SECTION 1: APPLICANT INFORMATION
Applicant Name: 0xCXXVIII & @Lysis, Core Contributors
Project Name: Artichoke Protocol
Project Description:
Artichoke is a single-sided liquidity protocol (SSLP) built on top of the Arbitrum Network. Artichoke enables users to provide liquidity to a universal liquidity pool (Omnipool) using only a single asset on top of AMMs - unlocking the yield opportunities in DeFi liquidity provision for everyone.
The Omnipool is comprised of isolated subpools, further referred to as “tails” which enable single-asset liquidity provision (for example for tokens like GMX, GRAIL, MAGIC, ARB etc) - all tails are interlinked through the synthetic liquidity asset tCHOKE. More information can be found in our gitbook.
Team Members and Roles:
- 0xCXXVIII - Core Contributor & BD Lead - BSc in Telecom Engineering
- 0xCCLVI - Smart Contract Lead & Engineer - BSc in Computer Engineering
- 0xjpq - Sr. Full Stack Developer - BSc in Computer Engineering
- TheSwissAlpaca - UX/UI Lead
- HL - Head of Comms and SMM
- Blanco - Head of BD
- WhiteTPosion - Community and Moderation
Project Links:
- Website: https://articho.ke
- Documentation: Welcome to Artichoke - Overall
- tChoke Audit: publications/audit_reports/PeckShield-Audit-Report-TChoke-v1.0.pdf at master · peckshield/publications · GitHub
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/artichoke_fi
- Telegram: Telegram: Contact @artichoke_fi
- Discord: ARTICHOKE
Point of Contact:
0xCXXVIII
Telegram: 0xCXXVIII128
Twitter/X: https://x.com/MNJQQQQ_
Email: 128@articho.ke
Do You Acknowledge That Your Team Will Be Subject to a KYC Requirement?: Yes
SECTION 2A: Team and Product Information
Team Experience:
Artichoke’s team boasts extensive experience in the crypto ecosystem, having contributed to the development of numerous DeFi tools and protocols since 2018. From self-custody wallets, to lending protocols, their work across various EVM and non-EVM networks over the past few years has provided them with an accurate understanding of the current needs of the DeFi market and the areas that could be enhanced. This insight led to the creation of Artichoke.
Team Qualifications:
- 0xCXXVIII - Core Contributor & BD Lead - BSc in Telecom Engineering - Second-time Founder
- 0xCCLVI - Smart Contract Lead & Engineer - BSc in Computer Engineering - Second-time Founder
- 0xjpq - BSC in Computer Engineering - 4 years in developing products into the crypto ecosystem
- TheSwissAlpaca - UX/UI Lead - Industrial Engineer
- HL - Head of Comms and SMM
- Blanco - Head of BD
What novelty or innovation does your product bring to Arbitrum?:
Artichoke aims to be a cornerstone for capital and liquidity efficiency through its single-sided liquidity provision (SSL) and liquid restaking protocol. A common challenge for liquidity providers is the locking of their LP tokens with minimal to no incentives, preventing the full potential use of their capital. Artichoke addresses this by enabling the locking of LP tokens (V2 or V3 positions) to unlock greater liquidity for capital efficiency. It will enhance existing infrastructure, such as CamelotDEX, and other protocols offering liquid restaking, thereby adding value to them and the Arbitrum ecosystem.
As a first mover for SSL on Arbitrum and with the unique Omnipool approach, Artichoke can be a catalyst for further deployment of liquidity management, aggregation & lending protocols as on top of establishing a new primitive initially exclusive to Arbitrum.
Is your project composable with other projects on Arbitrum?:
Artichoke is designed for full compatibility and composability with all protocols within the Arbitrum ecosystem. Its features can be customized for any existing or potential protocol, or any specific vault/strategy operating on the Arbitrum blockchain.
Furthermore, each deposit into Artichoke generates our synthetic asset, tCHOKE, which is also compatible with any protocol. This offers immediate liquidity and the possibility of additional staking layers.
Do you have any comparable protocols within the Arbitrum ecosystem or other blockchains?:
As mentioned earlier, our approach is highly innovative and largely unparalleled among existing protocols. While there was an attempt by the Bancor protocol to explore SSLP, it did not achieve success. However, our method could be likened to Hydra Finance, a standalone protocol within the Polkadot/Cosmos ecosystem.
How do you measure and think about retention internally?:
The most well-known metrics for measuring retention in DeFi are Total Value Locked (TVL) and overall liquidity volume, including existing LPs, internal and external Vaults, and locked liquidity into Tails. Artichoke has adopted these metrics as foundational benchmarks, achieving all its TVL and retention organically without yet incentivizing any liquidity layer.
