Namada launches mainnet, introduces shielded cross-chain transactions

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Zug, Switzerland, December 3, 2024, Chainwire

Namada, a shielded asset hub enabling shielded cross-chain transactions, has officially announced its genesis block to celebrate its mainnet launch. With the launch of staking and governance, this marks the start of the first phase of Namada’s five-phase decentralized mainnet launch. This is an important step forward in providing comprehensive data protection and selective disclosure across multichain environments.

Introducing Narmada

Namada is designed to protect users’ personal data when using on-chain assets and participating in cross-chain transactions. Its core innovation, Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP), supports the protection of user data associated with all assets, enabling protected interactions across various blockchain networks. Namada enables selective disclosure, giving users the ability to share transaction data publicly and with specific parties. Namada is also introducing a unique protection reward system for users who protect their personal data.

“Namada’s mainnet is a major achievement from the many contributors and community members who have worked hard to transform Namada from an initial idea to an actual operating protocol,” said Christopher Goes, co-founder of Namada. “A free society requires individual control over data and freedom of disclosure. We’re not there yet, but the Namada mainnet is an important step in the right direction.”

This launch is fully decentralized, with the Anoma Foundation supporting the Namada ecosystem by proposing mainnet candidate software and genesis balances. However, the Foundation will stop running validators, ensuring that the Namada community retains full control over the launch and direction of the platform.

“Namada is a critical missing link in the cryptocurrency space. The lack of user control over sensitive data has delayed real-world adoption,” said Namada co-founder Adrian Brink. “Narmada’s goal is to provide both individual and institutional users on the sidelines with the same freedom and protection they enjoy off-chain.”

Main features of Narmada

Namada introduces a series of innovative features designed to protect user data while enabling seamless shielded cross-chain interactions.

Shielding Compensation: Namada’s Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP) supports data shielding for a variety of assets within a unified shielding set. Users collect protection set rewards to protect their assets and enhance on-chain data protection for everyone.
Protected operations: Users can engage in cross-chain activities such as DeFi while protecting their personal data. User data is protected even when interacting with transparent dApps and chains.
On-chain governance: NAM token holders participate in governance by staking their tokens to vote on protocol upgrades and other decisions. This mechanism ensures that the community plays a direct role in the development of the network.
Public Goods Financing (PGF): A portion of NAM Inflation is dedicated to public goods financing, supporting projects that benefit the broader Namada ecosystem and beyond.
Cubic Proof of Stake (CPoS): Namada’s unique staking mechanism promotes network security by adjusting staking rewards based on the network’s current staking rate. Validators and delegators are rewarded for network security through penalties for protocol violations designed to deter collusion and enhance overall security.

Community-centered Genesis Process

This process takes place in five stages, with each stage determined by community decisions through on-chain governance. Discussions on mainnet launch candidate software, configuration, genesis block draft, and token economics took place on the Namada Community Forum to ensure a transparent, decentralized, and collective approach to launch.

The Anoma Foundation has proposed an initial set of allocations, including a total supply of 1 billion NAM tokens to be distributed to community members, early contributors, and future development initiatives, with no lock-ups. This decentralized approach ensures that the launch and ongoing governance of the network is in the hands of the users.

Namada is initially ready to support IBC-based assets, but may be upgraded to support additional ecosystems in the future, with the goal of becoming a data protection layer for the entire multichain ecosystem.

Introduction to Narmada

Namada is a secured asset hub that rewards users for securing multichains. Namada leverages advanced zero-knowledge encryption to selectively disclose personal data and provide superior data protection across assets, applications, and blockchain networks. Introducing protected cross-chain interactions and protection rewards for users to protect their data and strengthen the protected set.