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Glossary

Status: Not decided

Every term these docs use, with the one meaning it has everywhere. Pages link a term here the first time they use it.

allowlist​

The list of approved wallets, which alone can bid, buy in a transfer window, register as holders, stake on a curve or open a raise as issuer; removal from it never blocks claims.

attestor​

A registered signing key, held by an accountant or similar reviewer, that signs tier 3 reports, favourable amendments, hardship pauses, fallback exchange rates, true-ups and, together with a second attestor, extinguishment.

Autonomy Charter​

The issuer's protections that Merces aims to enforce in both the signed contract and the code, such as releases on a fixed schedule, no duty to work, no holder votes, no personal data onchain and only issuer-favourable changes to terms.

backer​

A person who funds an issuer by buying units, through a sealed bid or on a curve, for a capped share of the issuer's income above the threshold; on a curve, only an approved wallet that stakes its units earns.

buy-back (redemption)​

The issuer's way to end a whole series, once any lockup is over, by paying every unit a formula price with no fee, provided the issuer is up to date on reports and payments; curve series are bought back by tender.

cap​

The most that can ever be paid for one unit, counted in gross payments and set as a multiple of the issue price; when it is reached the series retires, and sealed-bid units are burned.

commit and reveal​

The two steps of a sealed bid, which first locks in a hash of the price and quantity along with escrowed money and later discloses them so the hash can be checked.

conviction book​

The season's signal of backer belief in entrants, made with points that have no cash value and no weight in the score; only sponsors can stake money, through stake-to-anchor.

covered income​

The kinds of income a series counts, such as wages, freelance revenue, exit proceeds, dividends and royalties but not gifts, inheritance, a spouse's income or unrealised gains; this comes from the brief only, and no code checks it.

curve raise​

An optional, Solana-only way to raise in which units sell along a Meteora price curve, with no wallet cap and no allowlist on buying, and no deadline or refund before graduation.

extinguishment​

The end of all further payments due on a series, signed by two different attestors and meant for the issuer's death or permanent disability (the code does not check the cause); only the part of the treasury not yet vested goes to holders.

Fellow​

One of the top entrants of a Humanathon season, who receives a prize, a stipend and intros and may open an anchor-backed raise on Merces.

Finalist​

An entrant placed just below the Fellows, who receives a prize and intros and can fast-track into a later raise window after more months of proofs.

Finisher​

An entrant who completes a Humanathon season and keeps a verified season record.

formal notice​

An onchain event emitted once a period is still unreported or unpaid a set time after it ends, not counting paused time; nothing is seized, slashed or burned.

FX average​

A quarter's average exchange rate, built from daily price snapshots and used to turn income in another currency into stablecoin; when snapshots are too few or a cross-check flags the rate, the report needs an attestor-signed rate instead.

grace period​

The days after a period's report deadline during which the series shows In grace and nothing extra is added.

graduation (curve)​

The point at which buyers' payments into a curve raise reach its target, after which the series settles and its treasury opens; until then the issuer receives nothing.

gross payment​

What the issuer pays into the payout vault for a period, including any late amount, before the payout fee is taken; the cap counts gross payments.

hardship pause​

A pause the issuer requests and an attestor approves with an end date; while it runs, deadlines and late amounts stop and payments for those periods are deferred, not forgiven, but it does not lift a release block from an earlier Late status.

holder​

A wallet that holds units of a series and claims payouts on them, whether or not it is still on the allowlist; on a curve series only staked units earn.

Human Equity Unit (HEU)​

The token a series issues; each unit carries a capped share of the issuer's income above the threshold (on a curve series, only while staked) and no vote.

