Revelo Roundtable - LTIPP Edition #1

In this episode of Revelo Intel’s Twitter Spaces, which took place on June 13, 2024, Kirk hosted Jason Mindlin from Mountain Protocol, Rhett Shipp from Gravita Protocol, Ivan from Reserve Protocol, and Matthew Fisher from Poolside to discuss the impact of new incentives from Arbitrum DAO, developments in DeFi and the integration of innovative mechanisms to enhance protocol growth and user engagement within the ecosystem, and more! Read our notes below to learn more.

Background

Kirk (Host) – Head of Business Development at Revelo Intel

Jason Mindlin (Guest) – Chief of Staff at Mountain Protocol

Rhett Shipp (Guest) – Contributor at Gravita Protocol

Ivan (Guest) – Contributor at Reserve Protocol

Matthew Fisher (Guest) – Head of BD at Poolside

Mountain Protocol – the issuer of $USDM, a permissionless yield-bearing stablecoin

Gravita Protocol – a decentralized borrowing protocol built on Ethereum that provides users with interest-free loans secured by both Liquid Staking Tokens (LST) and a Stability Pool (SP)

Reserve Protocol – a platform that allows for the permissionless creation of asset-backed, yield-bearing & overcollateralized stablecoins on Ethereum

Poolside – a liquidity hub for receipt tokens and yield-bearing assets

Intro

Rhett mentions his shift from data science to full-time DeFi in 2021. Gravita is a friendly fork of Liquity, focusing on $ETH and liquid staking. Gravita’s stablecoin, $GRAI, is minted using $ETH and restaking tokens as collateral. He explains the liquidation mechanism through the stability pool and mentions their pre-token phase, with plans to launch their governance token later in the summer.
Ivan explains that Reserve is a permissionless platform for deploying asset-backed currencies called RTokens. He describes the protocol’s features, such as automatic defect detection and on-chain auctions. Ivan mentions their recent deployment on Arbitrum and the LTIPP grant, which will enable them to enhance their operations.
Jason shares his background and the protocol’s focus on issuing $USDM, a prudentially regulated, yield-bearing stablecoin. He highlights the importance of $USDM in Argentina due to regulatory and capital difficulties and highlights Mountain Protocol’s efforts in providing a stable and regulated asset.
Matt talks about Poolside’s specialization in creating liquidity pools for yield-bearing tokens. He explains the difference between rebasing and non-rebasing assets and Poolside’s unique approach to handling them. Matt highlights Poolside’s value proposition, particularly for rebasing assets, and the historical context that led to the development of their protocol.

In-Depth with Gravita, Reserve Protocol, Poolside, and Mountain Protocol

Rhett explains that Gravita is a collateralized debt protocol based on Liquity, using $ETH and liquid staking tokens as collateral. He describes the stability pool mechanism for liquidations and the multi-collateral feature, allowing users to manage separate positions with different assets.
Ivan talks about Reserve protocol’s automatic defect detection and auction system, which ensures stability during market events like the Silicon Valley Bank instability. He invites users to deploy their own RTokens or explore yield opportunities within the protocol.
Matt from Poolside discusses the specialized liquidity pools for yield-bearing tokens, detailing the differences in handling rebasing and non-rebasing assets.
Matt explains the mechanics of their reservoir system for rebasing tokens and the complexities of comparing their solution for non-rebasing assets to other platforms like Balancer and Curve.
Jason explains that Moutain Protocol’s $USDM is a rebasing stablecoin fully backed by T-bills, designed for ease of use. Users hold $USDM in their wallets and receive yield without needing to stake or take additional actions. He envisions wider adoption, aiming for a future where even non-finance savvy users like his mother can easily benefit from $USDM instead of non-yielding stablecoins like $USDT.
Mountain Protocol focuses on accessibility and transferability, operating under the reputable Bermuda Monetary Authority. Their primary customers are KYC’d, bring in USDC (and soon other assets), which are then converted into $USDM through T-bills held by top US institutions. $USDM is pegged 1:1 to USDC, ensuring easy arbitrage and stability. For DeFi applications, Mountain offers wrapped $USDM for protocols that cannot integrate rebasing tokens directly, providing a value-appreciating alternative.

