WallStreetBets Twitter Spaces with ZKX Protocol

In WallStreetBets’s Telegram Spaces which took place on March 14, 2024, WallStreetBets hosted Eduard from ZKX Protocol to discuss the ZKX ecosystem and vision, plans in leveraged DEXs, security, and community engagement through trading platforms, education, socialsta initiatives, and more! Read our notes below to learn more.

Background

WallStreetBets Speaker 1 (Host) – Community Manager at Wallstreetbets

WallStreetBets Speaker 2 (Co-Host) – Community Manager at Wallstreetbets

Eduard (Guest) – Founder of ZKX Protocol

ZKX Protocol – The first perpetual futures DEX with self-custody

ZKX Revolutionizes DeFi with Perpetual DEXs and Gamified Trading

WallStreetBets Speaker 1 talks about ZKX and their achievements with a perpetual DEX on the Starknet, over $350 million in total trading volume, and their comprehensive ecosystem including two types of DEXs for leveraged trading, a permissionless self-custodial platform, their own app chain, wallet, and bridge, highlighting the team’s efforts to enhance the ZKX project and ecosystem.
Eduard shares his enthusiasm about discussing the team’s work and upcoming developments, highlighting their experience in building perps and the extensive infrastructure and engineering efforts aimed at competing with major exchanges.
Eduard explains the team’s extensive background in crypto, venture capital, and web2, with over 15 to 25 years of experience. He recounts the team’s journey from participating in the ICO craze to focusing on blockchain engineering and the development of DeFi infrastructure, aiming to improve user accessibility and overcome barriers such as gas prices and the complexity of managing wallets and private keys.
Eduard highlights the team’s goal to attract millions of centralized crypto users to DeFi by leveraging their web2 and venture capital experience to enhance user experience and growth within the ZKX project.
WallStreetBets Speaker 2 asks why there are two exchanges, OG Trade, and Pro Trade on ZKX, instead of just one, seeking to understand the rationale behind building two separate platforms.
Eduard says that their experience with BitMEX, a perpetual swap exchange, influenced their decision to develop two types of trading platforms. They realized the need for differentiation in the market, leading to the creation of OG Trade and Pro Trade.
Eduard explains that OG Trade offers 30-minute trading competitions with rewards for volume, profits, and losses, aiming to make trading engaging and rewarding for taking risks. This approach incorporates gaming elements into trading, providing a unique experience.
Eduard confirms the fusion of gaming and trading in ZKX, highlighting the appeal of gamification in enhancing user engagement. He explains the rewards system includes potential eligibility for a future airdrop, locked $ZKX token rewards, and daily competitions on Pro Trade with specific allocations for traders.
Eduard discusses sustainability and the flexibility of the rewards system, indicating plans to offer $USDC rewards and Starknet token ($STRK) rewards, in collaboration with the Starknet Foundation. He mentions the distribution of NFT badges to top traders, which contributes to eligibility criteria for rewards.

Security Audits and Innovative Marketing Strategies

Eduard says that ZKX has undergone multiple audits with a firm named Nethermind, known for building the most used Ethereum client. These audits cover their protocol and a bridge feature, ensuring safety and adherence to proper software development practices.
Eduard discusses marketing strategies, introducing the ZKX clans, which are unique NFTs designed for individuals with a history in DeFi. The clans offer benefits such as potential airdrops and access to a private community for trading insights and competitions.
He mentions the referral and affiliate programs launching in April, allowing users to earn from the trading fees generated by those they invite. Additionally, he hints at upcoming merchandise and campaigns to further engage the community.
WallStreetBets Speaker 1 highlights the broad community marketing approach taken, involving partnerships with NFT communities, purchasing NFTs, and creating a reward system for marketing efforts through word of mouth.
Eduard confirms the grassroots marketing strategy, mentioning direct engagement with trader communities in various countries and special activities for them. He mentions an upcoming Quest campaign aimed at facilitating user onboarding and engagement.
Eduard addresses concerns about safety and risk, mentioning moderate leverage limits to avoid excessive risk, rewarding losses to maintain trader engagement despite unfavorable outcomes, and highlighting the importance of education and risk management.
He mentions plans for educational initiatives, including collaboration with Traders Academy to build content around trading strategies and risk mitigation, aiming to share this knowledge over the summer.

ZKX’s Innovative Approach: Elevating Trading Experience with Advanced Infrastructure and Education

Eduard highlights the extensive work of their engineering team. He highlights the importance of showcasing the infrastructure behind ZKX, which includes more than just two exchanges, but actually four or five integrated products.
He introduces the ZKX account as the first piece of infrastructure, leveraging account abstraction on Starknet to enhance wallet functionality and simplify user experience through social logins and two-factor authentication.
Eduard discusses the development of the ZKX bridge, a universal ERC-20 bridge from Ethereum to Starknet, aimed at facilitating the onboarding of users and supporting rapid token listing for derivatives exchanges.
He explains the ZKX Appchain‘s role in scaling the order book and derivatives exchange beyond the capabilities of ZK-rollups and L1 blockchains. The app chain features its own Rust-based blockchain and node client, enabling high-frequency trading and an internal Oracle to access price feeds directly from major exchanges.
Eduard highlights the app chain’s ability to list assets quickly, as demonstrated by the same-day listing of the start token, showcasing its independence from external Oracles and its contribution to the platform’s agility in offering new assets.
WallStreetBets Speaker 1 comments on the benefit of ZKX’s gasless transactions, especially for traders who make numerous trades daily, acknowledging the high gas fees on Ethereum and other networks.
Eduard adds a historical perspective, recounting skepticism faced two years ago when proposing the idea of building an L3 on top of L2s to scale high-speed trading and order books. He notes the growing interest in L3 and recursive proofing, indicating a shift in the industry’s approach to scaling DeFi platforms.

ZKX Unveils Future Plans: Mainnet and Token Incentives, Social Trading, and Global Financial Access

Eduard mentions ZKX’s forthcoming initiatives, including extending the mainnet incentives, launching $STRK token incentives, introducing a referral program, and aiming for a token launch before the summer. He specifies the summer timeframe to be before July or June and discusses partnerships with major crypto exchanges for a solid listing plan.
Eduard highlights the introduction of the $ZKX token staking pool, allowing stakers to earn $USDC revenue from the exchange, with longer staking periods yielding additional revenue. This feature is under development and will launch alongside the token.
Eduard shares plans to enhance ZKX’s social and engaging aspects through social trading, which involves grouping traders into guilds or clans for competitions and exploring new products like more efficient prediction markets.
WallStreetBets Speaker 2 expresses enthusiasm for ZKX’s plan to incorporate social trading, aligning with Wall Street bets’ interest in the concept, and suggests moving to community questions.
Eduard shares ZKX’s origin story, inspired by the GameStop saga and the desire to democratize financial market access worldwide. He highlights ZKX’s goal of making financial tools accessible to everyone, regardless of their location.

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Show Information

Medium: Telegram (Audio)
Show: WallStreetBets Telegram AMA
Show Title: WallStreetBets 💎🙌🏻 – ZKX – WSB AMA
Show Date: March 14, 2024