Despite this, we are preparing to launch an aggressive campaign in collaboration with partners. This campaign will offer high-yield rewards for tail deposits and additional incentives for tCHOKE with its partnered asset in our ecosystem, CHOKE. Although our current TVL figures may appear modest, we aim to reach a target of 1M in deposits before the end of Q1.
All relevant metrics can be found updated here: https://dune.com/0xpibs/artichoke
Relevant usage metrics:
In the brief period since launching within the Arbitrum ecosystem, we have achieved significant milestones:
- More than 37.98% of the entire CHOKE supply has been staked.
- A trading volume of $41.2 million on CamelotDEX over 10 months, averaging $3.4 million per month.
- Following our tCHOKE audit, we have seen deposits of $25,000 into Tails without any formal incentives being offered yet.
- $300,000 CHOKE/USDC liquidity pool.
Do you agree to remove team-controlled wallets from all milestone metrics AND exclude team-controlled wallets from any incentives included in your plan: Yes
Did you utilize a grants consultant or other third party not named as a grantee to draft this proposal?: No
SECTION 2B: PROTOCOL DETAILS
Is the Protocol Native to Arbitrum?: Yes. Artichoke has only been deployed on Arbitrum since inception
On what other networks is the protocol deployed?: Does not apply
What date did you deploy on Arbitrum?:
May-12-2023 05:52:32 PM +UTC (Arbitrum Transaction Hash (Txhash) Details | Arbiscan)
Do you have a native token?:
Yes, the CHOKE token. $0.05 | Choke (CHOKE) Token Tracker | Arbiscan
Past Incentivization:
No. We have yet to participate in the current Arbitrum Governance incentivization programs or receive support from the Arbitrum Foundation grant program. All incentives within our pools have been bootstrapped using our own funds.
Current Incentivization:
No incentivizations are being distributed at the moment.
Protocol Roadmap:
-
Q1 -
-
XAI-wETH goes live on Mainnet as our first V3 LP integration, fully compatible with Camelot and Algebra Protocol.
-
tCHOKE/CHOKE LP ARB reward program goes live.
-
Q2 -
-
Stage roll-out of Camelot’s V3 LP tails.
-
GM Token Tail.
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gDAI Token Tail.
-
Second PeckShield Audit for newer integrations.
-
Q3 -
-
First SSL integrations goes love on Mainnet.
-
Artichoke DEX Testnet version.
Protocol Performance: Since the CHOKE token went live on Arbitrum (and Camelot) we’ve reached the following milestones:
- A cumulative traded volume of 41,2M USD.
- 3.4M monthly weighted volume.
- 873 unique wallet addresses.
- Over 1.3M USD worth of CHOKE staked within the dApp (lCHOKE TVL) - Artichoke | Single-sided L2 LP protocol on Arbitrum
- 37,98% of the current CHOKE supply is staked within the protocol (LChoke | Address 0x19e9d018aec1c92eac665ae73d39a264f1bbb5a3 | Arbiscan)
- No security breaches until now.
Audit History:
The tCHOKE Tail Handler has been audited by PeckShield (https://peckshield.com/) and successfully passed without any major issues.
Audit can be found here: publications/audit_reports/PeckShield-Audit-Report-TChoke-v1.0.pdf at master · peckshield/publications · GitHub
Security Incidents: Does not apply.
SECTION 3: GRANT INFORMATION
Requested Grant Size:
44500 ARB
Justification for the grant size:
After nearly ten months of bootstrapping within the Arbitrum ecosystem and establishing multiple partnerships with leading Arbitrum projects, we are confident that Artichoke has earned the chance to demonstrate its capabilities as an innovative liquidity protocol.
We aim to show how it can boost overall protocol engagement and TVL, positioning Artichoke as a dependable and significant contributor to the ecosystem by incentivizing its Tails (Vaults) and providing liquidity providers with capital efficiency. Hence, becoming the backbone of Arbitrum.
The incentivization of TVL, Tails and the Omnipool itself is given by the tCHOKE smart contract. tCHOKE acts as a synthetic liquidity counterpart for tails. It’s currently backed by LP tokens and enables further liquidity from underlying assets. The current available tCHOKE liquidity sources are:
- ETH-USDC.e LP (spNFT) from Camelot V2, with a 50% LTV on the ETH side of collateral.
- XAI-wETH LP (spNFT) from Camelot V3, with a 50% LTV on the ETH side of collateral.
- tCHOKE/CHOKE LP on Camelot, currently paying 3-digit APR in ARB tokens.
Securing a Long-Term Incentive Proposal (LTIPP) Grant would enable Artichoke to fully unleash its potential, significantly benefiting the entire ecosystem.
