NEW DELHI (CoinChapter.com) — Polygon, an Ethereum layer-2 solution, has proposed upgrading its native token, MATIC, into a multipurpose token capable of validating multiple chains.
The proposal is currently awaiting approval from the Polygon community. If accepted, MATIC will undergo a technical upgrade and be renamed POL. According to a recent announcement, the upgraded token, POL, will have utility across all Polygon protocols, including Polygon PoS, zkEVM, and Supernets.
This upgrade aims to enable the scalability of protocol participants, allowing support for numerous Polygon chains while maintaining high-security standards.
The announcement states, “Primarily, it enables the pool of protocol participants, i.e., actors to scale to support thousands of Polygon chains without sacrificing security.”
The key focus of POL’s utility lies in aligning and incentivizing validators to engage in valuable work. The redesigned protocol architecture will introduce infinite scalability and seamless integration between protocols.
Validators who stake POL stand to benefit from three incentive streams: protocol rewards, transaction fees, and additional rewards.
In addition to validating multiple chains, validators will have the opportunity to perform various roles within a single chain, including generating zero-knowledge proofs and participating in data availability committees.
MATIC’s Transition to POL
The transition from MATIC to POL is a straightforward technical procedure.
Token holders must send their MATIC tokens to the designated upgrade smart contract, seamlessly converting them into an equivalent amount of POL tokens.
To ensure a smooth transition, the proposed upgrade offers a generous four years or more timeframe for token holders to complete the process. This extended period allows ample time and flexibility, provided the Polygon community rallies behind the proposed move.
Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal previously believed that Web3 gaming would significantly drive widespread cryptocurrency adoption. During an “ask me anything” session, Nailwal highlighted the promising future of Web3 games, with substantial funding of over $2 billion in the previous year alone.
“There are some top games launching in Web3 in the next 6-18 months, and it would be very interesting to see if some of them are able to crack the crypto code. Last year itself, there was $2 billion+ in funding for Web3 games.”
Naliwal said.
He emphasized the importance of gradually decentralizing protocols and applications as they gain prominence, stressing the need for progressive decentralization to ensure long-term success.
The proposal for upgrading MATIC to a multipurpose token represents Polygon’s ongoing efforts to enhance its ecosystem and provide users with expanded functionalities. The proposal’s fate now rests in the hands of the Polygon community, who will decide whether to approve the upgrade and usher in a new era for the token as POL.
