The self-custody crypto wallet with the largest number of global users, MetaMask, has finally announced the upcoming issuance of its native token. Joe Lubin, CEO of ConsenSys, confirmed in an interview on September 18, 2025, that the MetaMask native token (speculated in the industry to be abbreviated as $MASK) "may arrive sooner than everyone expects."
This news immediately sparked significant market attention. What does the issuance of a token mean for MetaMask, one of the most important traffic gateways in the Ethereum ecosystem? Why choose to issue a token at this current time? What potential uses and value support might the token have? How will it affect the competitive landscape of the entire crypto wallet sector? This article will delve into these questions and provide insights based on MetaMask's product landscape, motivations for issuance, token economic model, valuation analysis, and ecological synergy.
Token Issuance on the Horizon: MetaMask's "Midlife Crisis"
Since its launch in 2016, MetaMask has been the "big brother" in the wallet space, boasting the largest user base and highest recognition. Over time, it has evolved from a simple Ethereum wallet into a comprehensive Web3 portal, with a product landscape that includes:
Multi-chain self-custody wallet: Offers browser extensions and mobile wallets supporting Ethereum and EVM-compatible chains, and expands support to non-EVM chains through Snaps plugins, with approximately 30 million monthly active users.
Built-in trading features: Integrates a token swap aggregator that consolidates quotes from multiple DEXs, with cumulative fee revenue of approximately $325 million.
Bridging and fiat channels: Provides cross-chain bridging services and channels for purchasing cryptocurrencies with fiat, simplifying the registration process for new users through social account logins.
Staking and yield: Includes an Ethereum staking entry and a portfolio asset management interface, making it easy for users to manage their multi-chain asset portfolios.
Institutional wallet: MetaMask Institutional (MMI) is designed for institutional users, offering advanced permission control and multi-signature features.
MetaMask USD stablecoin (mUSD): Announced in August 2025, this dollar stablecoin is issued and managed by Bridge, a subsidiary of Stripe, and is set to launch on Ethereum and Linea. It is the industry's first native stablecoin issued by a self-custody wallet, aimed at enhancing the convenience of holding and using dollar assets within the wallet.
MetaMask Card crypto card: A debit card launched in partnership with Mastercard, allowing users to spend crypto assets directly and convert them instantly.
However, the "throne" is not without its challenges, as competitors from all sides are becoming increasingly formidable.
Trust Wallet (TWT): As the core wallet of the Binance ecosystem, Trust Wallet has surpassed 200 million mobile downloads, with an active user base reaching tens of millions, putting it on par with MetaMask. Moreover, it issued the TWT token back in 2020, successfully retaining a large number of users through token incentives.
Phantom: The leading wallet in the Solana ecosystem, known for its extremely smooth user experience, has rapidly accumulated millions of users within the Solana ecosystem. It is now expanding to multi-chain and entering Ethereum, directly threatening MetaMask's core territory.
Faced with fierce competition, simple product iterations are no longer sufficient. MetaMask has to resort to the classic strategy of "token issuance for user acquisition," shifting the competitive dimension from "which wallet is better" to "which ecosystem can I co-own and share in its growth dividends." By conducting a large-scale airdrop to tens of millions of loyal old users, $MASK will become the strongest weapon to activate silent users, expand market presence, and solidify user loyalty. Issuing the token at this moment is expected to help MetaMask regain ground in marketing and reinforce its position as the king of Web3 gateways.
Additionally, the timing of the token issuance is closely related to the regulatory environment. In February 2025, ConsenSys reached an agreement with the SEC, which agreed to withdraw its allegations of unregistered securities or broker-dealer against MetaMask, significantly alleviating the regulatory pressure faced by MetaMask. Issuing the token now can be seen as "missing this opportunity means losing it forever." At the same time, other products in the ConsenSys ecosystem (such as Linea and mUSD) have already taken advantage of this "regulatory dividend." If MetaMask delays its actions, it may miss the opportunity to synergize with these products, potentially dragging down the operation of the entire ConsenSys ecosystem flywheel.
More Than Just "Air Tokens": Potential Use Cases and Value Capture of $MASK
Although the official token white paper has not yet been released (and even the symbol $MASK is merely speculation from the community), based on industry experience, we can reasonably infer that the $MASK token will have the following core functions to avoid becoming a "air token" with no real value.
Governance: This is the fundamental utility of all mainstream protocol tokens. $MASK holders will have the right to vote on the future development of the protocol, with decision-making areas potentially including adjusting the fee rates for MetaMask Swap, determining the development priorities for new features, and managing the use of community treasury funds.
Fee Discounts: This is the utility that can most directly attract high-frequency trading users. By holding or staking a certain amount of $MASK tokens, users can enjoy fee discounts or even waivers when using MetaMask Swap (currently at a rate of 0.875%) and cross-chain bridge functions. This model has been successfully validated by Trust Wallet's TWT token, effectively enhancing user stickiness and trading volume.
