Summary

This proposal introduces the initial mechanism for using STON.fi protocol fees 

to regularly acquire STON and GEMSTON tokens from the open market.

The STON.fi whitepaper outlines the general mechanics of handling the protocol fees

but does not provide implementation details. This proposal specifies those details 

and additionally proposes including the GEMSTON token in the treasury acquisition 

process, as it is an inherent part of STON.fi tokenomics.

Motivation

STON.fi already accumulates protocol fees. However, the DAO has not yet defined 

how these fees should be used.

By enabling systematic treasury acquisitions, the protocol can maintain a balanced 

and diversified on-chain treasury in STON and GEMSTON, strengthen their utility, 

and align the fee mechanism with the protocol’s long-term economic model.

Details

1. Up to 50% of collected protocol fees (currently TON and USDT, and later all tokens except STON and GEMSTON) will be used for market acquisition of STON and GEMSTON for treasury purposes. 
2. The remaining percentage will be reserved for development, operations, infrastructure, and other protocol needs. This proportion can be changed in the future by a separate DAO decision.
3. Initially, the fees collected in TON and USDT will be used for treasury acquisition, since there are existing pools/pairs with STON and GEMSTON.
4. Once the necessary conversion infrastructure is developed and deployed, fees collected in all other tokens (except for STON and GEMSTON) may also be converted into STON and GEMSTON and included in the treasury acquisition process.
5. All acquired STON and GEMSTON tokens should be kept in the treasury. Decisions on their further use — including any potential supply-adjustment mechanisms — will be made later by the DAO, taking into account legal and regulatory considerations.
6. The exact mechanics of conversions and treasury acquisition (execution routes, frequency, batching, conversion logic, safeguards, risk parameters, etc.) should be designed and implemented by designated independent contributors under the administrative oversight of Ston Foundation and should depend on the infrastructure readiness and compliance check to avoid regulatory risks. 
7. Ston Foundation acts solely as a coordination entity and does not engage in market-making activity, price support, or any form of financial services. The token acquisition process should be governed by the following principles: 

• Timing and frequency of conversions should remain flexible — not fixed, not guaranteed, and not linked to market price movements. 
• The strategy must not include reacting to price dips, supporting market price, or algorithmically  influencing token valuation.

Impact

Benefits

1. Reinforces the role of STON and GEMSTON at the core of the protocol’s economic design.
2. Creates a transparent and DAO-controlled approach to manage the protocol fees.
3. By holding acquired tokens in the treasury, it maintains flexibility to later direct them to various initiatives, depending on future DAO decisions and legal guidance.

Trade-offs / considerations

Using up to 50% of collected fees for conversion reduces the portion of fees that can be immediately allocated to development and other operational needs.

Additional context

Sections 13.3 and 13.4 of the STON.fi whitepaper explain that protocol fees are collected 

in various tokens, automatically converted into STON via the Fee Converter contract, and 

then routed to the Fee Distributor, which forwards them to destinations defined by the DAO. 

The whitepaper also describes a deflationary model where protocol fees are used to acquire 

STON from the market, but operational details are left for the DAO to specify, which this 

proposal aims to address.