What is ICON? How It Works & Where to Use It

Overview

ICON at a glance.

ICON is a smart contract platform that orders blocks through elected representatives and was built to connect separate blockchains through its own transmission protocol. Here is how it works and what it is used for, not the price.

Total value locked (DeFi)

$1.7M

Value locked in DeFi protocols on ICON. Updated Jun 8, 2026. Source: DefiLlama.

Native token

ICX

Used for fees and securing the network. See the live ICX price.

How it works

How ICON works.

ICX holders stake and delegate to validators called P-Reps. The network is made up of 22 Main P-Reps plus a set of Sub P-Reps who create and verify blocks and take part in on-chain governance. LFT2 is a BFT based algorithm that reduces the message rounds needed to agree on a block, keeping block times near 2 seconds.

Consensus: LFT2 (delegated proof of stake)

ICX holders stake and delegate to validators called P-Reps. The network is made up of 22 Main P-Reps plus a set of Sub P-Reps who create and verify blocks and take part in on-chain governance. LFT2 is a BFT based algorithm that reduces the message rounds needed to agree on a block, keeping block times near 2 seconds.

P-Reps

Public Representatives are elected validators. There are 22 Main P-Reps plus Sub P-Reps. Holders delegate ICX to them, and they produce blocks and vote on network policy.

SCORE smart contracts

ICON contracts run in an environment called SCORE. ICON 2.0 introduced a Java based virtual machine for writing and running these contracts.

BTP interoperability

The Blockchain Transmission Protocol was ICON's design for moving assets and data between ICON and other chains without relying on a trusted third party.

Migration to SODAX

The ICON ecosystem is moving to SODAX on the Sonic network. ICX holders can migrate ICX to the SODA token, and the ICON network is scheduled to shut down on December 31, 2026.

Ecosystem & usage

What ICON is used for.

ICON has been used for on-chain governance, smart contracts, and cross-chain transfers, with its activity now moving toward SODAX.

DefiLlama

On-chain governance

ICX holders stake and delegate to P-Reps, who vote on network decisions, so governance is tied directly to the token.

Smart contracts

Developers deploy SCORE contracts, which powered DeFi applications such as lending and exchange protocols on the network.

Token migration

ICX can be migrated to the SODA token ahead of the network shutdown scheduled for the end of 2026.

Top protocols by TVL · updated Jun 8, 2026

sICX · Liquid Staking$1.0M

Balanced Dollar · CDP$829,391

Balanced Exchange · Dexs$701,277

Omm · Lending$150,398

Optimus · Yield$10,435

In Zypto App

Hold, swap and spend ICX.

ICON is integrated in Zypto App. Hold ICX in self-custody, swap it to any supported asset, and use it across Zypto’s features.

Hold ICX in Zypto How to buy ICX

Be the reason ICON ships next.

ICON isn’t in Zypto App yet. Post the request to your followers, chains with the most demand get prioritised.

Request on X

FAQ

Common questions.

What is ICON?

ICON is a Layer 1 smart contract platform that uses a delegated proof of stake model with elected P-Reps. Its native token is ICX.

What is the ICX token used for?

ICX pays transaction fees and is staked and delegated to P-Reps as part of on-chain governance. It can also be migrated to the SODA token.

How does ICON reach consensus?

ICON uses LFT2, a delegated proof of stake algorithm in which 22 Main P-Reps and a set of Sub P-Reps produce and verify blocks.

Is the ICON network shutting down?

The ICON Foundation has stated the network is migrating to SODAX on the Sonic network and is scheduled to shut down on December 31, 2026, with a read-only archive kept for historical lookups.

Can I hold ICX in Zypto App?

Not yet. ICX isn't in Zypto App at the moment. You can hold it in any self-custodial wallet, and you can ask us to add ICON using the "Request ICON" button above.

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