Leading The New Wave of DeFi: An Overview of IOST’s DeFi Ecosystem
Emerging as a central theme in 2019, the DeFi frenzy has taken the crypto world by storm and it only seems to be gaining more steam with every passing day.
The rapid-growing DeFi market
According to statistics from Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Market Cap, the total market value of current DeFi projects has grown exponentially & exceeded US$7.5 billion, reaching US$7,589,104,607. In just over two months, the total market value of DeFi projects has soared by a steep surge of more than 700%, and now major exchanges, development teams, and investors are stepping into this nascent space.
What is DeFi?
DeFi is the abbreviation of Decentralized Finance — it’s the notion that crypto entrepreneurs can recreate traditional financial instruments in a decentralized manner, outside of companies’ and governments’ control. DeFi aims to restore traditional banking services without centralized entities — savings, loans, transactions, insurance, etc. This means that anyone with an Internet connection can easily access all the conveniences of finance. However, it is better referred to as “distributed finance” or “open finance”, since most DeFi products and services today are a combination of centralization and decentralization.
DeFi exemplifies the power of community-owned networks, unlimited innovation, and a global financial system from the beginning. At present, while being in its budding stage and primarily catering to crypto users, DeFi projects have the potential to become a better alternative for traditional finance and solve major projects for mainstream users around the world.
The IOST DeFi Ecosystem
IOST has an insight into the long-term trend of the DeFi projects and continues to build presence and influences in DeFi based on the rich application portfolio of IOST technology and integration in traditional finance.
As early as the beginning of 2019, IOST has started to lay out a holistic DeFi ecosystem and continued to make inroads in the budding DeFi space with multiple strategic partnerships and emerging on-chain projects from stable coins, decentralized exchanges, cross-chain transactions, lending, financial derivatives, forecasts, and more.
As clearly highlighted in its H2 Roadmap, IOST is making its goal in spearheading the DeFi space. Here’s a full picture of the IOST DeFi Ecosystem.
1. Stable coins
Cross-chain stablecoin — iUSD
In April 2019, as the first step of IOST in the exploration of stable coins, the IOST cross-chain stablecoin iUSD was officially released. IOST iUSD was a cross-chain stablecoin issued on the IOST blockchain, which supported USDC and TUSD anchoring. It helped blockchain applications based on the IOST ecosystem to use stablecoins for transaction transfers with low exchange rate fluctuations.
Stable coins allow users to experience the high liquidity of stable currencies such as USDC and TUSD and transfer digital assets on the IOST blockchain and other networks without limits.
Although iUSD has been halted, the IOST Foundation is actively working with other teams to bring on more stablecoin solutions to the IOST ecosystem. With the past experience from the iUSD project, we will build and release a better product for the IOST ecosystem and make it the cornerstone of the IOST DeFi economy.
2. Decentralized exchanges
The increasing popularity of new DeFi tokens has swayed several crypto holders toward decentralized exchanges. The value of decentralized exchanges is mainly reflected in meeting the needs of users who have higher demands for security. For investors, security and profitability are constant demands, and the unique characteristics of DEXs make up for many of the shortcomings of centralized exchanges. If open finance is to succeed, the decentralized exchanges of assets will be an important element.
IOST DEX
In May 2019, IOST’s first decentralized exchange, IOST DEX was officially launched, developed by an IOST community dev team, it has brought a good trading platform and experience to the IOST DeFi ecosystem. IOST DEX can provide users with a better trading experience through a real-time off-chain matching mechanism and secure on-chain settlement.
See more at https://www.iostdex.io/
otbTrade
In March 2020, the decentralized exchange otbTrade developed by IOST partner node otbTrade was officially launched. otbTrade is one of many products provided by otbBRAND, it is a decentralized exchange focusing on and built for the users. It aims to provide safe services for all users, ensuring that only tokens from well-known projects that pass the strict listing process can join the platform.
