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Fees and revenue model
The Vaelun protocol fee for Cross-Chain and Private Swaps, what it applies to, and what it does not cover.
Summary
Beginning September 1, 2026, Vaelun will introduce a 0.025% protocol fee for Cross-Chain Swaps and a 0.05% protocol fee for Private Swaps.
The structure is designed to remain simple, transparent and competitive. Both fee tiers are below the commonly used 0.1% benchmark, while Private Swap carries a slightly higher fee to support its additional confidential routing and execution infrastructure.
Vaelun protocol revenue will be allocated across VAEL buybacks, community holder rewards, the protocol treasury, continued product development and marketing, and exchange and ecosystem listing initiatives.
Cross-Chain Swap fee
- Rate
- 0.025% of the swap input amount, which is 2.5 basis points.
- Worked example
- A $1,000 Cross-Chain Swap would have a $0.25 Vaelun protocol fee.
- Applies to
- Public cross-chain and multichain swaps routed through Vaelun's supported providers and networks.
Basis points are hundredths of a percent: 100 bps is 1%, 10 bps is 0.1%, and 2.5 bps is 0.025%.
Private Swap fee
- Rate
- 0.05% of the swap input amount, which is 5 basis points.
- Worked example
- A $1,000 Private Swap would have a $0.50 Vaelun protocol fee.
- Why it is higher
- Private Swap adds confidential routing, execution, tracking, infrastructure and operational resources on top of an ordinary swap. The difference between the two tiers reflects that cost.
How the two tiers compare
Both Vaelun fee tiers are below the commonly used 0.1% benchmark, while keeping the fee structure simple and transparent.
Vaelun does not claim to be the cheapest venue available. Competitor pricing changes, and different platforms calculate fees differently: some charge on the input, some on the output, and some fold a margin into the quoted rate rather than naming a fee at all. Compare the amount you actually receive, not the headline percentage.
Third-party routing and execution costs also differ by route, so two swaps carrying the same Vaelun fee can still settle at a different all-in cost.
What you may pay beyond the Vaelun fee
- Network gas on the source chain, and on the destination chain where a route requires it.
- Provider, solver or market-maker costs, already reflected in the output the quote shows you.
- Bridge and cross-chain messaging costs on routes that use them.
- Liquidity costs and price impact, which grow with trade size and thin markets.
- Third-party execution fees charged by a routing provider on its own account.
None of these are Vaelun revenue, and none of them are set or controlled by Vaelun. They belong to the networks and providers that carry your route. Only the protocol fee described on this page is Vaelun's.
No hidden markup
The fee is requested by Vaelun's server, never by the browser, and the routing provider's response is bound back to that request before a quote is shown. A response that returns a fee Vaelun did not ask for, or a larger one than it asked for, is rejected rather than displayed.
The review screen shows the Vaelun fee on every quote, including when it is zero. A zero line is information, not an omission.
Where the fee goes
Protocol fees are Vaelun's only revenue from swap activity. The full allocation across buybacks, community rewards, treasury, development and listings is published on the Revenue model page.