From Trade to Reward: Inside the Points Program

Introduction

The points program is the platform's way of recognizing the users who actually use it — and translating that activity into a measurable share of future rewards. The rules fit on a sticky note: you earn points by trading, you earn extra points by referring others, and earning rates step down once your daily output exceeds a defined threshold. Points then determine your rank on a season-based leaderboard, and that rank determines your share of any airdrop.

This guide walks through all three layers — the points themselves, the leaderboard and airdrop distribution, and the Genesis Pass — so you understand how real activity becomes real rewards.

1. The Points System

Two ways to earn

There are exactly two ways to accumulate points, and you can use either, both, or neither.

• Trading Points — earned by paying trading fees on the platform.
• Referral Points — earned when users you've referred trade on the platform.

Points earning methods: Live: Trading Points (from contract fees), referral count, referral bonus (10%). Coming soon: Position Points, KYC Points, Badges.

That's it. No quizzes, daily check-ins, or minigames. The system rewards real economic activity — yours and the activity of users you've brought to the platform — and nothing else.

This is intentional. Points-for-trading-fees-paid is anchored in the most credible measure of engagement available.

Trading Points: Fees × 100

The formula is straightforward:

Trading Points earned = Trading Fees Paid × 100

A worked example. Place a spot trade and pay $5 in trading fees → earn 500 trading points. Over a month, pay a cumulative $200 in fees across all trading → earn 20,000 trading points.

Notes worth internalizing:

• The formula uses fees paid, not notional volume. Two traders with the same volume but different fee tiers earn different totals — fairly reflecting that one contributed more revenue.
• All fee-paying activity counts. Spot, derivatives, and any other explicit trading fees roll into the same pool.
• All calculations are denominated in USDC. Whatever asset you actually pay fees in, the system normalizes the value to USDC equivalent.
• Trading volume is calculated at the time the opening order executes — points are credited the moment you open a position, not when you close it.
• Points are calculated daily. Trading and referral activity is aggregated daily and credited to your balance.

You don't need to optimize for points. If you're trading anyway, points accrue automatically. If you're not trading, no amount of "engagement" will manufacture them.

Referral Points: 10% of your invitees' points

When you refer someone and they begin trading, you earn 10% of the points they earn — without those points being deducted from theirs.

If your invitee earns 10,000 points in a month, you earn an extra 1,000 referral points, and they keep their full 10,000.

A few practical implications:

• Direct referrals only — no multi-level. You earn 10% only on activity of users you directly referred. Their referrals don't roll up to you. This is a single-tier program, not a pyramid.
• Multiple invitees aggregate. Your referral points equal 10% of the sum of all your direct referrals' points.
• Referral points calculated daily, same cadence as trading points.
• Quality of referrals matters more than quantity. Inviting one active trader can produce far more referral points than inviting fifty users who never trade.
• The bonus is symmetric for the platform. Your invitee isn't punished — they earn full points. The 10% comes from the platform's program budget.

Dynamic Decay: How "Tiered Conversion Efficiency" Actually Works

This is the mechanic most users misread on first encounter. The platform's documentation officially names it "dynamic decay", but the actual implementation isn't "old points lose value over time." It's "earning efficiency steps down once your daily points output exceeds a defined threshold."

The mechanism: Tiered Conversion Efficiency

In one sentence: once your daily points output exceeds a defined threshold, points earned beyond that threshold are credited at progressively lower efficiency.

Concretely:

• Up to the daily threshold, points calculate at full formula (Trading Fees × 100) at 100% efficiency.
• Beyond the threshold, you continue earning, but each additional dollar of fees converts to fewer than 100 points, with efficiency declining algorithmically as output grows.

Important clarification: your previously earned points do not lose value over time. Decay applies to today's earning efficiency, not to yesterday's accumulated balance. This is the most important distinction from the common misreading that "old points fade away."

Why it's designed this way

The purpose is twofold:

• Prevent unlimited points inflation. Without this brake, a small number of high-frequency traders or automated strategies could pump enormous daily volume and dilute the points pool, making rewards worth less for everyone.
• Protect small and mid-sized traders. By tapering returns above a high-volume threshold, the system gives users with normal, steady participation a fairer share. This is a deliberate protocol choice in service of long-term sustainable growth.

The official wording: "The mechanism balances HFT output, ensures fair reward distribution, and prevents incentives from being disproportionately captured by a small number of automated strategies."

