Weekly News from Polkadot & Kusama #89
1. Polkadot releases v1.0.0 marking a new era of decentralized development
Polkadot celebrates a momentous achievement with the release of v1.0.0, fulfilling the ambitious vision set out in its whitepaper five years ago. Parity proudly hands over the runtime code to the community, signaling a shift towards a decentralized network.
Going forward, the focus will be on enhancing the Polkadot node, inviting contributors to submit runtime code changes and protocol improvements. This milestone empowers a vibrant Fellowship of developers to shape the future of Polkadot, ensuring continuous innovation and progress within the network.
Polkadot’s Stable Release v1.0.0 marks a shift towards a diverse developer community, ensuring continuity and preventing breaking changes, empowering parachain teams to focus on product development.
The Polkadot 2.0 era begins, embracing decentralized collective efforts in open development.
2. aSEED launches on Acala and StellaSwap, replacing aUSD
The aSEED token is now live on Acala’s decentralized exchange AcalaSwap and also on StellaSwap. Formerly known as aUSD, aSEED will replace aUSD on these platforms. aSEED is also live on Karura and tradable on KaruraSwap and Zenlink.
If you hold aUSD/aUSD LP, it will be automatically converted to aSEED/aUSD LP. Vault owners can continue managing their vaults, and app builders consuming Acala’s network API will experience minimal changes. However, apps displaying token symbols and names in an off-chain manner should ensure the correct symbol and name are displayed on conversion day.
3. Interlay Bitcoin DeFi Hub partners with Banxa for seamless on-and-off ramp iuntegration
Interlay announced an integration with Banxa, the leading global Web3 on-and-off ramp solution. This partnership marks a significant milestone in improving accessibility and usability for INTR on the Interlay Bitcoin DeFi Hub.
With this integration, users can easily purchase the native token INTR under the Fund Wallet option at https://app.interlay.io. The collaboration with Banxa aims to minimize UX friction for Bitcoin DeFi users, making Interlay a one-stop-shop for all things Bitcoin DeFi. Unlock the true potential of your Bitcoin now!
Besides that, users with 0 INTR can now claim 5 INTR from Interlay's discord faucet to get started with the Bitcoin DeFi Hub.
Also, Interlay presented a new “Bring your own fees” feature allowing you to pay fees in any token such as DOT, iBTC, INTR, or USDT.
4. Nova Wallet adds support for new tokens on MangataX
Managing tokens just got easier for Nova Wallet users as they can now access and handle TUR, BNC, RMRK, ZLK, vsKSM, and vKSM, tokens on MangataX’s platform, courtesy of the recent integration with Mangata Finance.
MangataX trading platform dApp is also available on Nova Wallet for your seamless trading.
5. Tanssi collaborates with KodaDot to accelerate NFT marketplace expansion
Tanssi, the appchain infrastructure protocol, announced new collaboration with KodaDot, an open-source NFT marketplace, to enable rapid and effective appchain deployment. By leveraging Tanssi’s infrastructure tools, KodaDot can enhance scalability, lower transaction fees, and swiftly adapt to user needs.
The collaboration sets the stage for groundbreaking NFT innovations and reinforces KodaDot’s vision of a versatile space catering to gamers, developers, collectors, and NFT enthusiasts. The TestNet deployment is scheduled for later this year, leading to the mainnet launch in 2024, fostering a vibrant community of NFT enthusiasts.
6. Energy Web unveils Digital Spine integration client on Microsoft Azure marketplace
Energy Web, a non-profit organization focused on digital solutions for the energy sector, recently announced the public release of its Digital Spine solution. The upgraded Digital Spine Client Gateway on the Microsoft Azure marketplace, coupled with a production-grade message broker, marks a significant step in productizing Energy Web’s open-source technology stack.
This enterprise-friendly Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model enables companies to seamlessly access Energy Web’s Digital Spine, facilitating integration and coordination of distributed energy resources in real-time. This milestone further supports the digital transformation journey for electric utilities and DER aggregators.
7. Crust Network introduces EVM Storage protocol for enhanced Web3 storage architecture
Crust Network achieves a major breakthrough with the launch of its “EVM Storage” technical module. By integrating Crust Mainnet, Polkadot Parachains, and EVM contracts, this new protocol supports storage services for any EVM-compatible chain, offering a more flexible and comprehensive storage architecture for the Web3 ecosystem.
The upgrade empowers Crust to seamlessly integrate decentralized storage resources into the entire EVM ecosystem, enhancing compatibility, application development, and cross-chain communication. With DWF Labs’ significant investment, Crust advances its goal of providing advanced storage solutions for the Web3 community.
8. Crust Network partners with BioMed to launch a blockchain-based health data storage platform
Crust Network will collaborate with BioMed to develop a blockchain-based health data storage platform. The platform, built on Crust Network’s blockchain protocol, ensures data privacy and user control over personal health data from gut microbiome tests. Users can manage and grant access to their data to healthcare institutions.
The collaboration aims to advance bioinformatics and blockchain technology in the healthcare sector, enabling secure and efficient sharing of medical data and personalized healthcare solutions. Crust Network plans to collaborate with other HKSTP partner companies, fostering innovation in Hong Kong’s startup community.
9. Moonbeam introduces ‘Contract Captains’ to enhance on-chain data visibility
Moonbeam introduces “Contract Captains” to projects that label their smart contracts, enhancing on-chain data visibility. Top projects with labeled contracts will receive shoutouts based on transaction volume.
To encourage more projects to label their smart contracts, teams should submit their contract info to Moonscan. This allows Moonscan to provide contract data by project, including crucial on-chain metrics like transactions, total users, active users, addresses of contracts, and verified contracts, empowering Dapps with valuable insights.
10. KILT partners with German Energy Agency for decentralized digital identities in the Energy System
A blockchain protocol KILT will provide the infrastructure for decentralized digital identities in the “DIVE” project by the German Energy Agency (dena). Commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, DIVE aims to evaluate the benefits of decentralized identities in the energy sector through real-world use cases.
KILT’s integration will enable proof of origin, micro-plant participation in flexibility markets, and rapid supplier switching at e-charging stations, contributing to the transformation of the energy sector with secure and automated digital solutions.
11. Litentry launches Direct Invocation for IDHub, boosting performance by 50%
Litentry has introduced Direct Invocation on IDHub, accelerating product features by 50%. The update streamlines interactions with the TEE enclave, allowing clients to directly request the Enclave Sidechain, reducing waiting times. Data integrity is ensured with logged results on the Litentry Parachain. This change eliminates the need to go through the Litentry Parachain for actions like setting up shielding keys, linking identities, and generating VCs. The transition maintains security levels while enabling free services and unblocking users from LIT token dependency.
- Strengthen Polkadot by nominating your DOT tokens to POLKADOTTERS, community builders for the Polkadot ecosystem
- Support Polkadotters Shrimp and Polkadotters Octopus on Polkadot and be a part of a more secure Web3 future
- Delegate your DOT or KSM to Polkadotters for easy participation in the on-chain governance via Talisman or Nova wallet
