What are flatcoins?
A flatcoin is a cryptocurrency designed to keep your purchasing power flat — not the price on the sticker. Instead of pegging to $1, it tracks an inflation index like CPI.
Why flatcoins exist
A dollar held since 1971 now buys ~87% less. A flatcoin that tracks CPI aims to buy the same basket of goods, year after year.
Illustrative. Based on US CPI-U; 1971 $1 ≈ $7.60+ in 2026 terms.
Try it: $10,000 held for 10 years
A stablecoin balance stays flat at $10,000 — but at 3.2% CPI, real value shrinks to $7298 after 10 years.
How does a flatcoin work?
Oracle reads CPI
An on-chain oracle publishes the latest Consumer Price Index from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (or an index like Truflation).
Contract adjusts
The smart contract updates either the token's target price, its redemption rate, or the total supply each holder owns — pick your mechanism.
You stay whole
Your wallet balance, measured in real baskets of goods, stays constant. Dollar-denominated price drifts up with inflation.
The 3 flatcoins we track
Flatcoins are still a nascent category. Three production projects ship today — each solves the peg problem a different way.
First production CPI-tracking stablecoin where the redemption price grows per second on-chain based on the US CPI-U. Over-collateralized 100% by frxUSD backed by BlackRock BUIDL Treasury fund, with FPIS as the governance token.
View rating →Inflation-linked stablecoin tracking the US Consumer Price Index, co-founded by inflation-trading veterans. Reserves invested in TIPS, US Treasuries, FX and commodity futures via the Enduring US Inflation Tracking Fund.
View rating →Ethereum token with elastic supply expanding or contracting daily based on demand, targeting inflation-adjusted equilibrium.
View rating →Flatcoin comparison — FPI vs USDi vs Ampleforth
Same goal — flat purchasing power — three different engineering paths.
USDi2.5 | Ampleforth3.2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Mechanism | Redemption price grows per second to track CPI-U | Mint/burn at CPI-adjusted price (TIPS-style) | Daily rebase — supply expands/contracts |
| Index tracked | US CPI-U (monthly, BLS) | US CPI-U (monthly, BLS) | CPI-adjusted 2019 USD |
| Collateral | 100% frxUSD (BlackRock BUIDL T-Bills) | TIPS, Treasuries, FX & commodity futures | Uncollateralized (algorithmic supply) |
| Access | Permissionless (any wallet) | KYC + whitelist, $1M min institutional | Permissionless (any wallet) |
| Chain | Ethereum | Ethereum | Ethereum |
| Launched | 2022 | April 2026 | June 2019 |
| What you hold | Constant units, rising USD price | Constant units, rising USD price | Varying units, stable-ish USD price |
| Governance | frxGov + 3-of-5 multisig | Issuer-controlled whitelist & fund | FORTH token holders |
Flatcoin vs Stablecoin — which wins where?
A stablecoin keeps the number stable. A flatcoin keeps the value stable. Here's who wins each tradeoff.
| 🟢 Flatcoin | 🔵 Stablecoin | Winner | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What stays stable | Purchasing power (basket of goods) | Nominal price ($1 on screen) | Flatcoin |
| Tracks | Inflation index (CPI) | Fiat currency (USD, EUR) | Flatcoin |
| Inflation exposure | Protected — rises with CPI | Loses value with inflation | Flatcoin |
| Price predictability | Drifts upward over time | Almost always $1.00 | Stablecoin |
| Use for payments | Awkward — prices shift daily | Easy — everyone expects $1 | Stablecoin |
| Store of value (1y+) | Strong — preserves real value | Weak — erodes ~2–9%/yr | Flatcoin |
| Collateral model | T-Bills / TIPS / rebase | T-Bills / cash / crypto | Tie |
| Market size (2026) | < $200M combined | > $260B | Stablecoin |
| Regulatory clarity | Undefined — novel asset | GENIUS Act, MiCA, etc. | Stablecoin |
| Oracle dependency | High — needs CPI data | Low — peg is self-evident | Stablecoin |
Three ways a flatcoin can track inflation
Redemption-price
Price per token grows with CPI. Units held stay constant. Redeem at the new price.
Rebase (elastic supply)
Token balance in every wallet expands or contracts daily. Price stays near target.
Reserve-backed (TIPS)
Reserves are invested in inflation-linked instruments (TIPS, commodity futures). Redemption follows reserve NAV.
Common questions
Click any question to expand.
What is the difference between a flatcoin and a stablecoin?
Who invented the term 'flatcoin'?
Are flatcoins a better inflation hedge than stablecoins?
How do flatcoins work?
What are the risks of holding a flatcoin?
Are flatcoins safe and legit?
Can I use a flatcoin for payments?
Is bitcoin a flatcoin?
What is the biggest flatcoin by market cap?
How do flatcoins handle deflation?
The case for flatcoins
- +Preserves real purchasing power over years
- +Transparent — pegged to a public index, not a company promise
- +Opens door to inflation-resistant savings in crypto
- +Works globally — not tied to a single country's monetary policy (in theory)
The case against
- −Tiny market cap — liquidity and slippage pain
- −Confusing UX — balance or price shifts over time
- −Oracle-dependent — BLS data goes stale or wrong, so does the peg
- −CPI itself is contested as a measure of true cost of living
- −Regulatory limbo — not cleanly a stablecoin under most frameworks
Rate a flatcoin yourself
Money2069 scores monetary projects across 8 alignment categories. See how each flatcoin stacks up on sovereignty, issuance, governance, and resilience.
Explore the M69 Score →