> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.uniocean.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.uniocean.io/forecast-platform/rewards/overview.md).

# Reward Overview

Uniocean uses **UCPRA**, the Uniocean Community Price Reward Algorithm, to distribute rewards after a market settles. UCPRA is designed to be fair, transparent, and deterministic.

## Reward Pool

Entry fees from all participants form the reward pool.

At settlement, the reward pool is distributed entirely to rewarded participants — every token goes to in-the-money forecasters.

## Who Is Rewarded?

The top **51%** of forecasts are rewarded.

The bottom 49% do not receive a payout.

A market must have at least **15 forecasts** to settle. If fewer than 15 forecasts are submitted, the market is cancelled and all entry fees are refunded.

## Reward Groups

| Group          | Who                                                 | Reward Type                              |
| -------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- |
| Rankers        | Best forecasters (top 1–3 depending on market size) | Power-law distribution (highest rewards) |
| Bucket Winners | Remaining top 51%                                   | Guaranteed 1.4x–1.6x multiplier          |

## Flow

```mermaid
flowchart TD
    A[Entry Fees from All Participants] --> B[Reward Pool]
    B --> C{Reward Distribution}
    C --> D["Rankers<br/>Power-Law Curve"]
    C --> E["Bucket Winners<br/>1.4x–1.6x Multiplier"]
```

## Algorithm Properties

| Property      | Description                                         |
| ------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| Deterministic | Same inputs always produce exactly the same rewards |
| Complete      | Every token in the reward pool is distributed       |
| Fair          | Higher accuracy always means higher reward          |
| Verifiable    | Anyone can recompute results using public data      |
| Transparent   | Full settlement data published in audit reports     |

## Reward Calculation After Settlement

The reward calculation happens as part of the automated settlement pipeline:

1. All forecasts are ranked by accuracy
2. Top 51% are identified as rewarded participants
3. Rankers are assigned power-law shares from the ranker pool
4. Bucket Winners are assigned multiplier rewards (1.4x–1.6x)
5. Results are validated by independent validator nodes
6. Merkle tree is generated for on-chain verification
7. Rewards are auto-claimed to rewarded wallets

***

## Related Pages

* [Reward Distribution](/forecast-platform/rewards/reward-distribution.md)
* [Rankers](/forecast-platform/rewards/rankers.md)
* [Bucket Winners](/forecast-platform/rewards/bucket-winners.md)
* [Reward Examples](/forecast-platform/rewards/reward-examples.md)
* [Settlement Process](/forecast-platform/settlement/settlement-process.md)