· Kael · Institutional · 5 min read
BULK AURA at Scale: What $100K, $500K, and $1M Pre-Deposits Actually Earned (Historical)
The BULK Season 1 AURA formula rewarded size × time until pre-deposit closed at mainnet launch on September 5, 2026. Here is the historical math on how deposit size and referrals scaled AURA — and what replaced it for institutional accounts now trading on mainnet.
TL;DR
Historical: Season 1's AURA formula was linear — a $1M deposit earned exactly 10x more AURA per week than a $100K deposit at the same duration, and referrals scaled even faster. That mechanic closed September 5, 2026 at mainnet launch. Post-mainnet, institutional AURA comes from mainnet trading volume, BulkSOL holding, and referrals (gated by access codes) — deposit size alone no longer determines your share.
Historical: this page documents Season 1’s pre-deposit AURA formula, which closed September 5, 2026 when BULK mainnet launched. Every pre-deposit converted automatically to trading margin at launch, and deposit size no longer determines AURA share. The math below is preserved because the underlying principles — linear scaling, and referrals beating capital at scale — still shape how institutional accounts should think about mainnet trading and referrals today. See “What Replaced This” below, or the current institutional playbook.
The BULK Season 1 AURA formula was strictly linear. A $1M depositor earned exactly 10× more AURA than a $100k depositor holding for the same duration. There was no diminishing return, no cap below $5M, and no minimum hold threshold for personal AURA.
This page breaks down the historical math — AURA projections at different deposit sizes, the referral multiplier that made institutional networks more valuable than institutional capital alone, and the compounding effect of early entry versus late entry during Season 1.
The AURA Formula: Linear, No Cap Below $5M, Size × Days Held
Every week, 1,000,000 AURA is distributed to pre-depositors. The mechanism:
Your AURA = (Your USDC × Your Days Held) / (Total USDC-Days in Pool) × 1,000,000USDC-days is the product of your deposit amount and the number of days you held it during the distribution period. If you deposit $500,000 and hold it for all 7 days of a weekly period, you accumulate 3,500,000 USDC-days. If you hold for 3.5 days, you accumulate 1,750,000 USDC-days.
The total USDC-days in the denominator is the sum of every depositor’s USDC-days for the same period. Your share is your fraction of that total.
This formula has three implications for large depositors:
- Size is linear. 10× more capital = 10× more AURA, all else equal.
- Time compounds. Deposits made in Week 1 of Season 1 accumulate more USDC-days before TGE than identical deposits made in Week 6.
- Pool growth dilutes share but not absolute AURA. As more depositors join, each depositor’s percentage share shrinks — but your absolute USDC-days (and therefore absolute AURA) only declines if new entrants grow the pool faster than your capital grows relative to it.
AURA Projections at Different Pool Sizes
Because AURA share is relative to total pool size, the per-depositor AURA depends on how many others are in the pool. The table below shows estimated weekly AURA at three different total pool sizes.
At $25M Total Pool (Early Adopter Scenario)
| Your Deposit | Your USDC-Days (7-day hold) | Pool USDC-Days | Your Share | Weekly AURA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | 70,000 | 175,000,000 | 0.04% | 400 |
| $50,000 | 350,000 | 175,000,000 | 0.20% | 2,000 |
| $100,000 | 700,000 | 175,000,000 | 0.40% | 4,000 |
| $500,000 | 3,500,000 | 175,000,000 | 2.00% | 20,000 |
| $1,000,000 | 7,000,000 | 175,000,000 | 4.00% | 40,000 |
| $5,000,000 | 35,000,000 | 175,000,000 | 20.00% | 200,000 |
At $100M Total Pool (Growth Scenario)
| Your Deposit | Weekly AURA | AURA Cumulative (8 weeks) |
|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | 100 | 800 |
| $50,000 | 500 | 4,000 |
| $100,000 | 1,000 | 8,000 |
| $500,000 | 5,000 | 40,000 |
| $1,000,000 | 10,000 | 80,000 |
| $5,000,000 | 50,000 | 400,000 |
At $500M Total Pool (Large-Pool Scenario)
| Your Deposit | Weekly AURA | AURA Cumulative (8 weeks) |
|---|---|---|
| $100,000 | 200 | 1,600 |
| $500,000 | 1,000 | 8,000 |
| $1,000,000 | 2,000 | 16,000 |
| $5,000,000 | 10,000 | 80,000 |
The key observation at large pool sizes: the per-USDC efficiency of direct deposits declines as the pool grows. This is where the referral program reverses the math.
