DOT RFP #1 - Crowdsourced Research: Capped Supply & Step Change Inflation
Beneficiary:
Contribute to this Research project by joining the tg group.
Prize Pool: $7,000
Finder's Fee: $0
Supervisors: $750
7,750 USDC Requested
Supervisors
- Mark Cachia (Scytale)
- Rob Habermeier (NOMT)
- Jay Chrawnna (The Kus)
Excess or unused funds will be returned to the treasury by Supervisors.
Timeline
Friday, July 4 - Ref posted
Friday, July 11 - Ref Concludes (estimate)
Thursday, July 1 - Presentation on AAG
Scope of Research
Capped Supply & Step Change inflation was first brought to attention by Gav in the “Gray Paper Interview” released April 28, 2024
See the 18m musings here.
There are several well documented reasons FOR & AGAINST adopting a Step Change Inflation schedule and supply cap inspired by these ideas.
This RFP aims to crowdsource answers to pressing questions allowing us to move forward in any direction with confidence.
The questions we aim to answer - some simple, some complex - include but are not limited to:
- How much DOT has been created so far?
- How much DOT has been burned?
- What is the current supply of DOT?
- Identify network costs (past & projections)
- Staking Rewards sold analysis
- Minimum staking yield analysis
- Staking yield vs staked amount industry analysis
- What non-inflation Revenue sources do we have available?
- What are the past & future sources of these revenues?
- What ecosystems have top revenues, and specific sources
- Chart past revenues for Polkadot
- Model Future revenues
- Benefits of Step Change Inflation
- Disadvantages of Step Change Inflation Schedules
- Model various step change inflation schedules
- Model Gav's softer step change inflation suggestion
And more!
A contributor tracking sheet is here and will be updated with more questions or tasks as discourse continues.
Research will conclude on July 31 with any remaining funds returned to the treasury.
Comments (4)
Proposal Passed
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of 3Summary
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Aye (22)0.0 DOT
Support0.0 DOT
Nay (6)0.0 DOT
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I would love to see The polkadot ecosystem compared with Other leading ecosystems and their inflationary models along with their price fluctuations.
What will happen if we introduce more coin/rewards locking scenarios, the longer you commit to lock your coins the more rewards you will get and vice-versa. Also voting behaviors should factor in all dot rewards.
If a model is built to analyze inflation, it should be flexible enough to include new changes to some network parameters.
Aye from me X2
It’s time we get serious about our tokenomics and how the Polkadot ecosystem is perceived by investors, retail users, and the broader crypto community. Inflation has its benefits—it enables an abundance mindset and supports network incentives, but we also risk mimicking the patterns of fiat currencies if we’re not intentional.
As we evolve, we need to ensure that long-term holders and participants are respected through thoughtful, sustainable economic models. Exploring capped supply, step-change inflation, and reward mechanisms that promote longer commitment (like lockups) is a healthy direction.
Side note: This cycle is different. All eyes are on Bitcoin. Anything that aligns Polkadot with BTC's narrative, such as a capped supply or “Polkadot halving” concept, would be a massive edge against competitors. It’s extremely marketable, needs no explanation, and could naturally attract attention from both institutional and retail investors. It also creates strong incentives to stake now in anticipation of a stronger future DOT price.