3 Core Targets for Incentives:
- tCHOKE/CHOKE LP (18500 ARB)
- ETH-USDC.e Tail (7500 ARB)
Tail Link: TChokeCamelotV2Handler | Address 0xa1c58000ef51160d694c3b461e1a4f6d609be957 | Arbiscan
- XAI-wETH Tail (4500 ARB)
Tail Link: TChokeV2 | Address 0x07418fd8ce85ddf0eb4bb6cfab7fcdee67363332 | Arbiscan
Grant Matching:
N/A
Grant Breakdown:
On a conservative basis, we are looking to increase a 10X growth on overall TVL.
- tCHOKE/CHOKE (18500 ARB): As explained above, tCHOKE synthetic asset currently is the backbone of Artichoke Protocol. ARB incentives are key for protocol growth. Hence, the vast majority of the grant allocation will be for this LP.
Reasoning: CHOKE as proxy token for tCHOKE is currently has a market cap of $3.5M USD. On the other hand, the current tCHOKE/CHOKE LP has 100k USD worth of liquidity. With a 5X growth, we have an expected increase of 400k USD in TVL. Hence, at a rate of 125k USD annualized and a 25% APR, a total of 18500 ARB are needed to offer a 25% APR.
- ETH-USDT.e Tail: Our first Vault/Tail is one of the most stable and conservative solutions for tCHOKE minting. Moreover, ETH-USDC.e is also one of the most liquid LPs that have no further incentives on any other protocols.
Reasoning: With a current 15k USD TVL, we are looking for a 10X exponential growth on this vault. Considering a 30% APR for this tail, it would be needed approximately 7500 ARB to reach this increase on a quarterly basis.
- XAI-wETH Tail: XAI-wETH will go mainnet during LTIPP governance voting, giving a wide-range of LP holders of XAI Games the possibility to enhance their liquid positions by minting tCHOKE.
Reasoning: With a current 10k USD TVL, we are looking for a 10X exponential growth on this vault. Considering a 30% APR for this tail, it would be needed approximately 4500 ARB to reach this increase on a quarterly basis.
- Newer Tails: On the other hand, a deployment of two new Tails during LTIPP quarter is expected. Hence, we’re also looking to boost both Tails in the same way as the current ones. (14000 ARB)
Disclaimer on Newer Tails: In case there is no deployment of newer Tails into the protocol, the 14K ARB portion will be given back to the DAO at the end of the program.
*We have mentioned a comprehensive overview of grant usage, and execution in the section below (Execution Strategy).
Funding Address:
arb1:0x23B5f64C56277fdBa138EF02361c61a7f5E4D137
Funding Address Characteristics:
2/3 multisig SAFE
Treasury Address:
- Artichoke: Deployer | Address 0xa2fd20106c9b1f2b8267e38e43a9bd3faed32c66 | Arbiscan
- Address 0xa219aa19a1b14ef0c3fa57a293c99e94bfa73edf | Arbiscan
Contract Address:
- tCHOKE: tChoke (tChoke) Token Tracker | Arbiscan
- CHOKE: $0.05 | Choke (CHOKE) Token Tracker | Arbiscan
- ETH-USDC.e Tail: TChokeCamelotV2Handler | Address 0xa1c58000ef51160d694c3b461e1a4f6d609be957 | Arbiscan
SECTION 4: GRANT OBJECTIVES, EXECUTION AND MILESTONES
Objectives:
The primary objectives of Artichoke upon receiving the Arbitrum allocation grant are summarized as follows:
- Enhance Liquidity & Capital Efficiency
- Boost Protocol TVL & Engagement
- Leverage Partnership Ecosystem & Growth
- Unlocking Artichoke’s SSLP & LRTfi
Execution Strategy:
Artichoke’s execution strategy will focus on leveraging the LTIPP allocation to optimize liquidity provision, enhance capital efficiency, and solidify its position within the Arbitrum ecosystem.
Our execution strategy will be as follows:
- Distribution Method: the distribution of ARB incentives will primarily be through staking, specifically targeting our “Tails” which are specialized liquidity pools within the
- Targeted Tails and Allocation:
- tCHOKE/CHOKE Tail: A significant portion of the grant, totaling 18500 ARB, will be allocated to this tail. The distribution will be spread equally across the months that the Long-Term Incentive Proposal Plan (LTIPP) is active. The generic formula for monthly distribution would be TotalARBAllocation/NumberOfMonths, ensuring a consistent incentive stream.
- ETH.USDC.e Tail: This tail will be allocated 7500 ARB to incentivize liquidity provision.
- XAI-wETH Tail: Similarly, this tail will receive an allocation of 4500 ARB to encourage liquidity providing.
- Main Product Utilization: The execution strategy will heavily rely on the tCHOKE smart contract, which has been previously audited and proven secure. This contract facilitates the creation of the synthetic asset tCHOKE, integral for liquidity provision and staking within the protocol.