What it means for you

• Even distribution beats burst activity. Cramming a week's trading into a single day is much less efficient than spreading it across seven days. The tiered efficiency curve simply makes daily over-volume uneconomical on its own terms.
• Steady, consistent trading is the optimal strategy.
• The platform reserves the right to adjust thresholds. The official documentation explicitly states that the team can dynamically adjust point coefficients and decay thresholds in response to market conditions. Final parameters are governed by the latest official announcement.

2. The Leaderboard & Airdrop

If the points program is the measurement layer, the leaderboard and airdrop is the distribution layer.

How the leaderboard works

The leaderboard is a dynamic ranking of users by current points, refreshed hourly, and the public board displays the top 100 users.

A few mechanics to internalize:

• Hourly updates. Trading and referral activity is calculated in real time, and the public leaderboard refreshes on an hourly cadence.
• Top 100 displayed publicly. The system ranks every eligible user, but the visible board shows the top 100 directly.
• Ranking is divided into seasons. Each season is its own discrete ranking period, and airdrop allocation is tied directly to your rank within that season.
• Both trading and referral points count. What matters is your total points.
• Real-time anti-cheat monitoring runs throughout — covered later in this section.

Three layers of cadence

The platform uses three layers of cadence for points and ranking:

• Real-time calculation. When a trade executes, points are auto-calculated and credited in near real time.
• Hourly leaderboard refresh. The public board updates display once per hour.
• Daily updates / weekly final rank. Points are aggregated daily, and the weekly total determines your final rank for that season's leaderboard.

Why three layers instead of one? Each one serves a different function:

• Real-time calculation ensures every trade is captured immediately.
• Hourly refresh gives a current-but-stable position signal, without second-by-second flicker.
• Weekly final rank gives reward distribution a clean, defensible basis that isn't subject to last-second manipulation.

Practical implication: you don't need to watch the hourly refresh. You need to stay consistently active across the season.

How airdrop allocation maps to rank

The core rule: airdrop allocation is tied directly to your rank tier on that season's leaderboard.

This is subtle but important — it's not what most people initially assume:

• It's not a flat "your points / total points × pool" formula. Allocation is determined by your rank tier — the higher your rank, the larger your share, with allocation stepping up as you move into higher tiers.
• Your rank at the end of the season is what counts. Your position can move up and down throughout the season, but the final rank when the season closes is what determines distribution.
• Eligibility matters. Users flagged by the anti-cheat layer may have their rank adjusted or be excluded entirely.
• Each airdrop has its own specific rules. Pool size, tier structure, eligibility criteria, and the season(s) it applies to are all defined by the official announcement for that airdrop.

Practical implications:

• Crossing into the top 100 vs not is significant — appearing on the public leaderboard is itself a meaningful threshold.
• Within the top 100, your specific rank still matters — the difference between rank 5 and rank 50 is typically not linear.
• Mid-season position is mostly informational. Useful for gauging pace; the season-final rank is what's locked in for distribution.

The platform also reserves the right to dynamically adjust point coefficients and decay thresholds in response to market conditions. Final parameters are always governed by the latest official announcement and actual system settlement.

Anti-cheat: what's being watched

A program that distributes real rewards based on points will inevitably attract attempts to game it. The platform runs continuous monitoring to detect and prevent the most common attack patterns:

• Wash trading. Trading with yourself across multiple accounts to manufacture trading fees and points.
• Self-referral. Creating new accounts to "refer" to your primary account, harvesting the 10% bonus.
• Sybil clusters. Coordinated networks of accounts run by the same operator to multiply allocation by splitting one entity's activity across many wallets.
• Collusive trading rings. Groups churning trades back and forth among each other to pool fee generation.

What happens when patterns are detected: depending on severity, consequences include points clawed back, exclusion from current and future airdrops, account restrictions, and (in serious cases) account closure with funds returned per platform policy.

For honest users, the monitoring layer is invisible and reassuring. It exists so that legitimate points retain their value — they're not diluted by a thousand fake accounts farming the same allocation pool.

3. The Genesis Pass

The MC Markets Genesis Pass is the platform's invitation-only program for early adopters — described in the platform's own words as "a rare opportunity to co-create the future of MC Markets." If you've received a Genesis invitation code, this section walks you through what's included, the official rules, and how to activate.

Two things to internalize up front: the Pass is invite-only (you can't apply for it — you receive a unique code), and that code is for the recipient only and should never be shared.

What's included: two concrete benefits

20 USDC Genesis Explorer Gift Pack. A starter credit of 20 USDC deposited into your account after registration. Official rule: "20 USDC will be credited within 48 hours upon account opening." This is real on-platform capital — not a coupon, not a discount — usable to begin trading immediately.