Humanathon​

A public season run by Merces in which individuals prove what they build, make and earn, and the top entrants can go on to raise on Merces.

issue price​

The single price per unit that every winning bid pays in a sealed-bid auction, before the auction fee (a curve series fixes its own at activation); the cap and the buy-back price are measured from it.

issuer​

The person who raises money through a series and then reports income, pays what is due and may buy the series back.

keeper​

Anyone who runs the protocol's open maintenance steps, such as settling auctions, updating statuses, taking exchange-rate snapshots and burning retired units, and nothing else.

late amount​

The extra sum added to an overdue payment, counted per day after the grace period at the series' hurdle rate and paid into the vault with it.

lockup​

The time after a sealed-bid raise settles during which units cannot change hands and the issuer cannot buy back; curve series have none.

mandate​

The public plan each entrant files to qualify, hashed and frozen at the start of the season, giving their track, what they will ship, a sealed income forecast and which income sources count.

Mercery​

The name for the mechanism Merces runs (issue, verify, pay, buy back); like the name Merces itself, it is not yet final.

minimum raise​

The smallest total a raise must reach; below it a sealed-bid raise fails and refunds every bid in full, and on a curve series it is the target for graduation.

net payout​

What reaches holders from a gross payment after the payout fee is taken.

payout vault​

The account for each series that receives payments and holds them until holders claim.

period​

One UTC calendar quarter, the unit for reports, payments and deadlines.

Proof Day​

The live, public final day of a Humanathon season's review, when a paid jury picks the Fellows.

ProofOfIncome​

The quarterly report an issuer submits, made of a zero-knowledge proof that the payment follows from the committed terms and income plus a source check that depends on the verification tier.

rate per unit​

The fraction of income above the threshold that one unit is entitled to, which is the share rate divided by the units offered.

release schedule​

The fixed list of times after the raise settles, and the share of the money raised that vests at each, set when the series is created; each share becomes claimable by the issuer without anyone's approval.

report verifier​

A registered signing key that signs a tier 2 report after checking the issuer's zkTLS income proof.

reporting year​

The calendar year over which income is added up and tested against the threshold; the running total starts again each January.

reserve price​

The lowest price per unit the issuer accepts; a bid below it is invalid and refunded in full.

sealed-bid auction​

The standard way to raise, in which backers commit hidden bids, then reveal them, and every winning bid pays one clearing price.

season​

One run of Humanathon, made of qualifying, a competition with one proof a week, review, then Proof Day.

series​

One raise by one issuer, with its own terms, unit token, treasury and payout vault; an issuer may have several over time.

share rate​

The total fraction of the issuer's income above the threshold that a series pays across all of its units together.

stake-to-anchor​

A sponsor's money stake behind a named entrant, which becomes an anchor commitment in that entrant's raise if they reach the top group and raise, and otherwise funds the next season's prize pool.

staking (curve)​

On a curve series, moving units into the series' stake vault so that they earn payouts; only approved, registered wallets can stake, and unstaking is never blocked.

tail clause​

For a set time after a buy-back, a report flagged as a liquidity event, such as an exit or a large contract, still pays the holders at the time of the buy-back, up to a per-unit tail cap.

tender​

How a curve series is bought back, with each registered holder handing in units, receiving the buy-back price for each, and the units being burned.

terms commitment​

A hash of the threshold, the rate per unit, the reporting currency, the indexing rule and a secret salt, stored onchain so that every proof is checked against terms that stay private.

threshold​

The yearly income below which an issuer owes nothing; it is set per series and kept private behind the terms commitment, except on tier 1 series, where it is public.

transfer window​

A short sealed-bid market, opened after the lockup for the previous quarter, which is the only way units of a sealed-bid series move between wallets; windows are switched off for now.

treasury​

The account for each series that holds the money raised and releases it to the issuer on the fixed schedule.

unit​

One token of a series; a sealed-bid unit cannot be split, while curve series keep their accounts in fractions of a unit.

verification tier​

How a series' income is checked, which is by an onchain split at tier 1, a report verifier's signature after a zkTLS check at tier 2, an attestor's signature at tier 3, or the issuer alone at tier 4, which is switched off.

wallet cap​

The largest share of a series' units that one wallet may hold, checked at the auction and in transfer windows; curve series have none.

weekly proof​

The proof of output and income an entrant files each week of the competition; after a set number of missed proofs the entrant is out.