TL;DR: an updated timeline for the tBTC v2 launch.
August
- Smart Contracts: Pending the outcome of two independent audits by Trail of Bits and Least Authority which will be published in July.
- Staking Client: Our goal is to launch the staking client by September 15th. Rewards for performing work related to running the v2 protocol will be launched in conjunction with the client.
- dApp: In development.
September
- Staking Client: We will continue testing and releasing functionalities regarding the client software through September and into mid-October.
- dApp: In development.
October
- Staking Client: Once we have full confidence in the robustness of the client, we will begin a managed deployment of the v2 protocol.
- dApp: By October 31st, the first step of the rollout – minting tBTC v2 – will be live.
- This will be paired with a slowly rising cap on the # of tBTC v2 that can be minted.
November
- Staking Client: Fully functional.
- dApp: By November 30th, redemptions will be enabled and the minting cap will be removed. This means the full minting flow of tBTC v2 will be live.
- Work will then begin on version 2.1 of tBTC v2 which will include quick-minting and coverage pools, slated for launch by the end of Q1 2023.
tBTC v2 Timeline
The next steps for launching the tBTC v2 dApp on Threshold Network involve a careful rollout of the new staking client among providers, beginning with minting accompanied by a slowly rising tBTC minting cap and concluding with the enablement of redemptions and removal of the cap.
On September 15th, a new staking client will be delivered that can start to earn rewards on Threshold Network for performing work related to running the tBTC v2 protocol. Next, during September and October we will be gradually releasing and testing functionalities. Any updates will be updates regarding client software–not the protocol itself.
Once we're confident in the client software, we will implement a managed launch with a slowly rising cap on # of tBTC v2 that can be minted. The estimate for this first minting date is October 31st. As more tBTC v2 get minted, we can complete the rollout by allowing for redemptions of tBTC back to BTC. The estimate for adding redemptions is within 30 days of enabling minting–on or before November 30th.
We've encoded these goals with deadlines in our Company-wide Q3 OKRs which can be read below:
Post-Launch Next Steps
After the full launch of tBTC v2 client and Dashboard, we will go to work on the next iteration that enables "quick-minting" of tBTC v2.
For v2.0, tBTC v2 is minted only when the deposit is swept. The wallet is sweeping with a fixed frequency to minimize costs (read: split SPV proof cost into multiple deposits revealed between sweeps). If the sweeping schedule is "every 8 hours", it means that in the worst case (deposit revealed just after the last sweep), one needs to wait 8 hours for their tBTC v2 to be minted.
This is not ideal for the UX and there is an idea we could have a mechanism in v2.1, where the wallet declares "yes, I am sure I can sweep this" and we do not wait for the sweep to happen and be proven. Instead, we mint the tBTC v2 right away after the wallet declaration. In case the wallet is fraudulent, the coverage pool takes the hit to restore the peg. This is v2.1 and will be ready during or before the end of Q1 2023.
A Note on Coverage Pools
Both for v2.0 and v2.1, the T-only Coverage Pool is involved to guard against fraudulent actors.
We need a T-only Coverage Pool once we eliminate the cap and announce the system is tested, fully deployed, and working. Given the timeline above, this coverage pool would be launched at the end of November.