The Referral Reversal: Where Institutional Networks Beat Capital
The referral program pays 1 AURA per eligible $100 held by referrals per week. This is a flat rate — it does not depend on pool size. It does not dilute as more depositors join.
| Referred Deposit | Your Referral AURA/Week | At $500M Pool: Better Than Direct Deposit Of |
|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | 100 AURA | $2.5M direct |
| $50,000 | 500 AURA | $12.5M direct |
| $100,000 | 1,000 AURA | $25M direct |
| $500,000 | 5,000 AURA | $125M direct |
| $1,000,000 | 10,000 AURA | $250M direct |
At a $500M total pool, referring someone who deposits $100,000 earns you more AURA per week than depositing $25M yourself would — because the referral rate is fixed while the direct deposit rate dilutes.
The institutional implication: your network is worth more than your balance sheet at scale. An institution with existing LP relationships, investor community, or counterparty network has access to referral AURA that retail participants cannot generate.
The Time Advantage of Early Entry
AURA is distributed weekly from June 6, 2026 until mainnet. Assuming an 8-week pre-deposit window before mainnet:
| Entry Week | Weeks of AURA Earned | AURA Earned vs Week 1 Entry |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 (June 6) | 8 | 100% |
| Week 2 | 7 | 87.5% |
| Week 4 | 5 | 62.5% |
| Week 6 | 3 | 37.5% |
| Week 8 | 1 | 12.5% |
The absolute AURA gap between Week 1 and Week 8 entry is 7× at equal deposit sizes. For a $1M deposit at a $100M pool, the difference between Week 1 and Week 8 entry is approximately 70,000 AURA over the pre-deposit window.
What Replaced This, Post-Mainnet
Season 1 pre-deposit closed at mainnet launch on September 5, 2026. Every pre-deposit converted automatically to trading margin — no action required, and that one-time conversion is now history rather than something a new institutional account can still do.
Current AURA vectors for institutional accounts:
- Mainnet trading volume — the primary driver now; exact per-volume mechanics aren’t fully published, but it also generates access codes (1 per $1M volume) to invite new referrals
- BulkSOL holding — unchanged mechanic, still earns AURA plus staking yield and a live 12.5% fee share
- Referrals — the flat 1-AURA-per-$100-referred formula above is closed; referral AURA now tracks the referred account’s trading activity, and new referrals require an access code during the invite-only period
The referral-reversal principle from the table above still holds directionally: a handful of institutional relationships that actually trade will outperform a large volume of small, inactive referrals — it’s just no longer a fixed, calculable rate. See the current institutional playbook and the institutional referral guide for what’s actionable now.
Multi-Wallet Strategy (Historical)
The $5M pre-deposit maximum was per wallet, and institutions operated multiple wallets, each earning AURA independently with its own referral code. Mainnet accounts aren’t capped by that same pre-deposit ceiling — margin sizing is now a trading-risk decision, not an AURA-optimization one.
Risk Disclaimer
AURA has no confirmed dollar value prior to TGE. The projections above are historical estimates based on Season 1’s confirmed mechanics (1M AURA/week, size × time formula, 1 AURA per $100 referred) and assumed pool sizes that were never confirmed by the protocol at the time. Post-mainnet, trading carries leverage and liquidation risk distinct from the passive deposit-and-hold mechanic this article originally described. This is not financial advice.
Trade on BULK Exchange → app.bulk.trade
Back to cluster hub: BULK Institutional Trading: The Full Playbook
Also in this cluster:
- Three Stacked Yield Streams for Institutional Depositors
- The Institutional Referral Playbook
- DAO Treasury Framework
- BULK vs Hyperliquid: Institutional Comparison
- What Institutions Learned from Early Hyperliquid
Related: AURA Points Guide · BULK Season 1 AURA Guide — current post-mainnet mechanics
0 bps maker fees end ~October 5, 2026.
BULK's Genesis Phase waives maker fees for the first 30 days of mainnet. Trading is invite-only — a free access code plus a referral link gets you in.
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