Greetings community,

We are proud to announce the launch of Argos — the second mainnet upgrade of Shade Protocol in 2024. It has been 3.5 months since the Alexandria Upgrade in June 2024. During this time the core contributors have been hard at work to release improved UX as well as a testnet for ShadeX — a next generation private money market.

With this upgrade, Shade Protocol moves one step closer to being the easiest to use private DeFi in all of crypto, with unmatched utility in the palm of your hands.

Permit UX Upgrade

Shade Protocol to date has leveraged viewing keys for users to interact with private token balances. In order to do this, users would have to spend SCRT as gas and would have to click through multiple wallet pop-ups just to be able to view a token balance for a single token.

This was laborious, expensive, and made cross device wallet management a nightmare. Creating a viewing key on one device would make the viewing key on the other device null, forcing users to manage on a 1-to-1 basis viewing key importing in order to have a fluid experience between multiple devices.

This all changes with the launch of Argos today.

Today, Shade UX forever changes into something seamless for ALL users. Gone are the days of needing to be power user to interact with privacy.

Argos unlocks the following for Shade users on testnet:

• Seamless cross device data management

• Free permit creation

• 31 encrypted token balance viewing per permit → turning your Shade app experience into 1–2 clicks instead of 30+ clicks.

The net result of this UX upgrade is users will traverse the app with significantly less friction, feeling similar to other crypto UX experiences. After the completion of this open testnet beta (~6–12 weeks) the permit feature will be released to the mainnet app for all users to use.

ShadeX Testnet

In parallel to this massive UX overhaul, Shade Protocol has also shipped ShadeX on testnet — the world’s first private money market, featuring a set of never before seen user utilities, money market protections & protocol profitability mechanisms. Those target features are as follows:

• Private LTVs

• Private collateral balances

• Private debt balances

• Private lent balances

• Isolated markets

• Flash loans

• Cross-margin positions

• Dynamic utilization based interest rates

• Partial liquidations

• Stream Swaps

• Protocol captured liquidations

• Liquidation auction

• Lending pool LSTs

• Lending pool LSTs as money market collateral

• Subsidized lending

• Subsidized borrowing

• Collateral swaps

• Bad debt insurance pool

This massive feature set will set ShadeX apart from any competitor — we could not be more excited to bring ShadeX to mainnet. Stay tuned for the official release.

Note that this public testnet is missing charting, UI/UX refinement, etc. In the interest of showing progress, please be advised that this is an early version of ShadeX:

https://testnet.shadeprotocol.io/
password: argos

Argos Launch Conclusion

With the successful launch of the Argos upgrade on September 24th, we remains inspired by the historical and mythological significance of the city of Argos outlined in our previous blog.

In Greek mythology, Argos was not only a cultural hub but also the realm of Diomedes, a legendary hero renowned for his strength and valor. Diomedes played a pivotal role in the Trojan War, leading 80 ships into battle and famously participating in the strategic deception of the Trojan Horse, which led to the fall of Troy. His contributions and heroic feats are emblematic of the balance and precision we aim to bring to the Shade Protocol through Argos.

Just as Diomedes’ leadership and prowess shaped the course of the Trojan War, the Argos upgrade represents a transformative moment for Shade Protocol. We remain dedicated to bringing a new level of harmony and efficiency to our platform, inspired by the principles of symmetry and balance embodied by Diomedes’ legacy. The upgrade enhances user experience with streamlined interactions, mirroring the ideals of precision and coordination that Diomedes exemplified. Join us as we honor this rich legacy and strive to advance private DeFi with the elegance and effectiveness of classical ideals.

Conclusion

As we move forward, inspired by the historical significance and the enduring principles of Argos, Diomedes, and Polykleitos’ Canon, Shade Protocol remains committed to evolving and enhancing our platform. By fostering an environment where balance and symmetry guide our development, we aim to create a seamless and harmonious user experience. The Argos upgrade represents not just a step forward in technology, but a stride towards a more refined, accessible, and powerful DeFi ecosystem. Join us on this journey to bring the elegance of classical ideals into the future of private decentralized finance.

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