Summary
This proposal aims to create an incentivization layer to the current running SSV testnet by introducing rewards to both validators and operators.
The goal of the incentivized testnet is to scale up the current testnet and simulate “real world” dynamics between validators and operators.
The incentivization program asks the DAO to commit 32K SSV tokens, distributed for 4 consecutive months.
Motivation
The goal of a testnet is to thoroughly test all the different components of a network, from the node software all the way to network economics.
A testnet can be regarded as a public beta testing where all involved parties can freely engage and test the network.
Testnets were proven to be a necessary milestone for decentralized protocols before going mainnet.
This proposal aims to scale the current testnet by rewarding more validators and operators to join the network, alongside, introducing “real world” dynamics between operators and validators.
As rewards are introduced to validators (as a function of how well their operators perform) it will force validators to carefully choose their operators, requiring a higher level of service and overall network “health”.
Operators will be rewarded depending on the number of validators they are assigned to and the overall performance of those validators.
Mechanics
32,000 SSV tokens are to be allocated (from the DAO’s inventory) as rewards for this proposal.
A future starting date for the incentivization program will be announced, from that moment, every 2 weeks a new rewards distribution will occur on the xDAI network using a merkle distributor contract (uniswap’s example).
Each reward distribution is 4,000 SSV tokens.
The program will run for 4 months (8 distribution events).
Each reward distribution will have the following allocations:
- 2,000 SSV tokens for validators
- 1,400 SSV tokens for validators which are SSV holders
- 600 SSV tokens to all validators (SSV holders and not)
- 2,000 SSV tokens for operators
- 1,000 SSV tokens for verified operators (verified operators include all operators with the verified/ dAppnodes tag)
- 1,000 SSV tokens for all operators (verified and not)
Conditions
Validators
- Anyone can register a 32 ETH validator to the SSV network.
- Each validator performing with at least 80% attestation rate the previous 3150 epochs (~14 days) is eligible.
- Abusive behaviour of the network (e.g. getting a hold of big amounts of goerli to register hundreds or thousands of validators) could result in exclusion from the incentivization program, decided by the community’s ambassadors and/ or Blox.
- Rewards are calculated pro-rata, e.g. the network has 1,000 validators and a pool of 2,000 SSV as rewards then each validator receives 2 SSV tokens.
- Rewards are claimable to the address that registered the validator.
Validators + SSV holders
- All the above
- At a predetermined time a snapshot of all SSV holders will be taken
- SSV holders which also registered testnet validators are eligible, no minimum or maximum amount of SSV is required.
- ALL_SSV is the sum of SSV held by all accounts that also registered a testnet validator.
- ALL_VALIDATORS_SSV is the amount of validators registered by accounts that hold SSV.
- SSV_AMOUNT is the amount an individual account holds
- #_VALIDATORS is the amount of validators an individual account has registered.
- Each account holding SSV and a registered a validator (or more) will receive a proportional amount of rewards, calculated as:
SSV_AMOUNT * #_VALIDATORS/(ALL_SSV*ALL_VALIDATORS_SSV)
Operators and Verified Operators
- Anyone can register as an operator
- Verified operators include existing operators with the verified/ dAppnodes tag in the testnet web app.
- From the moment the incentivized testnet starts, the way to become an operator will be a DAO decision following this proposal.
- Each operator receives a pro-rata reward for each validator committee he/ she is part of.
- A reward is calculated only for eligible validators as described above.
- An operator score is calculated as a % of the decided messages that operator was part of in a given period (SSV explorer will support operator score in the near future).
- Rewards are claimable to the address that registered the operator.
- Example: Operator 1 was part of 50 decided msgs for validator X out of 100 decided messages the past 24H. That operator will have a 50% score for that validator. An overall score for operator 1 will be the average score of all of his assigned validators.
Considerations
- It is important to note that the testnet is still in development and could still have stability issues which might affect validator performance and subsequent rewards.
- Rewards calculations will be done in a centralized way by the community ambassadors and/ or Blox. It’s the responsibility of every testnet participant to check for errors and present them to the ambassadors and/ or Blox.
- Abuses of the testnet are not allowed and could result in exclusion from any current and future reward distributions.
- The testnet and rewards are made by and for the community to test out the network as an important step towards mainnet, THIS IS NOT A GET RICH QUICK PROPOSAL. If you expect to get rich out of this, we advise NOT to join the testnet.