Staking & Revenue Share: To allow token holders to directly share in the growth dividends of the protocol, MetaMask could design a staking mechanism. Users can share a portion of the protocol's revenue proportionally by staking $MASK tokens. These revenue sources could be diverse, such as fees generated from MetaMask Swap or interest income from its native stablecoin mUSD through its reserve assets (like U.S. Treasury bonds).
Exclusive Access/Value-Added Services: The $MASK token could also serve as a form of identity or entitlement certificate, providing its holders with a range of exclusive benefits, such as priority access to test new features, eligibility for limited edition MetaMask Card applications or annual fee waivers, and opportunities to participate in early token sales for projects incubated or strategically partnered with MetaMask.
Valuation Geometry: Multi-Dimensional Valuation Analysis of $MASK Token
Valuation is the most concerning issue for the market. Although the $MASK token has not yet been issued, we can deduce its potential value from multiple dimensions, including project fundamentals, comparable project valuations, and ecological logic.
Valuation Based on Projected Revenue
First, consider the sources of revenue:
MetaMask's primary revenue comes from its built-in Swap function, which charges a service fee of 0.875% on each transaction. According to DeFiLlama, its annual revenue remains stable at approximately $49 million to $57 million.
With the launch of the mUSD stablecoin, MetaMask has the opportunity to earn interest income from user-locked funds. For example, if mUSD achieves an on-chain circulation scale of $1 billion (a not too high target), based on the current 5% U.S. Treasury bond interest rate, it could generate approximately $50 million in annual interest income. Of course, this income needs to be shared with partners Bridge/M0 protocol, but it will still be a significant new source of revenue.
Additionally, consider other revenue sources for MetaMask, such as deposit and withdrawal fees, and potential revenue sharing from other transaction fees.
In summary, MetaMask's total revenue is expected to exceed $100 million in annual revenue within the next 1-2 years. Referring to the price-to-sales ratio (P/S) of tech companies, assigning a P/S of 10-15 times would place its valuation at approximately $1 billion to $1.5 billion.
Comparative User Scale with Trust Wallet
MetaMask's monthly active users (approximately 30 million) are about twice that of Trust Wallet (approximately 17 million). The FDV of TWT is around $1.2 billion. Therefore, it can be inferred that the FDV of $MASK may also reach double that, approximately $2.4 billion.
Comparative Revenue with Trust Wallet
TWT's annualized revenue is approximately $3.5 million, but its fully diluted valuation (FDV) is as high as $1.2 billion, resulting in an astonishing "FDV/annualized revenue" multiple of approximately 342 times, reflecting the market's high premium on the "Binance ecosystem" behind it, though this valuation may be excessive.
In contrast, MetaMask's annual revenue from swap fees alone is approximately $50 million, which is about 15 times that of TWT. Considering that MetaMask excels over Trust Wallet in user base, brand reputation, and revenue channels, the market should reasonably assign $MASK a valuation expectation no lower than that of TWT.
Even without considering the future income from new businesses like mUSD and the MetaMask Card, based solely on the current annual revenue of approximately $50 million, and taking into account different market sentiments, the following valuation ranges can be derived:
Pessimistic Scenario: A P/S ratio of 30 times (about 10% of TWT), resulting in an FDV of $1.5 billion.
Base Scenario: A P/S ratio of 100 times (about 30% of TWT), resulting in an FDV of $5 billion.
Optimistic Scenario: A P/S ratio of 200 times (about 60% of TWT), resulting in an FDV of $10 billion.
Reference to ConsenSys' Financing History
We can also refer to the private equity valuation of its parent company, ConsenSys. After the D round of financing in 2022, ConsenSys' overall valuation reached $7 billion. Although this valuation includes other assets like Infura, MetaMask is undoubtedly its primary value bearer. Therefore, this figure provides a ceiling reference for our valuation.
Based on ConsenSys' financing history, I believe that MetaMask's valuation is at least above $3 billion.
Valuation Summary Table
To present the above valuation logic more clearly, we summarize it as follows:
| Valuation Method | Core Logic and Key Assumptions | Projected FDV | |------------------|-------------------------------|----------------| | Based on Projected Revenue | Current annual revenue of approximately $50 million, with future income from new businesses like mUSD expected to exceed $100 million. A P/S ratio of 10-15 times. | $1 billion - $1.5 billion | | Comparative User Scale with TWT | MetaMask's monthly active users (approximately 30 million) are about twice that of Trust Wallet (approximately 17 million), with TWT's FDV around $1.2 billion. | $2.4 billion | | Comparative Revenue with TWT | TWT's P/S multiple is approximately 342 times, which is clearly too high. MetaMask's annual revenue is about $50 million, considering a more reasonable P/S multiple. | $1.5 billion (pessimistic), $5 billion (base), $10 billion (optimistic) | | Reference to ConsenSys Financing | During the D round of financing in 2022, ConsenSys was valued at $7 billion, with MetaMask as a core asset, it should occupy a significant share. | $3 billion |
Based on the various valuation methods above, we believe that MetaMask's fully diluted valuation (FDV) is highly likely to fall within the range of $1.5 billion to $5 billion.
