Greetings, numans! It’s been a busy several months as we’ve been working to complete the protocol, and we’re grateful for everyone who has stuck with us during this time. We’ve discovered some opportunities for new features during the audit process that we decided are worth pursuing, since they will add a lot of value to the protocol. This has complicated our schedule and audit process, since we need these features audited, as well. It has taken some time to figure out the exact requirements for these new features and decide whether they are worth the effort and schedule disruption. As those who have been following the project know, our original estimated release was Q2, but then we decided to add some additional protection measures that took a lot of time. And now we’ve discovered some additional opportunities: the additional time and resources spent have added immense value to the numa protocol. Since things are becoming clearer now, we want to give a long-awaited development update and release schedule. 

New features

The two new features referenced above include our new buy fee model and the ability to open and close leveraged positions through the LP. Our original buy fee model—which was implemented with the vault back in March—utilized a static value that could be changed via admin permissions, based on market conditions. At vault launch, the fee was 30%, which was later reduced to 20%, with a goal of reducing to 5% by the time synthetics are launched. And our original leverage model only utilized the vault to open and close positions, instead of also considering whether the LP price is more advantageous to the user. 

The new buy fee model adjusts to market conditions on its own. For the time being, the base fee will remain at 20%, though this will be reduced in the future, as well—more details on this in the schedule below. According to the new buy fee model, there is a base fee that represents the minimum fee for vault buys and a dynamic fee added to the base fee in times of increased demand for the protocol. When the full protocol is live, the base fee will be 5% and expand in times of increased demand. On the contrary, if the buy fee is above 5% and demand for the protocol starts to wane, the buy fee can reduce incrementally back to 5%. The new buy fee model allows for greater value capture for the $NUMA token and creates a sort of feedback loop: as the buy fee increases from increased demand, the price increases more rapidly, which then further increases the buy fee, which then allows the price to increase even more rapidly.

The new leverage feature gives the user the ability to open larger and safer leveraged positions, since the liquidation price can be lower. And it also allows users to close leveraged positions at greater profit, since it’s possible to close the position into the LP at a better price than only through the vault. The numa app will calculate and present the user with whichever route benefits the user more—vault or LP. In our previous implementation which only utilized the vault, every opening or closing of a leveraged position would incur vault fees that benefit the collateral snowball. However, the new leverage feature creates the possibility that users can open and close their positions through the LP, which would not incur any vault fees. This may seem like a downside for the protocol, but it creates additional demand and speculative opportunities for the $NUMA token, which should benefit the protocol to an even greater extent. After all, the ability to create leveraged positions without fees or interest is a truly unique value proposition. 

Schedule update

Because the new buy fee model must be implemented and audited before anything else in the protocol can be released, we’ve had to adjust our schedule and priorities—the new buy fee model being the first priority. Further, the new leverage feature must also be implemented and audited before any releases, since the buy fee also affects this. Once the new features are implemented, we can resubmit our entire code base for the final audit review. Below is a rough schedule of how the next few months will progress, assuming no new challenges. Every item after step 5 is contingent on successful completion of step 3. It should be expected that each release date will be staggered to build up to the complete protocol launch.

1. Implement new buy fee model (2 weeks)

2. Implement new leverage feature (3 weeks)

3. Final audit review (2 weeks)

4. Publish complete front end shell

5. Create new LP

   1. Pull NUMA/DAI LP

   2. Create and lock new NUMA/USDC LP

6. Vault 2.0 release

   1. Integrate vault 2.0 with front end

   2. Release vault 2.0 on test net

   3. Pause vault 1.0

   4. Pull vault 1.0 liquidity

   5. Release vault 2.0 with new buy fee model on Arbitrum main net and reduce base fee to 10%

   6. Add vault 1.0 liquidity to vault 2.0

7. Lending release

   1. Integrate lending with front end

   2. Release lending on test net

   3. Release lending on Arbitrum main net and reduce base fee to 5%

8. Leverage release

   1. Integrate leverage with front end

   2. Release leverage on test net

   3. Release leverage on Arbitrum main net

9. nuMoney synthetics release

   1. Integrate nuMoney synthetics with front end

   2. Release nuMoney synthetics on test net

   3. Release nuMoney synthetics

Please note that the release schedule is contingent on whatever unforeseen challenges may arise during the final audit review and is subject to change. It is our top priority to release a protocol that has been thoroughly tested and is safe for users. The numa protocol is truly unique and the first of its kind: we are excited to see what the next phase will bring, as we continue to work towards release. We will be coordinating marketing activities and partnership integrations as we move towards the full protocol launch. As always, make sure to join our Telegram group and join the discussion. And if you haven't had a chance to look at our white paper updates, you can find them here.