Quick Polkadot and Kusama 101 in this 10-tweet thread ↘️
It's also important to know what is *not* @Polkadot. Polkadot is not a smart contract platform - you can't build or use Apps on Polkadot. That's what parachains are for.
Here's a look at the @Polkadot tech stack from layer 0, to layer 1 (parachains like @AcalaNetwork), to the application layer (where U.S. fintech app @current is integrating with Acala):
Here is the @Polkadot tech stack from another view. You can see @AcalaNetwork plugging into Polkadot for security and interoperability, all the Substrate pallets/products built into Acala's layer 1 platform (like Ethereum but customized for DeFi), and the Acala Apps built on top.
Polkadot's "Relay Chain" is the core of the network that connects parachains and provides plug-and-play security to any parachain that connects to it. A parachain, like @AcalaNetwork or @KaruraNetwork, is an individual blockchain customized using the Substrate framework.
These are the six key challenges that @Polkadot is solving:
And what is @KusamaNetwork? Kusama is the exact same as @Polkadot, but built for speed and experimentation. Teams can: 1) Run networks in parallel on Polkadot and Kusama 2) Launch on Kusama, then move to Polkadot 3) Run a network exclusively on Kusama
So why have two Relay Chains with @kusamanetwork and @Polkadot instead of just testnet and mainnet?
Kusama introduces a step between testnet and Polkadot, where teams can innovate and experiment in a real value (multi-billion dollar) mainnet environment.
Quick thread of short and simple videos explaining #stablecoins
First, a video on the 3 primary categories of stablecoins, including @Polkadot's native, decentralized, over-collateralized, multi-chain stablecoin $aUSD:
Here is a 2.5 minute introduction to the $aUSD decentralized stablecoin and its key characteristics: 1. Stable 2. Over-collateralized 3. Censorship-resistant 4. Secure & Efficient 5. Natively multi-chain
If you're a builder looking to integrate with $aUSD, the @AcalaNetwork team and 10 other @Polkadot parachain teams have launched the $250 million aUSD Ecosystem Fund to support early stage projects building with aUSD.
Locked and idle crowdloan, staked, and Treasury-held DOT is not helping the DOTconomy.
We need DOT to be collateralized, lended, borrowed, leveraged, LP'd to turn 1 DOT into 3, 5, 10+ DOT worth of value. Healthy debt/leverage is how economies are built.
Example using $aUSD:
Let's say someone unstakes 58,000 DOT ($1M) of DOT to stake it on Acala for $LDOT instead of plain staking on Polkadot. We've now added additional $1M in liquidity to the DOTconomy.
Now let's take that LDOT and collateralize it to mint $aUSD. At a conservative 300% collateral ratio, $330k in aUSD could be minted. We've now added additional $330k + $1M in value to the DOTconomy.
Acala is now launching, on @Polkadot, the first layer-1 blockchain platform customized for DeFi.
Here are 10 facts you should know about @AcalaNetwork:
1. The @AcalaNetwork team are self-proclaimed nerds, comprised mostly of top engineering/product minds. Acala's Co-founder CTO @XiliangChen is one of the top contributors to the Substrate codebase globally (Polkadot's SDK), and started/runs the only Substrate developer academy.
2. Acala is building toward a HyFi vision, or Hybrid Finance, that is bridging the worlds of Web2 fintech and neobanks with DeFi to bring improved yield and financial outcomes to non-crypto users without them having to touch any complex crypto tech like MetaMask or private keys.
It's important to understand what @Polkadot is enabling with this new approach to a multi-chain "layer-0" network. Polkadot is a 3-layered platform, unlike legacy networks like Ethereum who are a single general chain with apps. Here is a simple diagram to explain:
The first-ever parachain slot auction on @kusamanetwork has begun!
Quick rundown of what happened the past week, what's happening now, and what's coming in the next 7 days.
Comment with questions and feel free to share if you learn something ⤵️
In the past week, many teams have opened their 'crowdloan' to garner $KSM contributions from their communities in support of their bid in the parachain slot auction. @KaruraNetwork, for example, currently has 362,791 $KSM in the crowdloan.
We have now entered the 'opening period' of the auction which you could think of as just a 2-day warm-up period. The winning bid cannot be chosen during this period. You'll see a blank screen on Polkadot.js dashboard because crowdloans auto-bid on day 3 - the 'ending period'.
"The Launch of Parachains" has been published by Gavin Wood (@gavofyork) explaining timeline and next steps as we approach the first parachain auction on Kusama. Some new info!
If you don't have time to read or aren't technical, I simplified the key points in 14 tweets below ↘️
With the launch of parachain functionality, Kusama and Polkadot's multi-chain functionality is about to become a reality.
The latest upgrade on Kusama includes the ability to deploy parachains (layer 1 blockchains like Ethereum) to the network. It also includes logic for running parachain slot auctions and crowdloans which can be used to crowdfund a team's auction bid.