Gala (GALA) is an Ethereum-based ERC-20 utility token that powers Gala Games, a Web3 entertainment ecosystem spanning blockchain gaming, music, and film.
A wrapped version of the token also exists on Solana, and GALA trades as a perpetual futures market on Hyperliquid. Gala Games operates GalaChain, a proprietary layer-1 built on Hyperledger Fabric that hosts the ecosystem's decentralized finance products, including the GalaSwap exchange and GalaPump launchpad.
Gala Games differentiates itself through a self-funded, node-based distribution model instead of venture capital or a traditional ICO, tying token emissions to an active operator base.
Its ecosystem spans multiple verticals beyond a single game, and GalaChain hosts GalaSwap, which added four new listed assets (SAND, ETHFI, ICNT, WKAS) as of 2026-08-03, alongside the GalaPump launchpad. GALA captures this activity as the settlement and incentive token across gaming, music, film, and DeFi products built on GalaChain.
GALA functions as a utility token used for transactions, in-game economies, and governance-adjacent participation across the Gala Games ecosystem, rather than a pure governance token.
Holders who also own a Founder's Node license, tokenized as a transferable NFT on GalaChain, can cast consensus-adjacent votes on ecosystem and distribution decisions, such as the tokenomics changes approved in April 2026. GALA is also used to transact on GalaSwap and GalaPump and as an in-game currency for titles built on GalaChain.
GALA has a hard cap of 50,000,000,000 tokens, with circulating supply of approximately 49.8 billion as of 2026-09-02, roughly 99.6% of the maximum.
Gala Games was founded in 2019, and its GALA token began trading around September 2020 through Founder's Node license sales rather than a traditional ICO.
The project raised no venture capital and conducted no formal ICO or IEO; license sales granted the right to run a node and receive a share of daily GALA emissions. The current Ethereum token contract was deployed later, on 2023-04-19, replacing an earlier contract after a security incident.
GALA is deployed on Ethereum as an ERC-20 token, with a wrapped version on Solana and a perpetual futures market on Hyperliquid.
Gala Games additionally operates GalaChain, a proprietary layer-1 built on Hyperledger Fabric, where block-level transaction validation is handled by the underlying Hyperledger Fabric protocol.
Gala Games was founded in 2019 by Eric Schiermeyer, Wright Thurston, and Michael McCarthy, all with backgrounds in gaming and cryptocurrency mining.
Schiermeyer and McCarthy are both Zynga co-founders; Thurston is a cryptocurrency-mining entrepreneur who holds several blockchain-technology patents through his investment vehicle, True North United Investments. Since 2023, Schiermeyer and Thurston have been in open legal conflict: Schiermeyer sued Thurston alleging theft of roughly $130 million in GALA tokens, while Thurston countersued alleging Schiermeyer wasted approximately $600 million in company assets.
Gala Games is operated by Blockchain Game Partners, Inc., a Wyoming-incorporated, US-based company doing business as Gala Games.
The company develops a multi-vertical Web3 entertainment ecosystem encompassing Gala Games (gaming), Gala Music, and Gala Film, alongside GalaChain, the Hyperledger Fabric-based layer-1 that hosts its DeFi products such as GalaSwap and GalaPump. Gala Games states it operates without venture-capital backing.
GalaChain governance is gated to Founder's Node license holders who also hold GALA, who cast consensus-adjacent votes on ecosystem and distribution decisions rather than validating blocks directly.
Node licenses are tokenized as transferable NFTs on GalaChain. The most recent governance action occurred on 2026-04-30, when the community approved a new tokenomics model introducing protocol fee-sharing and permanent token burns funded by a portion of network fees.
Gala Games' most notable 2026 developments include a China-focused partnership, new GalaSwap listings, and an in-game content update.
CertiK audited the GALA v2 token contract in 2023 and later audited GalaChain's TON Bridge, Solana Bridge, and Staking Contract, most recently on 2026-01-26.
Hashlock audited GalaChain's DeFi stack (DEX, wallet, launchpad), rating all components Secure, and Gala Games runs an Immunefi bug bounty of up to $1,000,000. In May 2024, an attacker exploited a compromised admin account to mint roughly 5 billion GALA; the team blocklisted the address within hours and burned the 4.4 billion unsold remaining tokens. Top 10 wallets hold 48% of supply, and DEX liquidity relative to market cap is comparatively low.