MLabs - Pisa-Fees: Decentralized Fee Trading Smart Contract

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Pisa-Fees solve Cardano's ADA token exchange requirements by enabling decentralized fee trading, without the need to convert to ADA allowing for simple token for token conversions.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

Atlas: Off chain application framework

(Custom indexer library if we use one)

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

Our project outputs will not be open source to safeguard intellectual property, maintain commercial viability, and strategically position ourselves in the market. While we acknowledge the benefits of open-source development for fostering collaboration, certain proprietary algorithms and integration frameworks are needed to be private to preserve our competitive advantage.

[METADATA] SDG rating

NA

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

Problem

Cardano transactions require fees to be paid, and only Ada is accepted. Even in transactions that involve no Ada–that is a Defi protocol or other on-chain interactions–users need to provide Ada to be used as a fee to the network.

To provide Ada to each transaction, new users have to acquire, transfer, and configure their wallet with proper amounts of Ada, making interactions in Cardano ecosystem less accessible and difficult to use. 

Solution

Pisa-Fees allows users who do not hold Ada to interact with Cardano ecosystem by allowing payment of transaction fees in non-Ada tokens. 

Pisa-Fees protocol accepts liquidity from providers who want to trade Ada with other tokens at a fixed rate. With given liquidity, Pisa-Fees protocol provides seamless token to token conversion for transaction fees at the given rate whenever. The protocol will be decentralised and the rate of exchange will be market driven.

Having Pisa-Fees protocol decentralised and user driven without a DAO or oracle allows the protocol to be low maintenance and more widely available for users to use and host.

Pisa-Fees addresses Cardano's ADA requirements by introducing a decentralised fee trading smart contract. Pisa-Fees enables seamless token-for-token conversions for a fee taken from the conversion. Liquidity providers can identify which tokens they would like to provide liquidity for. 

Market

Pisa-Fees allows easier access of users to Cardano ecosystem as it removes requirements of users to have Ada balance to make any interactions. Current Defi protocols will be beneficial as transactions that do not involve Ada will no longer require Ada to be present in transactions. For example, users only holding AGIX will be able to interact with DEXs to exchange AGIX for LQ without adding or transferring Ada when using functionalities Pisa-Fees provide. 

Pisa-Fees also provide liquidity providers with new ways to profit and exchange their ADAasset to non-ADA assets by providing an exchange of fees as service. 

This solution benefits Cardano by enhancing protocol functionality, attracting liquidity providers, and promoting token utilization. 

Features

Unique features include flexible on-chain architecture, integration with off-chain frameworks, and optional protocol treasury contributions. Pisa-Fees targets users seeking efficient fee payment mechanisms and contributes to Cardano's growth.

Related work

Currently, there is no protocol or features that provides service to pay transaction fees in different tokens. Pisa-Fees will be the first of its kind to allow users to interact with Cardano ecosystem without holding any Ada.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

The success of the project will be measured through quantitative metrics such as increased liquidity, transaction volume, and token utilization within the protocol.

 Qualitative feedback from users and developers regarding the ease of use, efficiency, and impact on fee management will also be considered. Outputs and opportunities resulting from the project will be shared through comprehensive documentation, SDKs, and open-source contributions. Additionally, engagement with the community through forums, conferences, and developer outreach will ensure widespread awareness and adoption of Pisa-Fees.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

We will validate the feasibility of our approach through research, technical analysis, and consultation with industry experts. Our existing capabilities include a great track record of successful blockchain projects, expertise in DeFi, and proficiency in smart contract development on the Cardano platform. 

To ensure fund management, we have created transparent budgeting and milestone-based funding releases. Additionally, our team members have a history of responsible financial management and adhere to best practices in project governance. We are dedicated to upholding the trust of the Cardano community and delivering impactful results.

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Research and Specification

Outputs:

Concretifying Pisa Protocol specification with white paper writing and Researching technical development stack for implementation.

Acceptance Criteria:

Concise written documents about chain validators’ expected behaviours and their validation rules.

Evidence of milestone completion:

PDF file

On-Chain implementation

Outputs:

Bootstrapping the on chain validator project with reproducible build systems, CI, and development stack. Writing action Pisa Protocol smart contracts according to proposed plan

Acceptance Criteria:

On chain smart contracts implemented according to specification written in the previous milestone.

Evidence of milestone completion:

Onchain Codebase

Off chain follower, API and CLI creation

Outputs:

Developing off chain adapters and interfaces to interact with written on chain smart contracts. Using made off chain application to create first transaction using Pisa Protocol.

