How much liquidity does a token launch need?
Size depth against unlocked sell-side supply, not market cap.
A token launch needs enough in-range depth that the plausible worst hour of day-one selling moves price less than the team's stated tolerance, which for most launches means sizing liquidity against unlocked sell-side supply rather than against market cap. A common working target, and the one Amplifi sizes launches against, is depth sufficient to absorb the full airdrop-recipient and no-cliff-investor float at under a chosen drawdown, and there is no credible universal dollar figure. Anyone quoting one without seeing your unlock schedule is guessing.
Why market-cap heuristics fail
Rules of thumb like "5% of FDV in liquidity" ignore the only variable that matters on day one: how many tokens can actually be sold. A $500M FDV project with 3% circulating float has less sell-side supply than a $50M FDV project with 60% circulating float. Sizing to FDV either massively over-provisions the first case or dangerously under-provisions the second.
Size against unlocked sell-side supply
List every wallet that can sell on day one: airdrop recipients, non-cliffed investor tranches, team allocations that unlock at TGE, any pre-market OTC positions. Estimate what fraction of each cohort sells in the first 24 hours based on comparable launches. That number is the sell-side supply the pool has to absorb.
Pick a drawdown tolerance, then compute depth
Decide, in writing, the maximum drawdown you will defend on day one (e.g. minus 20% from opening price). Given the sell-side supply estimate and a concentrated liquidity math model, compute the notional depth required around spot to keep the worst plausible hour inside that band. That is your launch liquidity target.
If you cannot meet the target
Publish the tolerance you can actually defend. Extend cliffs. Reduce the airdrop. Do not launch to a public tolerance you know you cannot hold; the market will price the miss immediately and it is very hard to reset expectations afterwards.
To size and run a launch, contact contact@amplifiliquidity.com.