The 0x project has made yet another important step towards becoming the decentralized infrastructural exchange backbone of the Ethereum network.
The beta version 2 of the 0x protocol is now live on the Ethereum blockchain, which brings the project one step closer to facilitating cheaper, faster, and secure trading of ERC-20 tokens through its relayers mechanism.
0x Protocol v2 Beta and the Bug Bounty
The first version of the 0x protocol already facilitated more than 100,000 trades with a total trade volume exceeding $200 million. However, the protocol required a lot of iteration which has resulted in the second version of the 0x protocol.
V2 encompasses multiple valuable additions to the 0x network, most notably:
- Atomic order matching with only the gas cost as up-front capital requirement
- New and improved 0x protocol signature schemes
- Redesign of the smart contract architecture to support new ERC token standards
- WETH integration, making Ethereum to ERC token trades easier
Since v2 is still in beta, it needs to be tested and iterated until it’s ready to fully launch. As with any technology, one can never expect a beta version to be perfect and since we’re dealing with a lot of value being transacted over the 0x protocol, v2 needs to be flawless.
To ensure this, the 0x team is collaborating with several projects including Quantstamp—an Ethereum-based project focusing on smart contract security verification and auditing—, ConsenSys Diligence, and SoHo Token Labs.
Additionally, the team has announced their 0x Bug Bounty Program. Through the program, skilled developers are incentivized to find critical flaws in the design of 0x protocol v2. Bounties for finding bugs can run up to $100,000, depending on the severity of the found exploit.
This approach emphasizes the importance the project places on its community input and the collaborative nature of open-source, decentralized projects.
If you’re interested in participating the 0x Bug Bounty Program, click here for more information.
What’s to Come?
V2 is in beta until the 0x team and community have the confidence that the bounty program has eliminated all potential bugs and exploits, after which the 0x Protocol v2 will be officially launched. During this process, the team has also emphasized the importance of assisting developers and relayers in the process of migrating from v1 to v2.
Once v2 of the 0x protocol is ready for its full launch, it will bring an important infrastructural layer to the Ethereum ecosystem through which all participating projects will become interchangeable within the ecosystem itself, circumventing centralized exchanges, which Ethereum’s founder Vitalik Buterin hopes will burn in hell.
If all goes well—which is more than likely with the bug bounty program and alliance with Quantstamp in place—the 0x protocol will be able to greatly assist in making Buterin’s hopes come true.
