Floor vs Market Price
Floor vs. Market Price
Starbase tokens have two prices:
Market Price: the price you trade at (moves up and down)
Floor Price: the guaranteed minimum redemption price (only goes up)
This is the core mechanic that makes Starbase different from typical token markets.
Market Price
Market Price is the price you see when buying or selling.
Determined by supply and demand from buyers and sellers
Set by a pricing formula (often called a bonding curve)
Can go up or down based on trading activity
If “bonding curve” sounds technical: it just means “the price adjusts automatically as people buy and sell.” It's the relationship between a.) the number of tokens issued to buyers, and b.) the price the buyer pays for that token.
Floor Price
Floor Price is the guaranteed minimum value of each token.
Backed by protocol reserves
Designed so the protocol can buy back the entire token supply at the floor price
Can only increase — never decreases
Typically rises as trading activity adds to the reserves that back the floor
Key idea: Floor Price is supported by reserves.
How the floor protects you
Your maximum loss is the difference between what you paid and the floor price at the time you buy.
Example
You buy at $1.00
The floor is $0.80
Your maximum loss (if you redeem at floor) is $0.20, or 20% — not 99% like most launchpads.
Redemption (exit at the floor)
At any time, you can redeem your tokens at the Floor Price.
What happens when you redeem:
You receive USDC equal to
tokens × floor priceRedeemed tokens are removed from circulation
The Floor Price for remaining holders stays the same or can rise over time (it does not go down)
This is really only useful if the Market Price = the Floor Price, otherwise selling at the market price would yield more USDC for your tokens.
Why the floor rises
A portion of each trade contributes to the reserves backing the floor.
As reserves grow:
The protocol can raise the floor only when there’s enough backing to support it
That increase is programmatic and will occur if there is sufficient liquidity within the token market
This results in the floor price rising (if it can) after each trade of the token.
Floor Price can only be raised when reserves can support it. Starbase doesn’t “declare” a floor — it earns it via backing.
Common questions
Does the floor guarantee profit?
No. It guarantees a minimum redemption value that can rise over time. The Market Price can still be above or near the floor, and outcomes depend on when you buy/sell.
Can the floor ever go down?
By design, no.
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