See more at https://otbtrade.com/
3. Cross-chain operations
Bifrost
IOST, in conjunction with its partner node Liebi, jointly developed the IOST cross-chain transfer bridge, which facilitates the interconnection of assets and data between the IOST network and other blockchain networks.
Through the IOST cross-chain bridge, IOST blocks can be easily forwarded and mapped to different blockchain networks through the relay chain.
For users, IOST cross-chain bridge enables cross-chain asset transactions, and other services in the relay chain, e.g. DeFi, DEX, Staking, etc. It can bring extra liquidity for the asset and enhanced security to users.
In addition, the Polkadot para chain Bifrost, which is partly supported by Liebi, has also established cooperation with IOST via the cross-chain transfer bridge, which will provide liquidity for IOST Staking. After that, IOST, with its cross-chain technology, will not only obtain staking revenue, but also conduct cross-chain transactions, participate in DeFi, and para chain applications.
4. Lending
ProDeFi
ProDeFi is a next-generation open ecosystem that supports the integration of existing and future financial solutions through the combination of the best elements of decentralized finance with measured regulatory control.
ProDeFi is bridging DeFi and traditional finance with a semi-decentralized approach to constructing solutions, leveraging on the transparency and security of decentralized architectures. A decentralized network of oracles deployed across various protocols will power the transmission of information and data between the ProDeFi Chain and other blockchains, leveraging on our liquidity pool smart contracts as a micro-ledger. With support from our partners, both in the blockchain industry and traditional financial markets, ProDeFi plans to spearhead the transition to a fully decentralized ecosystem, while keeping solutions realistic and applicable during the process.
See more at https://prodefi.io/
ProDefi’s semi-centralized approach, where lending risk is offset via classical mechanisms such as KYC procedures, credit risk bureaus, and traditional judicial processes, will open up traditional P2P lending markets to the benefits of the IOST ecosystem while enabling lenders to benefit more from the same amount of capital, thanks to products using under-collateralization or even no collateral at all.
Bidao
IOST and Bidao officially stepped into a collaboration in August 2020. Bidao is building a new blockchain system dedicated to Decentralized Finance, with a goal is to create a blockchain-agnostic ecosystem for Defi applications. The Bidao ecosystem uses 2 different Tokens: the governance Token BID and the stablecoin BAI. Users can also stake their BID tokens and support the Bidao network. The stablecoin BAI is an algorithmic stablecoin that is pegged 1:1 to the US-Dollar.
Using IOST as collateral is very easy. At first, the IOST is locked up in the CDP. In return, the appropriate amount of BAI is generated and can be used freely by the CDP creator. To regain access to the locked IOST, the BAI has to be repaid to the system. This is simply done by a simple function call and sending back the BAI to the CDP. After that, the unlocked IOST can be transferred freely again by the CDP creator.
See more at https://bidaochain.org/
Constant Co.
Constant, headquartered in California, is an alternative financial services platform designed to strip out the inefficiencies of the traditional banking industry and help people get more out of their money. Constant was founded by a team of scientists, economists, engineers, and designers, fully devoted to the mission of building simple, elegant financial tools for an increasingly interconnected world. They are backed by PrimeTrust and the FDIC and work closely with custody services like Bitgo to insure collateral.
Constant matches investors with borrowers who are willing to pay interest rates to help users experience completely secure peer-to-peer loans, secure investor funds, and borrower collateral through smart contracts, and facilitate the entire transaction. In December 2019, IOST was officially listed as collateral in the platform, and IOST holders can use its assets to obtain competitive P2P loans.
See more at https://www.myconstant.com/
PROXI One-Stop DeFi Platform
In August 2020, IOST and PROXI, a one-stop DeFi platform for cross-chain derivatives issuance and lending, formally reached cooperation. IOST will be joining as one of the blockchains alongside Ethereum, TRON, Tezos on the PROXI ecosystem which consists of varieties of players such as DEXes, Oracles, wallets, Blockchains, Applications, and tokenization platforms. PROXI is a DeFi 2.0 one-stop platform for cross-chain derivative issuance and credit lending are forming a collaboration to bring real values and innovations into DeFi.
