Retroactive Funding for Kheopswap.xyz

Proposal Summary

This proposal seeks retroactive funding for the development of kheopswap.xyz, a web front end for the Polkadot Asset Hub DEX features. The site went live on April 24th, 2024, following the deployment of the AssetConversion pallet on Polkadot’s Asset Hub. The platform has been designed with a focus on user experience, leveraging the new PAPI (Polkadot API) library to streamline development. Retroactive funding is sought to cover the development efforts and to support future infrastructure costs as the platform grows.

DOT Amount Requested: 14,092 DOT

Impact and Value to the Ecosystem

Asset Hub is quite unique in that it provides DEX capabilities but does not have a dedicated web front end. Kheopswap aims to fill that gap. For now, there is close to no liquidity available on Asset Hub, and DEFI parachains provide a much better service. However, Asset Hub is a system chain and an important entry point to the Polkadot Ecosystem. With Plaza on the horizon, bringing smart contract capabilities to AssetHub, I believe that a user-friendly front-end is the first step toward unlocking its potential. This could grow into something significant as the ecosystem evolves.

Additionally, Kheopswap is among the first live DApps built on PAPI, demonstrating the potential of this library for future projects. By making the platform open-source on GitHub, it provides the community with a real-world example of a dApp built with PAPI, offering a valuable resource for other developers.

While Kheopswap doesn't implement any tracking mechanisms (i.e., no cookies, no log mechanisms, no analytics services), the web host indicates that over the past 30 days, there have been 1,730 unique visitors. Additionally, the account that collects swap commissions has received over 120 transfers, meaning at approximately that many swaps have been made on the platform. Those generated a total of just under $20 over 4 months since launch, so while we’re not exactly rolling in the DOT yet, it’s encouraging!

About Me

I am a developer with over 20 years of experience and have been working at Talisman for over 3 years. Originally from France, I am currently based in South Korea. In addition to my work at Talisman, I enjoy building projects in my free time. Some examples of my past projects in the ecosystem include the GM Parachain front end and the Polkadot Builders DAO, both of which received positive feedback from users while they were active.

While I am passionate about building Kheopswap and contributing to the Polkadot ecosystem, my primary focus remains my work at Talisman. This proposal is retroactive to allow me the flexibility to continue working on Kheopswap at my own pace, without the pressure of fixed deadlines. Though it’s been challenging to juggle my various commitments, I’ve been able to deliver steadily so far, and I’m excited to keep pushing the project forward while continuing to balance my other responsibilities.

Project Background

Kheopswap was developed as a personal side project to explore the capabilities of PAPI, with the goal of delivering an innovative, user-friendly interface for interacting with the Asset Hub DEX features on Polkadot. This wasn’t my first attempt to build such a platform; about a year ago, I started developing a similar DEX using CAPI. Although CAPI was eventually abandoned, leading me to cancel that project, the experience was incredibly valuable. The knowledge I gained during that process helped me get started quickly and effectively with Kheopswap.

When I heard that PAPI was close to entering its beta stage, I immediately saw an opportunity to revisit the DEX project and started implementing Kheopswap. It turned out that by the time the AssetConversion pallet was deployed on Polkadot’s Asset Hub, the first version was ready to be launched. It's been available online since April 24th, as announced on Twitter.

Project Overview

Kheopswap.xyz is a web front end designed to facilitate the use of Asset Hub DEX features on Polkadot. The platform includes the following functionalities:

• Token Listings and Balances: Lists all tokens available on the Asset Hub and displays balances for each token when the user connects their wallet.
• Swaps: Facilitates asset swaps within the Polkadot Asset Hub.
• Liquidity Provisioning: Enables users to add and remove liquidity from pools, and create liquidity pools for tokens that don’t have one yet.
• Token Transfers and Teleports: Supports transfers and teleports between the Asset Hub and the relay chain.
• Fee Token Selection: Allows users to select which asset they want to use to pay transaction fees.
• Light Clients: Utilizes smoldot and substrate-connect for enhanced security and privacy.
• Mobile-First Design: Optimized for both mobile and desktop users.
• Deployment: Hosted on the cloud for performance and on IPFS via Fleek to adhere to web3 principles.
• Open Source: The project is fully open-source and available on GitHub.
• Commission on Swaps: A 0.3% commission is applied to all swaps with the intention of reaching self-sustainability someday.

Roadmap

This roadmap outlines the planned features and improvements for Kheopswap. Please note that it is subject to change based on community feedback, and the timelines for these goals are intentionally undefined to allow for flexibility in development.

Short-Term Goals

• Token Launchpad: Implementing a feature that will guide users through the process of creating and minting tokens on Asset Hub.
• WalletConnect Integration: Integrating WalletConnect to allow mobile wallets to connect seamlessly to the platform.
• UI/UX Polishing: Refining the user interface and making adjustments based on user feedback.

Mid-Term Goals

• Snowbridge Integration: Enabling the bridging of liquidity from Ethereum and other ecosystems.
• Comprehensive Data and Analytics: Implementing tools to display key metrics such as pool APRs, trading volumes, and candlestick charts. This will require the setup of indexers to collect and display historical data accurately.
• XCM Transfers: Supporting transfers from and to parachains.

Long-Term Goals

• Plaza Integration: Exploring and capitalizing on new scenarios as Plaza goes live with contract capabilities on Asset Hub, potentially expanding the platform's offerings and functionality.
• Financial Sustainability: Working towards making Kheopswap a financially self-sustaining platform, using generated commissions to cover infrastructure and maintenance costs.
• Multi-Language Support: Expanding the site’s accessibility by making it available in multiple languages, catering to a global audience.

Funding Request

This funding request is entirely retroactive and aims to compensate for the work that has been achieved up until today.

Cost Breakdown

• Estimated Development Hours: 3 months (approx. 480 hours)
• Hourly Rate: $130/hour
• Total Development Compensation: $62,400

Payment Details

The total requested funding is $62,400, to be paid in DOT. The DOT amount will be calculated based on the 7-day EMA price of DOT, which is currently $4.428 per DOT as of August 19, 2024. This value is referenced from Subscan's price chart.

DOT Amount Requested: $62,400 / $4.428 per DOT ≈ 14,092 DOT

Please note that I won’t request any top-up even if the DOT price continues to decline. I intend to keep those DOT for the time being and take the opportunity to get started with staking and governance voting. Those DOT may also help with future infrastructure needs.

Conclusion

Just like Asset Hub, Kheopswap is at the very start of an exciting journey. By securing retroactive funding to compensate for the work done so far, we can keep pushing Kheopswap forward, making it a key player in the Polkadot ecosystem. I genuinely appreciate your consideration and can’t wait to hear your feedback on this proposal!

Contact

• Discord: kheops
• Matrix: @kheops:matrix.org