Polkadot jumps 27% ahead of first token issuance halving

Polkadot’s DOT token jumped by 27% over the past week as the network’s first halving event draws near.

The halving event, scheduled for March 14, is expected to cut the native token’s supply by 50%. This fuels a scarcity narrative among investors and boosts bullish sentiment.

DOT annual issuance to be reduced from 120 million to 55 million tokens

Last year, the Polkadot community passed a vote altering DOT’s token economics. It introduced a hard cap of 2.1 billion tokens and added a gradual decrease in new token issuance. This causes new DOT creation to slow down over time.

The first major issuance cut takes place on March 14 on Pi Day.

It will lower issuance from around 120 million to about 55 million DOT tokens.

Polkadot’s issuance will be reduced every two years.

This reduction will be slow and will approach the total supply limit of 2.1 billion DOT.

The protocol is undergoing other changes, including the introduction of a Dynamic Allocation Pool (DAP) and comprehensive updates to staking and validator economics.

Treasury burns will stop once Phase 1 of the DAP is activated. Burned tokens and validator slashes will be redirected into the DAP and managed by governance.

Validators will be required to maintain a minimum self-stake of 10,000 DOT and a minimum commission of 10%. Additionally, a new StakingOperator proxy type will allow institutional stakers to separate stake custody from validator control.

For nominators, once most validators meet the minimum self-stake requirement, their stake will no longer be subject to slashing. The unbonding time will be reduced from 28 days to around 48 hours.

The changes will enhance Polkadot’s security and boost liquidity. The new updates will take effect on March 12.

Polkadot breaks out to $1.75 before entering a consolidation phase

At the time of writing, Polkadot (DOT) is currently trading at $1.62 based on data from CoinGecko.

DOT gained over 25.7% over the past seven days. The rally began after DOT traded in a weak range between $1.25 and $1.35. This showed low momentum and a gradual decline.

But DOT experienced a sharp breakout. The token rose fast from around $1.30 to above $1.70, marking the strongest mover of the week. The price briefly peaked near $1.75, its highest level during the past seven days, before facing resistance.

After the spike, DOT entered a correction phase, pulling back to around $1.50–$1.55 as traders cashed out profits. The token has since stabilized and climbed back to the $1.60–$1.62 range.

Despite the strong weekly gains, DOT is down by 2.5% over the past 24 hours due to short-term consolidation.

Polkadot supporters are expecting the U.S. SEC to approve proposed DOT exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

21Shares filed with the SEC for a spot Polkadot ETF early last year. The Cboe BZX Exchange later submitted a 19b-4 filing on 21Shares’ behalf to request approval to list and trade the fund.

The Polkadot ETF was listed on the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) eligibility list in late 2025.

In August 2025, Grayscale submitted registration forms to the SEC for an ETF based on Polkadot’s DOT. Nasdaq submitted a 19b-4 filing on Grayscale’s behalf to list the proposed Polkadot ETF.

The SEC is reviewing both ETF proposals from 21Shares and Grayscale, but has not approved them yet.

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