The Graph Network (GRT)
System: The Graph Network — Storage and Indexing
The Graph Network provides indexed and queryable blockchain data to applications, developers, analysts and agents through subgraphs, GraphQL, application programming interface access, and gateway query services. Founded in 2018, the system uses GRT-based protocol contracts on Arbitrum and Ethereum, Graph Horizon staking and payment primitives, GraphTally settlement infrastructure, SubgraphService, curation mechanisms, dispute mechanisms, and off-chain indexer infrastructure. The boundary includes Edge & Node as the core labs and core developer entity, The Graph Foundation where it supports ecosystem operations and grants, and The Graph Council, where it holds binding protocol-governance roles.
Market Data
| Price | $0.019263 |
| Market Cap | $207.61M |
| Fully Diluted Valuation | $207.62M |
| 30d Change | -30.97% |
| 365d Change | -79.98% |
Token Functionalities
Service Provision
- Data Processing: Data Indexing
Right to supply on-demand access to already published blockchain data by staking and provisioning GRT as an indexer. Indexers operate the infrastructure that indexes subgraphs and serves queries, and they can earn query fees and indexing rewards for performing this service.
- Resource and Work Evaluation/Allocation
Right to signal or curate a subgraph as a system resource for discovery, indexing prioritisation and service allocation by converting or signalling GRT into curation shares. Curators provide an information service that helps indexers identify valuable or high-quality subgraphs and receive usage-linked compensation.
Payments
- Native Resource Fee (Weak)
Right to consume The Graph’s query resource by paying query fees or invoices in GRT. Strength is Weak because GRT is not the exclusive access asset: free monthly queries, credit-card billing and USDC x402 pay-per-query access also exist.
Value Distribution
- Burn Entitlement (Algorithmic or Guaranteed)
Right to benefit from increased percentage ownership when The Graph’s system operations permanently burn GRT. The relevant mechanisms include protocol-tax burns on query payments and curation-tax burns. Strength is Algorithmic or Guaranteed, where the burn is enforced by protocol-defined routing.
Governance
- Technical Parameter Control (Signal)
Right to signal preferences on protocol upgrades, technical architecture and Graph Improvement Proposals through non-binding GRT-weighted governance signalling considered by The Graph Council. This covers technical changes to the protocol codebase or architecture where community signalling informs Council decisions. Strength is Signal because GRT holders do not have an automatic or binding execution path.
- Economic Design/Parameter Control (Signal)
Right to signal preferences on economic parameters and monetary-flow design through non-binding GRT-weighted governance signalling considered by The Graph Council. This includes signalling around fee routing, incentive design, slashing economics or other economic parameters where community input is requested. Strength is Signal because the vote is advisory, and Council approval remains the binding governance path.
Collateral
- Performance-Bond
Right to post GRT as forfeitable collateral to secure protocol-role integrity. Indexers post GRT as slashable stake securing correct indexing and query service, while fishermen post GRT bonds to open disputes that can be burned if rejected or returned with bounty eligibility if accepted.
System Attributes
Operating Model
<p>The Graph Network is an On-Chain Protocol. Independent indexers stake and provision GRT to provide indexing and query-processing services, while curators, delegators, fishermen, arbitrators and gateways interact with protocol-defined roles and incentives. The productive indexing and query work is performed off-chain by indexer infrastructure, but economically critical coordination is enforced through on-chain or protocol-controlled staking, allocation, payment, reward, curation, dispute and slashing mechanisms. Official billing and gateway surfaces also support user access, but they do not replace the protocol’s core coordination model.</p>
Value Creation
<p>The Graph has Hybrid Value Creation. The off-chain side is the indexer network, which runs graph-node and indexing infrastructure to process blockchain data, maintain subgraph indexes and serve queries to consumers, supported by Edge & Node and other core contributors that develop and maintain material protocol and data-infrastructure components. The on-chain side coordinates who can provide the service, how GRT is staked or provisioned, how allocations are made, how curation signals guide indexing, and how disputes and penalties support service integrity. Value is therefore not created solely by smart contracts or solely by an operating entity: it depends on off-chain data-processing work combined with on-chain economic coordination and settlement rules.</p>
Value Capture
<p>The Graph has Hybrid Value Capture and Routing. On the protocol side, GRT billing balances, GraphTally receipts and Graph Horizon payment mechanisms route value between consumers, gateways, indexers, delegators, curators and burn mechanisms. Query payments can fund indexer compensation, delegation economics, curation-linked compensation and protocol-tax burns. On the off-chain side, current billing also supports credit and debit card payments through Subgraph Studio and Stripe-style monthly invoicing, but the merchant-of-record, fiat settlement account and any automatic conversion into GRT are not disclosed in current documentation. The system also supports USDC pay-per-query access through x402 on Base mainnet, with Base Sepolia as the testnet environment, making USDC a material system-context payment asset but not a scored GRT functionality.</p>