PROXI’s holistic approach to DeFi and cross-chain interoperability will open up more use cases and users base for IOST. As strategic partners, IOST and PROXI shall mutually leverage on each other with community growth, product development, technical support as well as marketing resources. The two parties aim to jointly create a decentralized world with a sustainable and profitable DeFi network.
See more at https://proxidefi.com/
5. Financial derivatives
PowerDeFi
PowerDeFi is an emerging DeFi platform of Powermine, launched on the 6th of June 2020. Developed by IOST Partner Node Powermine, the PowerDeFi platform not only has an extremely popular Uniswap exchange port but also includes a complete Perpetual ecosystem with functions such as lending, staking, and more. In the future, more innovative DeFi functions will be launched, which will bootstrap the increased applicability, transaction volume, and overall value of PER.
According to DappRadar data, PowerDeFi’s 7-day trading volume has exceeded 10 million IOST quickly, reaching over 14M as the time of writing. Undeniably, this progressive, robust, and fast-growing platform is building every block to prove itself a force to be reckoned with on IOST, and even beyond.
See more at https://powerdefi.io/
Liebi Pool
In May 2019, Liebi Mining Pool was officially launched on the IOST mainnet. Liebi mining pool is a new generation PoS mining pool developed by the Liebi team. As the first DeFi project on IOST, among other advantages, the Liebi pool offers decentralization, high liquidity, no lock-up, automatic compound interest, and an open platform. The first to lower the PoS investment threshold concept of “mining rights”, by holding the mining rights of the Liebi mining pool, you can immediately start staking and enjoy the unique benefits of decentralized mining pools such as automatic dividends, automatic compound interest, and free transfers.
See more at https://pool.liebi.com/iost
Decentralized voting channels: Qingfeng (Breeze) and others
IOST’s mature and complete decentralized staking mechanism has attracted a variety of projects that also issued custom tokens, so that by staking it is possible to obtain IOST and derivative tokens, such as Qingfeng. Qingfeng has a dual currency model where users pledge IOST through Qingfeng. On the basis of obtaining IOST, voters will also obtain Qingfeng governance tokens, GT. In addition, there are QF points repurchase pool, real-time redemption of points to IOST, a deflationary mechanism for points, and an internal value-added model for points.
See more at https://gt.bitapp.net/
Force Protocol
In April 2019, IOST reached a strategic partnership with Force Protocol. Force Protocol is an open blockchain financial service platform, which consists of a set of DeFi technology components and multiple tokenized protocols. At present, Force Protocol is developing on several public chains such as ETH, EOS, and Bitcoin RSK network. Developers in these ecosystems will be provided with financial services development tools. In the near future, Force Protocol will be developed based on the IOST chain and provide financial service development tools for developers in the IOST ecosystem.
See more at https://www.theforceprotocol.com/
6. Oracles
Chainlink
In May 2019, IOST and Chainlink established a strategic partnership. Chainlink is the leading blockchain middleware (or “oracle”) that allows smart contracts to access key off-chain resources as data feeds, various web APIs, and traditional bank account payments. As a bridge for data exchange between blockchain and the real world, oracles can be used in many scenarios. It’s safe to say that oracles are a necessity for all Dapps that need off-chain information, such as lending platforms, package tracking/IoT, stablecoins, gambling, insurance, to name a few. After the integration of Chainlink into IOST, developers aiming to build cross-chain Dapps can realize this goal on IOST.
See more at https://chain.link/
NEST
In May 2019, IOST struck a partnership with NEST. NEST aims to build a decentralized price prediction oracle network.
