Namada Launches Mainnet, Pioneering Shielded Cross-Chain Transactions and Data Protection

Zug, Switzerland, December 3rd, 2024, Chainwire — Namada, a cutting-edge platform dedicated to providing shielded asset management and enabling secure cross-chain transactions, has officially launched its mainnet. With the publication of its genesis block, the platform has entered a new phase in its five-stage decentralized rollout. Alongside the mainnet launch, Namada also introduced staking and governance, marking a significant step toward enhancing data protection and selective disclosure across the multichain ecosystem.

Namada’s Vision: Empowering Users with Data Control

Namada is designed with a central focus on protecting users' personal data while facilitating cross-chain transactions. Its innovative feature, the Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP), allows for the shielding of data across various blockchain networks, ensuring that user information remains private while interacting with multiple assets. This capability introduces an unprecedented level of privacy and security for cross-chain activities.

The platform also supports selective disclosure, granting users the ability to choose whether to share transaction data publicly or with specific parties. In addition, Namada introduces a unique shielding rewards system, where users are incentivized to protect their personal data, making privacy a key component of the ecosystem.

Christopher Goes, Namada co-founder, expressed his excitement over the milestone: “Namada's mainnet is a significant achievement for the entire team and our community, marking the transition from an idea to an operational protocol. At Namada, we believe individual control over data and the freedom to disclose it are essential to a free society. While we're not fully there yet, the mainnet is a crucial step forward.”

A Fully Decentralized Launch

The launch of Namada’s mainnet is fully decentralized, with the Anoma Foundation playing a vital role in supporting the ecosystem. The Foundation proposed the mainnet candidate software and genesis balances but refrains from running validators, ensuring that Namada’s community maintains full control over the network's direction and governance.

“Namada addresses a crucial gap in the crypto space—user control over sensitive data,” said Adrian Brink, Namada co-founder. “With Namada, both individual and institutional users gain the same protections and freedoms they have offchain, bringing a new level of adoption to the space.”

Key Features of Namada

Namada introduces several groundbreaking features that protect user data while enabling seamless shielded cross-chain transactions:

• Shielding Rewards: The Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP) enables the shielding of assets from various blockchains, creating a unified shielded set. Users who participate in the shielding process receive rewards, encouraging them to bolster on-chain data protection for the broader community.

• Shielded Actions: Namada allows users to engage in decentralized finance (DeFi) activities and other cross-chain transactions while ensuring that their personal data remains shielded, even when interacting with transparent decentralized applications (DApps) and blockchains.

• On-Chain Governance: Namada incorporates a decentralized governance model, where NAM token holders can participate in protocol upgrades and key decisions. By staking their tokens, users have a direct role in the evolution of the network, ensuring the platform’s continued alignment with community interests.

• Public Goods Funding (PGF): A portion of the NAM token inflation will be allocated to funding public goods, supporting projects that benefit the broader Namada ecosystem and its stakeholders.

• Cubic Proof-of-Stake (CPoS): Namada’s unique staking mechanism adjusts rewards based on the network's current staking ratio, incentivizing validators and delegators to maintain network security.

Validators who violate protocol rules face penalties, fostering a secure and trustworthy environment.

Community-Driven Genesis Process

Namada’s mainnet rollout will unfold over five stages, each of which will be guided by community decisions through on-chain governance. The community forum has been pivotal in discussions surrounding the mainnet release candidate software, tokenomics, and genesis block configurations. This approach ensures that the launch and future development of Namada are transparent, decentralized, and led by its users.

The Anoma Foundation initially proposed the genesis allocations, including a total supply of 1 billion NAM tokens, distributed among community members, early contributors, and for future development initiatives. There are no lockups for the tokens, which further supports the decentralized ethos of Namada.

Future Growth and Interoperability

Initially, Namada will support IBC-based assets, but the platform is designed to evolve and accommodate additional ecosystems. The ultimate goal is for Namada to become the primary data protection layer for the entire multichain ecosystem, offering secure interactions across multiple blockchain networks.

About Namada

Namada is a decentralized, secure, and shielded asset hub that leverages advanced zero-knowledge cryptography to provide unparalleled data protection across blockchain networks. By enabling selective disclosure and supporting shielded cross-chain transactions, Namada offers a new level of privacy and security for its users. With its innovative features and community-driven governance, Namada is poised to become the go-to platform for secure, decentralized asset management across the multichain world.

For more information, visit Namada.io.