Ecological Flywheel: How $MASK Becomes ConsenSys' Growth Engine
To accurately assess the value of $MASK, it must be placed within the grand ecological landscape constructed by its parent company, ConsenSys. As a blockchain software giant building tools and infrastructure around Ethereum, ConsenSys' product matrix covers the entire stack from the user side (MetaMask), developer side (Infura, Truffle), to the protocol layer (Linea). The $MASK token will become the core value carrier that connects this vast empire, driving a powerful ecological flywheel.
The Symbiotic Relationship Between $MASK and Linea
Linea is the zkEVM Layer 2 network that ConsenSys is dedicated to building, aimed at providing a lower-cost, more efficient, and fully EVM-compatible scaling solution for Ethereum.
A deep symbiotic relationship will form between $MASK and Linea. As the primary entry point to Web3 with tens of millions of users, MetaMask can seamlessly guide a massive number of users and funds to the Linea network at the lowest cost and with the smoothest experience, a significant advantage that no other L2 network can match.
At the same time, the $MASK token can be used as the "fuel" to launch the Linea ecosystem. By airdropping or rewarding $MASK to users and developers providing liquidity, trading, or building applications on Linea, early participants can be quickly attracted, igniting liquidity and activity within the ecosystem.
Although the airdrop criteria for MASK have not yet been announced, many users believe that holding Linea tokens or interacting on the Linea network may directly affect eligibility for the $MASK airdrop. ConsenSys CEO Joe Lubin hinted at this in a post on X on September 11, 2025, stating: “Well, just holding Linea will open up further rewards opportunities, mostly in other tokens; some from ConsenSys and some from protocols that we are aligned with. MetaMask and Linea are cooking somETHing together to make this happen. ……So if we notice, at some date in the future that you've held n LINEA tokens for m days, that just might lead to another token landing in your account. ……” This provides strong evidence for community speculation.
The Financial Closed Loop of $MASK, mUSD, and MetaMask Card
ConsenSys is building a seamless payment closed loop from on-chain to off-chain through a combination of financial products, with $MASK being the core incentive layer in this loop.
On-ramp: Users can conveniently exchange fiat currencies like USD for mUSD through MetaMask's built-in fiat channel.
On-chain Activity: Users can conduct low-cost transactions and DeFi activities on the Linea network using mUSD. During this process, holding or staking $MASK tokens can provide them with transaction fee discounts or additional rewards.
Off-ramp Consumption: Users do not need to withdraw assets to a bank; they can directly use the MetaMask Card to spend their mUSD balance from the Linea network in the real world, achieving seamless payment from Web3 to the real world. Cashback or rewards earned from spending can be designed as $MASK tokens, further incentivizing users to hold and use $MASK, thereby locking more value within the ecosystem.
The Road Ahead is Not Smooth: Concerns and Market Doubts About $MASK
Despite Joe Lubin's recent positive statements, there remains a pessimistic sentiment in the market. In the prediction market Polymarket, the bullish probability for the question “Will MetaMask launch a token in 2025?” dropped from 60% to 32% after the announcement, reflecting a lack of confidence in a token launch within the year. This pessimistic sentiment may stem from the following two aspects:
"The Boy Who Cried Wolf" Narrative Fatigue: Rumors about MetaMask issuing a token have persisted for years, but the official account has repeatedly denied it. For example, in March 2025, the MetaMask official account clarified that there was no $MASK token. Although Lubin's latest interview released positive signals, the market may have grown fatigued and skeptical of these repeated "coming soon" statements.
Concerns About Airdrop Fairness: Many users pointed out that its parent company ConsenSys had serious issues in previous airdrops for the Linea project, where many genuine users were mistakenly labeled as "witch accounts," while many batch-operated addresses received large airdrops, leading to unfair distribution and market pressure. This has raised concerns in the community that MetaMask's airdrop might repeat this pattern, resulting in genuine users' efforts not being rewarded, thereby undermining market confidence.
Therefore, the design of this MetaMask airdrop is crucial and must avoid replicating the situation that disappointed genuine users in Linea. Otherwise, this airdrop could not only fail to build a good reputation and unite users but could also drag down the synergistic effects of the entire ConsenSys ecosystem, including MetaMask, Linea, and mUSD, resulting in a negative outcome of 1+1=1.
Conclusion: Opening a New Chapter in Wallet Competition
The issuance of a token by MetaMask is an inevitable choice under fierce competition and represents a carefully planned strategic upgrade.
From a valuation perspective, with its strong fundamentals and grand ecological narrative, it is highly likely that the fully diluted valuation (FDV) of $MASK will reach several billion dollars, and it may even aim for higher levels.
From a product perspective, the MetaMask token elevates the wallet to a new height of "self-built financial ecology": users, assets, and services will form a closed loop connected by the token, transforming the wallet from a tool into a platform. From a competitive perspective, this move will undoubtedly change the power dynamics in the industry, forcing other players to adjust their strategies and ultimately accelerating the evolution of the entire sector.
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