Quarterly Report for Synthetix, Quarter 3 of 2024: July — September.
👉Q3 Highlights
⭐ Spartan Council/CCs: V3 Migration, SNAX Chain, & Referendum⭐ Ambassador Council: Ecosystem Grants
Over the past few months, the Synthetix Protocol has undergone significant developments and faced a range of challenges as it continues to expand and evolve. In this report, we will explore some of the key highlights, such as the successful migration to V3, new market launches, and governance updates. We’ll also dive into the challenges that have surfaced, particularly around liquidity, integration delays, and governance complexities. Let’s take a closer look at both the achievements and obstacles during this transformative period.
The migration to Synthetix V3 has been a major focus over the past few months, representing a critical shift in how the protocol operates. This transition required an incredible amount of technical execution, and the first phase began with the migration of the Synthetix Treasury. This migration required strong coordination between Core Contributors, auditors, and the Spartan Council, allowing migration to finally open to all stakers towards the end of the quarter. Post migration, the Treasury is now backing debt on V2X and V3 simultaneously, which paves the way for the launch of the much-anticipated L1 Perp offering.
L1 Perps finally made it to testnet this past quarter and is expected to be live on mainnet by the middle of October. Though the progress was slower than originally expected, the product will add more avenues for trading on-chain Perps and will deepen the trading activity supported by SNX collateral. One of the key challenges was preparing the front-end interfaces and coordinating with integrators, like Kwenta, to support Perps trading and Vault functionality.
Another significant milestone this quarter was the introduction of SNAX Chain, which was designed to serve as the primary hub for Synthetix V3 governance. Built on the OP Stack, SNAX Chain enables cross-chain messaging and decentralized governance, allowing voting to take place seamlessly across various networks. The development of SNAX Chain was driven by the need to address limitations in the current governance system, particularly with election mechanics that were restricted to Optimism Mainnet. This has been crucial for improving election systems and aligning governance with the needs of the protocol. SNAX Chain officially hit mainnet just in time to host this past epoch’s elections in September.
Perhaps the most significant development of the quarter came just days after the new Spartan Council was elected when Fenway, a long-time Synthetix community member and newly elected Councilor, proposed a referendum mechanism in SIP-408. The proposal represents a significant shift towards a more direct form of governance on sensitive strategic issues within the protocol. This mechanism allows for specific changes or upgrades to be put to a token holder vote, rather than being exclusively decided on by the Spartan Council.