Nest aims to build a decentralized price oracle network. The DApp smart contract interactive tool based on this agreement can use the “quote mining system” to participate in Nest mining; at the same time, it is possible to develop DeFi products based on NEST-Price; devs can also easily deploy, manage, and operate NEST DeFi contracts. The NEST protocol will also be integrated into the IOST community ecosystem to develop more decentralized financial services applications.
See more at https://nestdapp.io/
DOS Network
In December 2019, IOST formally reached a strategic partnership with DOS Network, a decentralized oracle service network that supports multiple chains. DOS is a scalable layer-2 network that implements decentralized oracle services and aims to provide real-world data and computing power for mainstream blockchains.
DOS Network links blockchain smart contracts with real-world data and events while providing verifiable computing power for blockchains, thereby enabling more real-world commercial applications.
This partnership between DOS Network and IOST aims to connect the IOST Dapp ecosystem with off-chain real-world data in a secure, trustworthy, and timely manner. The two aim to jointly create a decentralized world with blockchain mass adoption becoming a new norm, by enhancing cooperation in the integration of blockchains and oracles.
See more at https://dos.network
7. Other services
In addition to infrastructure and various DeFi projects, IOST also provides complete services & products for the development of the DeFi ecosystem, such as mobile wallets, plug-in wallets, etc., allowing users to play and “earn” from the IOST DeFi ecosystem at a low threshold.
TokenPocket
TokenPocket is a leading multi-chain wallet and has provided reliable digital assets management services for millions of users around the world. It has access to ten public chains including EOS, BTC, ETH, IOST, TRON, and supports over 2200 dapps, it is also the largest wallet of IOST. Users can smoothly experience digital asset management, asset transactions, DApps, market information, transactions, real-time chat, and other functions on the wallet app, as well as participate in the governance of IOST, and experience the rich ecosystem of IOST.
TokenPocket wallet download link: https://www.tokenpocket.pro/
Jetstream
Jetstream is an IOST plug-in wallet, created by the Q.E.D team, partner node of IOST from Korea. As a Chrome plug-in wallet, Jetstream has smooth interaction and complete functions. In addition to experiencing basic functions such as web-based DApp and supporting Token transfer, it also has IOST mainnet account creation support, cross-chain support, NFT asset support, IRC-20 asset support, multi-language support, and node partner voting support.
Jetstream plug-in wallet download link:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/jetstream/ijancdlmlahmfgcimhocmpibadokcdfc
The IOST DeFi Ecosystem Development Plan for the Second Half of 2020
In 2020, IOST is making its inroads in the nascent DeFi space and cultivating the growth of its robust DeFi ecosystem through deepened cooperations with emerging DeFi projects, and comprehensive incubation support for potential DeFi products.
1. IOST will cooperate in-depth with existing DeFi projects and provide comprehensive optimization support for them;
2. IOST will comprehensively transform and upgrade, provide comprehensive incubation services for potential DeFi projects in terms of technology, operation, and financial support, and create explosive DeFi products;
3. Through the IOST cross-chain transfer bridge, IOST will link with DeFi projects and users of other public chains such as Ethereum. While introducing more high-quality DeFi projects, it will usher in explosive user growth.
“All in DeFi” is the slogan and development focus of IOST in the second half of 2020
The IOST platform emerged as a response to the scalability problem which it aims to tackle once and for all. To that effect, it implements an array of technologies, including the Proof-of-Believability algorithm, and Micro State Blocks technology, all of which are supposed to offer higher TPS rates of up to 8000 transactions per second.
IOST offers developer-friendly features that improve product development efficiency. No congestion and no high gas fees as seen in Ethereum, the reason many developers choose to launch DeFi projects on IOST. A zero transaction fee also guarantees users the convenience and accessibility of using DeFi applications on the IOST chain
In the future, in IOST we will work with our more than 400 partner nodes and partners around the world to deliver innovation to DeFi, create explosive DeFi products, lead the mainstream application of DeFi, and open up a new phase for a decentralized global economy.
If you want DeFi, join IOST.