Acceptance Criteria:

Offchain codebase implemented aptly to interface with the developed on chain validators from the previous milestone. Made the first demo transaction that shows the use of Pisa Protocol.

Evidence of milestone completion:

Off chain Codebase and transaction hash of a transaction that uses a fee via the Pisa Protocol.

First Transaction and End to end testing

Outputs:

Integration into Atlas Backend smart contract. End to end Plutip testing.

Acceptance Criteria:

Made the first demo transaction that shows the use of Pisa Protocol fee.

Evidence of milestone completion:

Off chain Codebase and transaction hash of a transaction that uses fees via the Pisa Protocol.

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

MLabs

MLabs has quickly become one of the premier development firms in the Cardano Ecosystem. We are an IOG Plutus Partner and work regularly with IOG to develop the Cardano blockchain and ecosystem. Our team is composed of talented developers who have helped build community projects such as:

• Liqwid
• SundaeSwap
• Minswap
• Optim
• Many others

Through our work with early-stage projects, we have one of the largest groups of Haskell/Plutus developers in the community.

Website: https://mlabs.city/

Core team

Veteran Software Engineer

Seungheon Oh

Software engineer who is experienced in smart contract and tooling development on the Cardano ecosystem proficient in Haskell, Purescript, Nix, and various frameworks for dApp development. He has been contributing to a variety of projects, such as Plutarch-Liqwid-Extra and Plutrach-QuickCheck, that make using Plutarch easier, safer, and more effective. At MLabs and Liqwid Labs, Seungheon develops and maintains large-scale decentralized finance protocol, Liqwid, written entirely in Plutarch. Also under Intersect grant, he maintains and implements new features to Plutarch, the onchain smart contract domain specific language. He's main interest is over smart contract development and toolchain as well as programming language design.

Github: https://github.com/seungheonoh

Liqwid: https://github.com/liqwid-labs, https://github.com/liqwid-labs/liqwid-libs

Plutarch: https://github.com/plutonomicon/plutarch-plutus

Veteran Software Engineer

Mikhail Lazarev

Mikhail is a software engineer currently focusing on web 3 technologies. He has contributed to Cardano infrastructure projects, including Plutip, Bot Plutus Interface, and Cardano documentation, as part of the Cardano Community Support Initiative. He has participated in several Catalyst projects such as Seath and Embedano, in roles including developer and manager. Additionally, he is a member of the Clarity DAO protocol development team.

GitHub: https://github.com/mikekeke

Project Delivery Manager

Jordan Hill

Seasoned Delivery Manager specializing in blockchain technology and non-EVM chains, adept at orchestrating cross-functional teams for timely and budget-conscious project deliveries. With expertise in both on-chain and off-chain development, Jordan crafts blockchain solutions that harness the potential of decentralized systems, driving innovation in the field.

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Budget/cost breakdown:

Milestone 1 - 18% - 54 hours

Milestone 2 - 30% - 88 hours

Milestone 3 - 25% - 75 hours

Final Milestone - 27% - 79 hours

Subtotal: 296 hours @100 USD/hour = 29,600 USD

Total (@ rate $0.296 USD / ADA): 100,000 ADA

**In the interest of full transparency, please note we have applied a conservative USD/ADA exchange rate in pricing this proposal. This is to ensure our operations remain stable regardless of market conditions. Although we firmly believe the future of Cardano is bright, we recognize the price of ADA and all cryptocurrencies is inherently volatile. Our financial obligations are denominated in fiat. Most importantly, this includes the salary of our engineers whose hard work makes projects like this possible. 

In the unlikely scenario of severe negative price movement beyond our forecasted rate, it is possible that MLabs may need to temporarily suspend work on this proposal until the market recovers. Rest assured, this decision would be made solely to protect our business's long-term viability and never taken lightly. 

We appreciate your understanding and support, and we are excited to see what we can achieve together.

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The cost of the Pisa-Fees project represents excellent value due to its potential to significantly enhance protocol functionality and promote decentralized fee trading. It is justified by the complexity of developing a robust smart contract that includes extensive research, on-chain and off-chain development, testing, and audits. Our budgeting process considers industry-standard rates for blockchain development, ensuring competitive compensation for our developers involved in the project.

The value derived from increased liquidity, transaction volume, and ecosystem growth far outweighs the initial investment. Pisa-Fees project offers a cost-effective means of advancing Cardanowith delivering tangible benefits to its community.