The Polygon blockchain network continues to improve despite the bear market. Since October 25, 2023, smart-contracts on the new POL token, the technical upgrade to the MATIC token, have been online on Ethereum! Polygon 2.0’s roadmap is thus moving ahead relentlessly to maintain its leadership in technological innovations focused on zero-knowledge and decentralization, in an extremely competitive industry.
Why a new POL token?
POL succeeds MATIC with a new Whitepaper, a tokenomics update and, above all, numerous technical improvements, with which we will gradually become familiar by the beginning of 2024 hopefully. The initial supply of POL is identical to that of MATIC, so that every MATIC holder can obtain version 2.0 of their tokens. So, what more can we do with our beloved POL?
Restaking natively with POL tokens on chains based on Polygon CDK
Firstly, POL token holders will be able to contribute to the validation of transactions on several chains simultaneously including Polygon PoS, Polygon zkEVM and certainly a large number of chains deployed thanks to the CDK (Chain Development Kit) which already includes :
- Immutable
- Astar
- Canto
- Gnosis Pay
- Palm Network
- Aavegotchi
- IDEX
- CapX
- Wirex
- Nubank
- Nexon
- Dogechain
- Manta Network
- Arianee
- Powerloom
- Near
- OKX (X1)
An official platform for native restaking for all channels based on Polygon CDK as well as PoS and zkEVM should boost the appeal of POL and projects using technology developed by Polygon Labs. We look forward to its release in the coming months.
(https://wiki.polygon.technology/docs/cdk/what-is-polygon-cdk/)
New POL token update planned for Polygon 2.0 roadmap
Not only does this list continue to grow by the week, but this famous hyper-productive token POL has more surprises in store for us. Indeed, the Polygon 2.0 roadmap is progressing steadily, with new features added every month, notably the decentralization of the protocol governance process on which the community is encouraged to contribute to the forum (with rewards at stake).
Upcoming updates include the launch of a staking platform for all L2 Polygon channels, the enhancement of Polygon PoS into a zkRollup called Validium, or implementing a new-generation liquidity. This would be interoperable so that it could be shared across all chains based on Polygon CDK as mentioned above!
POL token pivot with several roles for each blockchain based on Polygon CDK
Participation in the Data Availability Committee (DAC)
One of the features of blockchains running on Polygon’s latest-generation technical stack (Polygon zkEVM, CDK) are the following Data Availability Committee also known as DAC. The aim is to guarantee the security of an L2 and its assets in the event of a worst-case scenario. Today’s blockchains depend on the Internet, so what would we do if – as unlikely as it may seem these days – the Internet network went down? Or, to a lesser extent, if a significant number of validators broke down or went offline… in short, if the blockchain stopped working.
Well, that’s where DACs work their magic!
In fact, tokens and NFTs can be recovered even if the blockchain is offline! In more detail, the aim of DACs is to ensure that all the information needed to reconstruct the state of the blockchain is available to everyone, based on the on-chain events that have taken place.
Thus, each CDK will have its DACs to guarantee data completeness. Will these require POL staking? They may.
Source: https://wiki.polygon.technology/docs/cdk/validium/dac-overview/
Sequencers, Provers, Governance, Community Treasury…
In the same way, and without going into detail this time, the POL token could be used for staking on the sequencers and on the provers in order to secure them and encourage decentralized mechanics.
Then there are other potential uses, such as governance, with a Community Treasury that represents no less than 1% inflation per year for the entire POL supply. For example, at a capitalization of 10 billion USD, this would represent 100 million dollars a year to be distributed.
Convert MATIC to POL?
Upgrading MATIC to POL is all well and good, but what should I do as a holder? Coinpri has deciphered the procedure for you!
MATIC Holder
The FAQ of this last blog post by Polygon Labs describes the essentials, i.e. that there’s nothing to do for the moment… or almost.
On the Ethereum network
To date, the “Child” smart-contract for the POL token has not yet been deployed on the Polygon network. For the time being, there is only one on Ethereum, just as MATIC has its smart-contract on Ethereum and its baby on Polygon PoS.
But what if my MATICs are on Ethereum? For the time being, there’s no rush. However, we can now use swap decentralized like DEX (Decentralized Exchange) Uniswap. This will be useful for taking advantage of POL’s new features as soon as they are released, in – a priori – a few months’ time.
On the Polygon PoS network
On the other hand, when the MATIC smart-contract is also on the Polygon PoS network, it will be enough to make any transaction on PoS for its MATIC tokens to be automatically converted into POL on the Polygon blockchain. You’ve coinpri-hend it right! Your MATIC tokens are on Polygon PoS, be patient, and the future smart-contract will make the coffee for you. In this way, MATIC tokens will evolve into POL tokens over time.
On a CEX such as Binance
Similarly, we can imagine that CEXs (Centralized Exchange) such as Binance will take care of everything for the user. To be confirmed.
I’m a web3 developer, staker, Node operator, what can I do?
Well, according to the FAQ, nothing. Nothing to do.
Everything is supposed to work as before, easy isn’t it?
Conclusion
What do you think of this technical upgrade from MATIC to POL, the hyper-productive token?
It seems to go hand in hand with the new 2.0 ecosystem revolving around Polygon CDK. It has many potential uses, with staking on DACs, sequencers, prover and validators, as well as being a governance token. Note that Polygon PoS gas fees will continue to be paid in POL in the same way as MATIC today.
We’d also like to test the native restaking platform as soon as it’s released. The timing is perfect, as this looks set to be one of the new narratives making noise in DeFi next year.
Should we expect more? Will some new channels use POL for transaction fees? Will there be airdrops? There seems to be great potential when we see the quality of projects adopting Polygon CDK but not everything is ready yet. So let’s see what happens over the next few months, which will be decisive!
We’re keeping an eye on what’s happening with Coinpri, follow us for bullshit-free blockchain news (Telegram, LinkedIn, Twitter), see you soon!
Passionate entrepreneur versed both in Business and Tech. Zero Knowledge protocols enthusiast and active contributor to the Polygon ecosystem. Background as an accountant, auditor, developer and community builder.
