Rebasing, reflection, and debasing tokens
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Rebasing, reflection, and debasing tokens all manipulate supply or balances at the contract level to achieve economic goals — most commonly price stabilization. Unlike fixed-supply tokens (e.g., BTC, LTC), whose prices float purely with demand, these tokens intervene algorithmically.
Rebasing tokens
A rebasing token adjusts the total supply at regular intervals — called rebases — to push the per-token price toward a target peg.
- If the price exceeds the peg, the contract mints additional tokens proportionally across all holders, increasing supply and applying downward price pressure.
- If the price falls below the peg, the contract burns tokens (or reduces balances), contracting supply and applying upward pressure.
Holders' token balances change with each rebase, but their proportional share of the total supply remains constant.
Reflection tokens
Reflection tokens operate similarly to rebasing tokens, with one addition: every transfer triggers a fee, and a portion of that fee is redistributed to existing holders automatically. This "reflection" mechanism rewards holding and discourages high-frequency trading.
The key distinction from a pure rebasing token is the transfer fee and its redistribution model.
Debasing tokens
Debasing tokens reduce individual wallet balances over time, effectively diluting each holder's nominal position. Like rebasing, this adjusts supply to influence price — but instead of a symmetric expansion/contraction, debasing applies a consistent downward adjustment to balances.
Wallet display issues
Because these supply adjustments occur within the contract's internal accounting — often without emitting standard transfer events — wallet interfaces may not reflect your true balance in real time. If your displayed balance appears incorrect, query the token contract directly through a block explorer to see your actual holdings.
Compatibility with DEX pools
Rebasing and fee-on-transfer mechanics can interact unpredictably with AMM pool contracts. The CenturionDEX interface may display warnings when it detects these token types. Review the token's documentation and understand its mechanics before swapping or providing liquidity with rebasing, reflection, or debasing tokens.