-value projects remained in the system, the experience was overly complex for users, and incentives were not concentrated enough on the most strategic builders.
Under the new model, the tiers are reduced to 2:
Tier 2 with 6 slots
Tier 3 with 10 slots
The bonus rewards mechanism is also being removed, as it was considered too complex and inefficient from a user experience perspective. The staking cycle is also changing significantly, moving to a yearly structure, designed to make participation easier and less fragmented.
The message here is simple: less dispersion, less noise, more selection, and a stronger ability to direct rewards and attention toward projects that are considered genuinely valuable to the ecosystem.
Connected to the new dApp Staking model is the strengthened role of the Astar Community Council (ACC), which was presented as one of the main actors responsible for ongoing project monitoring.
This is not simply about picking 16 names and leaving them untouched. During the call, it was explained that the ACC will take a more active role in checking whether selected projects remain aligned with the required standards, stay active, continue delivering value to the ecosystem, and maintain a meaningful and useful presence for the community.
That means the new dApp Staking is not only more selective, but also more curated, with a higher degree of oversight and review compared to the past. Astar wants to avoid situations where projects remain in the system without continuing to provide meaningful value.
The call also stressed that the new model is not meant to remove the attractiveness of staking. On the contrary, it was stated that rewards remain competitive, with an APR around 10% for users participating in dApp Staking.
The difference compared to the past is that the system is now trying to find a more sustainable balance. Rewards may be somewhat less aggressive in absolute terms, but they are much more consistent with a framework aimed at reducing inflationary pressure and better protecting the value of $ASTR over the medium and long term.
Another major topic of the call was the redesign of the Astar Portal, which serves as the main access point for staking, asset management, governance, and other key ecosystem functions.
The new Portal was presented as a cleaner, simpler platform with a refreshed visual identity. The main sections mentioned were Assets, Stake, Bridge, Analytics, Governance, and News, with some updates already live and further improvements expected over the coming weeks.
The most significant change, however, relates to the wallet experience. Michi explained that one of the long-standing pain points for many users, especially newcomers, has been the distinction between EVM-side and Substrate-side wallets and addresses. Concepts like H160, SS58, and transfers between different address formats have often caused confusion.
The new Portal is designed to reduce that friction. Users will be able to connect EVM wallets and Substrate wallets more clearly, use them together, and handle actions that previously required more complicated steps or technical documentation. The goal is to make the experience far more guided and intuitive, both for users staking and for those moving assets or interacting with centralized exchanges.
It was also mentioned that there is still access to the legacy portal for those who may need it during the transition period.
To support this new dApp Staking phase, Astar will also launch a campaign called “16 Lights Into Build,” designed to highlight the 16 selected projects and help the community better understand them.
The idea is simple but important: over the coming weeks, the selected projects will be showcased one by one, explaining what they do, what value they bring to the ecosystem, and why they may be an interesting choice for users who want to stake their $ASTR.
This campaign serves a double purpose. On one side, it gives visibility to the selected builders. On the other, it has a strong educational value, helping users better understand the new staking system and make more informed decisions. In a moment of major change, guiding the community with clear informational content is both important and necessary.
The call once again reinforced that governance remains one of the core pillars of Astar’s structure. All major recent decisions, including the updates to tokenomics and staking, have gone through formal governance processes.
One particularly useful point that was highlighted is that users can use their $ASTR both for dApp Staking and for governance voting at the same time, without having to unstake in order to participate in referenda. This is important because it lowers both the psychological and practical barriers to participation.
The Foundation also suggested that governance will increasingly be used in a concrete way, including to evaluate whether certain funded tools or services still make sense for the community or not. In that way, governance becomes not only a way to approve major reforms, but also a mechanism for continuously assessing whether real value is being delivered across the ecosystem.
Among the additional points mentioned during the call was the path toward a possible shift from USD-based compensation to $ASTR-based compensation for contributors and ecosystem participants.
This is interesting because it reflects a desire to align internal incentives more closely with the token itself. In other words, contributors would be rewarded in a way that is more directly connected to the growth, sustainability, and performance of Astar.
This strengthens the idea of a more cohesive community, one that is increasingly aligned with the network’s long-term interests.
The final part of the call introduced one of the most interesting and potentially strategic topics: AstarFi and the broader vision known as Astar Stack.
AstarFi was presented as a kind of Web3 neobank or on-chain finance hub, designed to help users manage their money, assets, and financial planning directly on-chain. The features described, still at an early stage, include tools for saving, earn products, wealth management, and in the future potentially even integrations with real-world spending and payment solutions.
Beyond the individual features, the most important point is the strategic direction this initiative represents. Martin was very direct: in his view, the simple model of a general-purpose blockchain is no longer enough. Astar wants to move toward a product-first approach, building real tools that people actually use and that create tangible value for the ecosystem.
This may be the most significant part of the vision presented during the call. It is not just about optimizing staking and tokenomics anymore, but about redefining Astar’s role in the Web3 landscape, shifting from being just a chain to becoming an ecosystem of usable products.
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