Early Product Access. Genesis Pass holders get first access to new features and assets — beta access to new product surfaces (new contracts, new asset listings, new tools), and early exposure to upcoming features ahead of the wider user base. Pass holders are also the cohort whose feedback shapes how features eventually ship to everyone else.

The official rules

Three rules from the official documentation:

Rule 1: 20 USDC credited within 48 hours

After completing the activation flow, the credit lands in your account within 48 hours of account opening. Not instant, but no further action required — just wait.

Rule 2: Withdrawal requires 600 reward points

This is the most important rule, and it determines what the Pass means in practice:

"Withdrawals can only be initiated once your reward points reach 600 or more. (You can earn points by engaging in trades.) Points will be credited on a T+1 basis."

In plain terms:

• Until you've accumulated at least 600 reward points, you cannot withdraw — including the 20 USDC gift pack itself.
• Points are earned through trading activity, on the standard formula (Trading Fees × 100, in USDC equivalent).
• Points credit on a T+1 basis.

The design is straightforward: the gift pack is meant to fund genuine trading activity, not to be collected and immediately withdrawn. Reaching 600 points is what unlocks withdrawal — and you reach it by trading.

Rule 3: Final interpretation and force majeure

By joining, you acknowledge having read and agreed to the Official Rules and Terms & Conditions. MC Markets reserves the right of final interpretation — including matters relating to account opening, withdrawal requirements, and reward distribution. In force majeure or special circumstances, the Company may adjust activity rules with prior notice.

How to activate: the 5-step flow

1. Copy or record your invitation code. Don't share it.
2. Visit MC Markets by copying the official website link from your invitation.
3. Click "Login," enter the Invitation Code, and complete sign-up. The code links your new account to the Genesis program.
4. Fill in account details via the official Microsoft Forms link provided in your invitation: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/1eeqaf8jBJ
5. Start your trading journey. 20 USDC arrives within 48 hours.

After registration, review the full Official Rules before placing your first trade.

Critical reminders

• Don't share your invitation code. Sharing can compromise both program integrity and potentially your eligibility.
• Follow the steps in the correct order. Skipping or reordering can cause registration issues.
• The 600-point withdrawal threshold applies to the gift pack too.
• The 20 USDC takes up to 48 hours. Don't worry if it's not in your account immediately.
• Read the Official Rules in full after registration.

Need help?

• Telegram (Official Group): @mcmarketsglobal
• Email: cs@mcmarkets.com
• Official Website: https://mcmarkets.org/

4. Climbing the Leaderboard, the Honest Way

A short, blunt list:

• Trade the way you'd trade anyway. Manufactured volume costs more in fees than it earns in expected airdrop value, even before anti-cheat risk.
• Understand tiered conversion efficiency. Once your daily output exceeds the threshold, the rate at which additional points are earned decreases. Cramming a week's volume into one day is much less efficient than distributing it evenly.
• Refer real users. A few high-quality referrals contribute meaningfully to your points and compound. Bulk referral spam doesn't.
• Stay active across the entire season. The aggregated total at season end determines your rank.
• Read each airdrop's specific rules. Pool, tiers, eligibility, and the relevant season are all defined by that airdrop's official announcement.

5. Quick Recap

The five ideas worth keeping:

• Trading Points = Trading Fees Paid × 100. All calculations in USDC equivalent, points credited at opening order execution, balances aggregated daily.
• Referral Points = 10% of your invitees' points. Direct referrals only (no multi-level). The bonus is a separate budget — the invitee's balance isn't reduced.
• Dynamic decay (tiered conversion efficiency): earning rate steps down above a daily output threshold — designed to prevent points inflation and protect mid-sized traders. Past points do not lose value over time.
• Leaderboard refreshes hourly, displays the top 100, organized by season. Airdrop allocation is tied to your rank tier at season end — not a flat pro-rata of points. Real-time anti-cheat monitoring runs throughout.
• Genesis Pass is invitation-only. Two benefits: a 20 USDC gift pack (credited within 48 hours of account opening) and early access to new features. Withdrawals require 600 reward points; activate via the 5-step flow with the invitation code.

Risk Disclosure

The points program rules, leaderboard mechanics, anti-cheat policies, and Genesis Pass parameters described here reflect current platform policy and may be updated; always check the official documentation for the latest details. Points and any associated rewards are not guaranteed financial returns. Trading involves substantial risk and can result in losses. Trade based on your own analysis and risk tolerance, with capital you can afford to lose.