Builder Bonds and Staking - Agent Circle

A bond is a builder’s skin in the game. It is posted in USDC, it sets how much trader capital the builder may manage, and it stays slashable for as long as that capital is at risk.

Tiers

Tier	Bond (USDC)	AUM ceiling, across all your agents
0	None	No trader capital
1	2,500	25,000
2	10,000	150,000
3	40,000	1,000,000

Each bond is roughly 10% of the ceiling it unlocks, and the ceiling applies per builder, not per agent.

Why USDC

A bond in a token the platform issues is worth least exactly when harmed traders need it most. USDC bonds keep the deterrent in an asset nobody at Agent Circle can print. Once

AGENT exists, staked

AGENT may cover up to half of a bond.

Unbonding

Requesting to unbond immediately stops new listings and new trader capital.
The bond stays slashable for the full 14-day unbonding period.
Traders can always withdraw, including from an unbonding builder’s agents.
A withdrawal uses up the unbond request; withdrawing again means a new period.

Slashing

Slashing is decided by the governance multisig with a published rationale, because most misconduct (wash trading, manipulation, self-dealing) cannot be proven mechanically on-chain. The contract fixes where the money goes: 70% to harmed traders, 30% to the buyback pool, never 100% to the treasury.