ICON, a protocol of interconnected networks aggregating blockchain knowledge into one layer, at this time introduced the launch of a model new blockchain undertaking coming to ICON.
This new blockchain, designated ICE, will carry a couple of new utility hub for the ICON ecosystem. Upon completion, ICE will present builders higher tooling, EVM and eWASM compatibility, and fast entry to the rising ETH and Polkadot ecosystems.
“ICE additionally represents a shift within the course of the ICON undertaking by separating performance, product focusing on, and the aim of every of those respective networks. ICE will change into the appliance hub of the ecosystem whereas we double down on our efforts to make ICON the main cross-chain and interoperability protocol within the trade. With ICON, customers will have the ability to wrap belongings, natively swap belongings utilizing every respective community’s underlying safety, question knowledge between networks, and extra. Our targets shall be to push these boundaries via continued analysis and growth of Blockchain Transmission Protocol (BTP) and centered integrations driving its adoption. ICON isn’t a competitor, it’s an enabler. It’s agnostic, and as crypto grows, ICON does as properly.”
– The ICON Crew
Overview
In partnership with Parastate, a Substrate-focused growth crew specializing in constructing complicated digital machine pallets, the ICON Community will obtain each EVM and eWASM compatibility via a personalized and novel Substrate based mostly side-chain.
Whereas others have used the Substrate SDK to construct an app or feature-specific parachain for Polkadot; ICON is the primary crew to make use of the Substrate SDK to increase the feature-set of an current layer-1 blockchain.
The primary function of this new blockchain is the addition of EVM compatibility to the ICON ecosystem.
EVM compatibility allows builders to iterate and innovate a lot sooner utilizing current tooling and code from the Ethereum ecosystem. It additionally permits for elevated development prospects of ICON given simpler portability of apps. On ICE, ICON can also be including eWASM assist; making ready ICON for ETH 2.0 compatibility.
Along with Parastate, there are quite a few different groups engaged on ICE, with the aim of rising the developer base, main integrations, and driving exercise.
Breakdown: ICON ecosystem
The ICON Ecosystem will now be break up between two networks with differing targets:
First, the ICE blockchain shall be centered on the app layer; as it’s a lot simpler for current blockchain builders to leverage the instruments and codebase of EVM appropriate networks. Moreover, functions will have the ability to port over their companies shortly to benefit from ICON’s devoted person base.
Second, the present community will proceed to optimize for ICON’s Blockchain Transmission Protocol (BTP) and start focusing particularly on interoperability plus low-latency cross-chain apps. The core focus will change into rising integrations of different networks and driving volumes via BTP.
Affect on ICX token holders
The ICE blockchain’s native token, ICE, shall be airdropped 1:1 to all ICX holders. All ICX holders on the time of the snapshot will obtain ICE tokens equal to the quantity of ICX they maintain.
Via the usage of ICON’s BTP, ICX would be the governance token of the ICE community. ICX shall be used to vote for validators, just like how it’s used for (P-Reps) on the present community.
ICX holders will switch ICX to the ICE community through BTP, stake their ICX, vote for validators, and earn ICE tokens as rewards. Whereas ICX would be the governance token, ICE would be the fuel token of the ICE blockchain.
Moreover, this offers an early use case for BTP. The ICON Community will earn charges as customers ship ICE and ICX between the ICE Community and the ICON Community; creating additional financial ties to the ICX token. All charges earned from BTP transactions are despatched to ICON’s Contribution Proposal System or burned.
The structure of the ICE blockchain
The ICE blockchain will begin as a Proof of Authority community, with trusted validators working the chain.
After the community is stabilized, it’ll migrate to NPoS, the consensus mechanism generally utilized by different Substrate SDK networks. NPoS is a variation of DPoS (ICON Community’s present consensus mechanism), the place token holders vote for validators to supply blocks and govern the community.
Good contracts on the ICE Community shall be written in Solidity, Rust, and C++. Charges for good contract interactions, good contract deployments, and token transfers shall be paid in ICE tokens. 20% of the transaction charges of the community go to Parastate as a part of using their know-how.
The preliminary provide of ICE tokens shall be 25% increased than the availability of ICX, with this additional 25% being put aside to incentivize future core contributors to the ICE blockchain. It will likely be inflationary to incentivize voting and block manufacturing just like the ICON Community.
Inflation charges and extra detailed economics shall be offered by the ICON crew after extra analysis into the Substrate SDK. Nevertheless, ICON says it’ll goal a 5% or 6% most inflation price at launch.
Timeline
Proper now, the plan is to have the ICE blockchain totally operational with BTP connections by This fall of 2021. The preliminary proof of idea community shall be reside in Q3 2021, permitting DApp builders to start constructing EVM and/or eWASM functions earlier than full completion.
