ZKPad — Top 5 exciting things to know about this new DeFi Launchpad
IDOs — also known as Initial DEX Offerings, started as a new trend in late 2020. In 2021, new launchpads started popping up every few months. Crypto projects conduct IDOs on launchpads as a way to raise funds through crowdfunding in a decentralised manner. In the past 1 year, there have been several launchpads on different blockchains such as Ethereum, BSC, Solana, AVAX and so on.
So what makes ZKPad stand out from the rest and why do we need a new launchpad?
In this article, I will share the top 5 reasons why ZKPad is a launchpad that brings so many exciting new features not seen on other launchpads.
We will dive deeper into each of the reasons after this.
First ever launchpad on StarkNet
If you have been closely following the latest developments in the Ethereum ecosystem, then you would know that layer-2 scaling solutions are quickly gaining popularity. A leading layer-2 scaling solution developer is StarkWare. They use zero-knowledge proofs to enhance the scalability while still inheriting the security of the underlying blockchain — Ethereum.
StarkNet was developed by StarkWare and it allows creation of smart contracts in a language called Cairo. It is a booming new ecosystem and the developer community is already very active with several new projects being developed on the StarkNet ecosystem.
ZKPad will be the first launchpad on StarkNet. Their goal is to leverage the scalability features of StarkNet and help raise funds for new projects in the StarkNet ecosystem in a completely decentralised manner.
Fair lotteries
If you have participated in IDO launchpads in the past or at least applied for the lotteries, then you would be aware of the lack of transparency in such lottery systems. You fill in the whitelisting application forms, conduct the tasks which the projects asked you to do and then hope that you get selected in the lottery.
Such lottery results are often followed by unhappy users who are not sure whether the lottery was conducted fairly.
So far, no IDO launchpads have leveraged the power of blockchain to conduct lotteries in a fair and transparent manner. ZKPad revolutionises this approach by using ChainLink’s VRF (Verifiable Random Function) to randomly select the winners in the lottery.
Chainlink is a battle-tested blockchain and it allows random number generation in a transparent way which can be audited on the blockchain since all the operations are captured on-chain.
ZKPad taps into the power of Chainlink’s VRF and combines it with the StarkNet smart contracts to fairly and transparently pick the winners of the lottery.
This can be a game-changer, since it allows all the applicants to verify the results of the lottery on-chain and be assured that the lottery was conducted fairly.
Transferable lottery tickets
This is one of the most exciting features of this Launchpad, according to me. If you have been actively participating in the IDOs on various launchpads, then you might have experienced situations where you got selected for an IDO but did not want to participate in it. There could be multiple reasons for this, such as you changed your mind after researching the project.
Such lottery tickets can go to waste if the whitelisted applicant does not actually participate in the IDO. It impacts both the fundraising process and also the chances of other applicants who could not get whitelisted.
ZKPad will issue the lottery tickets in the form of ERC-721 NFTs which can be sold to other users on NFT marketplaces. This way, your lottery tickets do not go to waste if you later decided not to participate in the IDO.
According to the latest updates from the team, they have plans to tokenise the lottery tickets as ERC-1155 NFTs.
Incubator — more than just a launchpad
Most IDO launchpads in the DeFi ecosystem focus on quantity rather than quality of the projects they are launching. Secondly, after the completion of IDO, the launchpads do not usually help the projects as they progress through their roadmap. Some IDO launchpads help with the marketing of the crypto project only leading up to the IDO.
ZKPad aims to combine the power of their network which consists of private investors, educators, blockchain experts, developers and builders to help the projects in all the stages, even after the IDO is completed.
By playing the role of an incubator, an accelerator and a launchpad for the crypto projects, it puts them in a unique position in the DeFi launchpad ecosystem.
DAO and governance
DAOs have gained a lot of popularity in the recent past and they will continue gaining more adoption. It helps to involve the community in decision making and have a stake in it, more than just financial.
Often launchpads bring new projects on their platform based entirely on their own decision and this process does not involve the community. As a result, users of the launchpad could be unhappy with the selection of projects.
ZKPad changes this by leveraging DAO systems such as Snapshot (which will be available on the StarkNet ecosystem). These DAOs allow the users to vote on proposals with their tokens to make important decisions in both the launchpad system mechanics and the selection of projects.
Conclusion
ZKPad comes packed with so many features which have never been seen before on any other launchpad. This makes it one of the most exciting launchpads to look forward to in 2022.
Now it is up to the team to deliver on the roadmap. A lot of projects which are in early stages of development in the StarkNet ecosystem will also be ready for an IDO launch in 2022.
