Rebase token

A rebase token is not a formal EIP or ERC standard but an implementation pattern on top of ERC-20. Internally, the contract separates each account's shares from the visible balance. Each holder owns a fixed number of shares, and the balanceOf function returns those shares multiplied by a global factor. A rebase modifies that factor, not the shares, so the adjustment is proportional and automatic for every holder without any individual transfers.

There are two families of use. The first seeks parity or stabilization: supply expands or contracts to push the price toward a target, as with Ampleforth (AMPL), which applies a daily rebase. The second distributes yield: the balance grows to reflect accrued interest, as with Lido's stETH, which spreads Ethereum staking rewards by increasing the balance, or with OlympusDAO's sOHM.

The difference from a fixed-balance token is direct. In a classic ERC-20, balanceOf only changes through transfers and value fluctuates via price. In a rebase token, the amount in your wallet shifts on its own after each adjustment. That breaks assumptions in many DeFi contracts that cache balances, which is why non-rebasing wrapped versions such as wstETH or gOHM exist, designed to keep compatibility with pools, bridges and wrappers.