> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.gtfo.vc/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Why did we build 1st?

1st was built to fix a structural problem in how token markets function after a project launches.

Today, most tokens enter the market with low circulating supply and large amounts of locked private-market allocations. These allocations are invisible to the market, even though they represent future sell pressure.

This creates a disconnect between how tokens are priced and how supply actually behaves over time.

### **The problem with post-TGE markets**

After a token launches:

* Early investors hold large allocations at low cost bases
* Most of those tokens are locked under vesting schedules
* Public markets trade a small circulating supply at high valuations
* Unlock events release large amounts of supply all at once

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When unlocks happen, sell pressure appears suddenly and predictably. This often leads to sharp price declines that affect retail investors, projects, and long-term market confidence. \
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The problem is not that early investors want liquidity. The problem is that there is no structured way to express that liquidity before unlocks.\
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**Why existing solutions do not work**

Before 1st, early liquidity options were limited:

* Manual OTC deals that were slow, opaque, and accessible only to insiders
* Large minimum ticket sizes that excluded most participants
* No continuous price discovery
* No way for projects or markets to see how private supply was being valued

These transfers happened off-market and out of view, while public markets remained disconnected from private-market reality.

### **What was missing**

What the market lacked was a way to:

* Reduce sudden sell pressure on public exchanges
* Trade locked allocations during vesting with deep liquidity
* True price discovery of private market assets
* Allow both early investors and new buyers to participate at fair market prices

In other words, the market needed a liquid private market that operated alongside public trading, not after it.

### **Why 1st exists**

1st was built to introduce that missing layer.

By turning locked allocations into mirror tokens and enabling them to trade with deep liquidity, 1st allows private-market risk to be priced continuously and transparently.

This shifts market dynamics in three important ways:

* Liquidity moves from unlock events to ongoing markets
* Price discovery happens earlier and more gradually
* Public markets face less sudden supply shocks

1st does not change token supply or vesting terms. It changes when and how that supply is priced.