ApeCoin is an ERC-20 governance and utility token used within the APE ecosystem to empower a decentralized community building at the forefront of web3. As the open-source protocol layer of the ecosystem, ApeCoin serves several purposes: Governance - ApeCoin is the ecosystem’s governance token, allowing ApeCoin holders to participate in ApeCoin DAO. Unification of Spend - ApeCoin is the ecosystem’s utility token, giving all its participants a shared and open currency that can be used without centralized intermediaries. Access - ApeCoin provides access to certain parts of the ecosystem that are otherwise unavailable, such as exclusive games, merch, events, and services. Incentivization - ApeCoin is a tool for third-party developers to participate in the ecosystem by incorporating APE into services, games, and other projects.