Leveraging Arbitrum DAO Incentives

Ivan explains that Reserve Protocol received 500K $ARB from the Arbitrum DAO and pledged an additional 20 million $RSR to incentivize both liquidity and DeFi integrations. They have allocated 60% of the incentives to liquidity and 40% to integrations. Deployment has already started, with high-yielding liquidity pools on Curve.
Ivan mentions the upcoming integration with Poolside and highlights $KNOX, a yield-bearing stablecoin backed by lending positions on AaVE and Compound. He mentions that a proposal to include $USDM in the $KNOX basket is under discussion, inviting $RSR stakers to participate in the decision.
Rhett details how the team at Gravita is deploying the incentives provided by Arbitrum DAO, focusing on incentivizing liquidity and lending for $GRAI. He mentions that key pools can be found on Ramses, PancakeSwap, Silo, and Dolomite.
Rhett highlights their collaboration with Dolomite to implement a long-term oriented incentive mechanism, distributing $goARB tokens that can be vested for additional rewards. He highlights the aim to create a value-driven ecosystem on Arbitrum and invites feedback on their mechanism.
Jason explains Mountain Protocol’s focus on sustainable liquidity through efficient trading and high native yields. He mentions various integrations, including a triple coin incentivized $GRAI-$USDM pool on Ramses, and partnerships with protocols like HMX, Dolomite, Frax, Gyroscope, and IPOR.
Jason highlights the importance of efficient collateral use and lending/borrowing integrations to provide sustainable incentives and attract long-term users.
Matt discusses Poolside’s strategy for deploying incentives across key liquidity pools, such as those involving Mountain and Reserve. He acknowledges the importance of long-term liquidity and expresses interest in exploring Gravita’s approach.
Matt highlights the potential disruption with one of their partners and mentions the possibility of introducing new partners. He discusses the challenges of tokenomics and hints at the development of a new utility for LP tokens to create longer-term stability and stickiness in their ecosystem.

Why Arbitrum?

Kirk asks the participants about the appeal of Arbitrum and why they chose to build their protocols on this platform.
Rhett from Gravita shares his long history with Arbitrum, highlighting that he migrated his assets from Ethereum early on, believing in the potential of L2 solutions.
Rhett appreciates Arbitrum’s low transaction costs, excellent user experience, and the presence of many of his favorite builders. Rhett also mentions the strong support from the Arbitrum DAO and Foundation, which has been beneficial both technically and socially.
Jason mentions that Arbitrum is recognized as a home for Defi, highlighting the collaborative and reachable nature of the Arbitrum DAO and team. He appreciates the competitive environment on Arbitrum, which drives protocols to develop the best possible products.
Jason notes that although Mountain Protocol did not originally launch on Arbitrum, they now consider it one of their main focuses due to its vibrant ecosystem.
Matt adds that while Arbitrum is known for DeFi, it wasn’t always the home for yield-bearing tokens. He notes that Arbitrum’s support, especially through the LTIPP program, has been a catalyst for their decision to build on the platform. Matt believes that being on Arbitrum has become almost a necessity for DeFi protocols, indicating its strong market presence and potential for growth.

Exciting Developments from Gravita, Mountain Protocol, and Poolside

Kirk then invites the participants to share what excites them about their protocols in the next few months.
Rhett from Gravita expresses excitement for their upcoming governance token launch, which he believes will be a significant growth engine. He also hints at an upcoming collaboration with StakeWise and Node Set, focusing on high-quality decentralized Ethereum staking.
Jason from Mountain Protocol talks about enhancing token accessibility through integrations like CCIP with Chainlink. He mentions their efforts to facilitate payments with $USDM, linking the crypto world with the traditional banking system.
Matt from Poolside discusses the upcoming launch of Poolside V2, which includes a stable swap curve. He mentions that this new product will better target their market, featuring partners like Reserve and Mountain.
Matt is excited about the upcoming launch, the introduction of a point system, and their Token Generation Event later this year. He highlights the extensive security audits they have undergone, reflecting their commitment to robust and secure technology.

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Show Information

Medium: Twitter (Audio)
Show: Revelo Intel Twitter Space
Show Title: Revelo Roundtable #17 – LTIPP Edition #1
Show Date: June 13, 2024