Polygon Monthly Report - September 2023

In the bustling month of September, Polygon witnessed immense growth and developments, the highlight being the beginnings of Polygon 2.0 with the introduction of three Polygon Improvement Proposals (PIPs). These proposals will shape the future of the network, facilitating the transition from the MATIC token to the new POL token. Furthermore, Polygon welcomed Google Cloud as a validator on its Proof of Stake Network, contributing to the security of over 3 billion MATIC tokens. Polygon also noted its partnerships with Astar Network and Canto, who are creating their solutions powered by Polygon CDK. Moreover, Safe deployed on Polygon zkEVM, magnifying the adoption of Polygon's solutions. The native USDC by Circle is set to launch on Polygon in October 2023, further expanding the ecosystem. With Polygon PoS crossing 3 billion total transactions and Reddit NFT's successful run within the community, the future of Polygon promises significant potential and expansion.

Introduction

The month of September was full of exciting news and growth throughout the Polygon ecosystem. Many of Polygon’s scaling solutions have grown in adoption and many exciting partnerships were announced. In this article, we’ll discuss the latest news and analytics that you don’t want to miss. Let’s dive in!

Biggest News of the Month

Polygon 2.0 Has Begun

Polygon Labs has introduced three new Polygon Improvement Proposals (PIPs). These proposals outline changes that will be implemented in the coming months, pending community approval. The upgrades involve the beginnings of Polygon 2.0 in creating a network of interconnected ZK powered Layer 2 chains to scale Ethereum. They also include transitioning from the MATIC token to the new POL token as the native token for Polygon PoS.

PIP-18 provides an overview of Phase 0 of Polygon 2.0, which includes changes like upgrading to the POL token and launching the Staking Layer. PIP-17 introduces the POL token itself, which will replace MATIC, and explains how it will be distributed. PIP-19 focuses on upgrading the native gas token on Polygon POS from MATIC to POL while maintaining compatibility with existing contracts.

Just a few days ago, POL contracts were deployed on Goerli Testnet and two proposals for changing the native token burning mechanism went live. Community participation is emphasized throughout this process to ensure that Polygon remains community driven.

You can read our full report on Polygon 2.0 Phase 0 here.

More Exciting News

Google Cloud Has Become a Validator on Polygon PoS!

In late September, Google Cloud announced they became part of the decentralized validator set for Polygon PoS. The same infrastructure used to power Youtube and Gmail is now helping to secure the Polygon Proof of Stake chain.

With 100+ validators securing the Polygon PoS Network, Google Cloud joins many great names securing over 3 billion MATIC tokens.

Astar Network is Launching Astar zkEVM!

Astar Network, one of the leading blockchains in Japan and Polkadot, has announced they are launching their very own Astar zkEVM powered by Polygon CDK. Astar aims to create a one-stop solution to accelerate adoption of blockchain with plans to onboard enterprises, entertainment IPs, and gaming companies across Japan.

Sota Watanabe, founder of Astar, stated in a recent X Spaces that they plan to launch Astar zkEVM on Testnet this month. If everything goes as planned, they will then launch on Mainnet by the end of 2023.

Canto is Migrating to Ethereum!

Canto, a Layer 1 blockchain, is migrating to a ZK-powered Ethereum Layer 2, built with Polygon CDK. Canto core devs will build an L2 with Polygon CDK that extends Canto community’s defining ethos of permissionless sovereignty and liquidity as a public good.

In the announcement tweet Canto states, “After assessing several routes, it quickly became clear that Polygon CDK offers a powerful suite to enable Canto to deliver a ZK L2 that extends the community's defining ethos of permissionless sovereignty, security, and liquidity as a public good.”

Safe Has Launched on Polygon zkEVM!

Safe, the most used multi-sig wallet in crypto, has deployed on Polygon zkEVM. Both Safe{Wallet}, widely used by web3 teams to manage their onchain treasuries, as well as the Safe{Core} account abstraction stack, are now fully deployed and ready for users and developers to interact, play, manage assets, and build with on Polygon zkEVM.

News of the integration was first shared during SafeCon by founder of Polygon, Sandeep Nailwal. Sandeep stated, “I believe we are on the cusp of solving infra challenges with L2 scaling, smart contract wallets, and privacy, solving the need for trustless computing, self-custody, and censorship-resistance. It is clear that we are moving in the direction of a gasless, account abstraction user experience”

Circle Announced Native USDC Launch Date on Polygon!

Native USDC will launch on Polygon on October 10th, 2023. USDC, issued by Circle, will be native to Polygon PoS and will be the official form of USDC for the ecosystem. Over time, native USDC liquidity will grow and replace the bridged USDC liquidity that comes from Ethereum via the Polygon PoS Bridge.

Some of the main benefits of native USDC:

• Fully reserved and always redeemable 1:1 for US dollars
• Supported by Circle Account and its APIs
• Enables institutional on/off-ramps
• Future support by CCTP to eliminate bridge withdrawal delays

Analytics

Polygon PoS Reached 3 Billion Total Transactions

In the month of September, the Polygon Proof of Stake chain (PoS) passed a major milestone of 3B total transactions processed. To put this number into perspective, in May 2021 the total amount of transactions was 100M.

Polygon PoS Reached 350 Million Unique Addresses

In yet another impressive milestone, Polygon PoS passed 350M total unique addresses. One year ago in September 2022, this number was around 170M. This means the total number of unique addresses has more than doubled in one year's time.

Reddit Avatar Holders Reached 20 Million

Reddit NFTs are one of the most successful collections we have seen from a mainstream Web2 brand. The total holder count has now passed 20M with just over 24M in total supply. The totals sales volume for Reddit Avatars has recently passed $40M.

Polygon zkEVM Total USD Deposits

Polygon zkEVM has experienced impressive activity since launching on Mainnet Beta in March of this year. The total dollar amount of deposits onto the chain has now reached $130M. Total value locked on chain is currently hovering around $50M.

Draft Kings (Reign Makers) Reached $200M in Volume

Reign Makers by DraftKings has consistently been one of the top 5 most traded NFT collections amongst all blockchains over the last few months. In September, DraftKings reached a huge milestone of $200M in sales volume on Polygon. Polygon PoS continues to be one of the top blockchains in NFT sales volume.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the month of September witnessed remarkable developments and milestones within the Polygon ecosystem. The introduction of Polygon 2.0 and the transition to the POL token, signals a significant step forward in enhancing Ethereum scalability. Furthermore, Google Cloud's entry as a validator on Polygon PoS, Astar Network's upcoming zkEVM launch, Canto's migration to Ethereum Layer 2, and Safe's deployment on Polygon zkEVM all highlight the growing interest and adoption of Polygon's solutions across various domains.

These developments and statistics collectively highlight the momentum and potential of the Polygon ecosystem as it continues to evolve. Polygon technology and its ecosystem projects continue to grow and show potential for the future ahead.