- Use of the Funds: The grant funds are earmarked for specific uses within the protocol, particularly for incentivizing liquidity provision across the aforementioned tails.
What mechanisms within the incentive design will you implement to incentivize “stickiness” whether it be users, liquidity or some other targeted metric?
To incentivize “stickiness” and ensure sustained engagement, several mechanisms are going to be implemented. These mechanisms aim to reward long-term participation, maintain liquidity, and encourage user retention. Below are the relevant design and implementation details:
-
Time-Locked Staking Rewards: To promote long-term participation, we will implement time-locked staking rewards. Users who stake their assets for longer periods will receive higher rewards compared to those who stake for shorter durations (time-based rewards). This mechanism encourages users to commit their assets to the protocol for extended periods, increasing liquidity stability and deepening.
-
Reward Multipliers for Continued Participation: Artichoke will introduce reward multipliers that increase based on the continuous duration of participation. For instance, users who continuously stake in the tCHOKE/CHOKE, ETH-USDC.e, and XAI-wETH tails without withdrawing will see their reward rate incrementally increase over time.
-
Liquidity Mining with Differential Rewards: Artichoke will allocate a portion of the ARB grant (18500 ARB for tCHOKE/CHOKE, 7500 ARB for ETH-USDC.e, and 4500 ARB for XAI-wETH tails) to liquidity mining through Tails. Rewards will be distributed based on the liquidity provided, with higher rewards for less liquid and higher-risk tails. This strategy aims to balance liquidity across different tails and ensure that riskier assets receive adequate liquidity support.
Specify the KPIs that will be used to measure success in achieving the grant objectives and designate a source of truth for governance to use to verify accuracy. [Please also justify why these specific KPIs will indicate that the grant has met its objective. Distribution of the grant itself should not be one of the KPIs.]
The success of Artichoke’s execution strategy and the achievement of the grant’s objectives will be measured using the following KPIs:
- Total Value Locked (TVL): A fundamental metric indicating the overall amount of assets staked in the protocol. A consistent increase in TVL would demonstrate successful attraction and retention of liquidity.
- Tail Staking Duration: The average duration for which assets are staked in the protocol. Longer staking durations would signal successful incentivization of “stickiness”
- Unique Active Wallets (UAW): Measuring the number of unique wallet addresses interacting with the protocol. Growth in UAW would indicate a successful expansion of the user base (Can use Dune Reference for this)
Grant Timeline and Milestones:
The grant timeline and milestones are structured as follows:
Stage 1: Initial Distribution of ARB to tCHOKE/CHOKE, ETH-USDC.e, and XAI-wETH Tails.
KPI: 20% increase in TVL across incentivized Tails.
Stage 2: Assess the impact of initial incentives and adjust distribution strategy as necessary. Launch bonus rewards for consistent participation.
KPI: 10% increase in the number of active stakers and a 15% retention rate improvement.
Stage 3: Implement reinvestment incentives and community governance participation rewards.
KPI: 25% increase in TVL and a 20% increase in protocol revenue.
Stage 4: Final assessment and adjustments to ensure sustainability beyond the grant period.
KPI: Maintain or improve retention rate and protocol revenue.
How will receiving a grant enable you to foster growth or innovation within the Arbitrum ecosystem?
Receiving a grant will significantly empower Artichoke Protocol to foster growth and innovation within the Arbitrum ecosystem. Here’s how:
Enabling Unprecedented Liquidity and Capital Efficiency
Artichoke introduces an innovative single-sided liquidity provision (SSLP) and liquid restaking mechanism that is a novel approach within the Arbitrum ecosystem. By allowing liquidity providers (LPs) to deposit their LP positions into our protocol, Artichoke unlocks additional liquidity and enables LPs to leverage their positions more efficiently using tCHOKE.
Data-Backed Innovation
The innovation brought by Artichoke is backed by the clear need for more efficient liquidity utilization in DeFi. Traditional liquidity provision often locks up capital in a way that limits its potential use. Artichoke’s solution addresses this by enabling LPs to restake their positions, thus unlocking new opportunities for capital deployment and yield generation. This model is expected to attract more liquidity providers to the Arbitrum ecosystem, evidenced by the growing trend towards capital efficiency in DeFi. For example, protocols that have introduced similar innovations in other ecosystems have seen an average increase in TVL of 20-30% within the first few weeks of implementation.
Boosting the Arbitrum Ecosystem
By increasing the efficiency of liquidity provision and introducing liquid restaking, Artichoke directly contributes to the growth of the Arbitrum ecosystem in several ways:
Increased TVL: As Artichoke attracts more liquidity providers, the total value locked within the Arbitrum ecosystem is expected to rise, strengthening its position in the DeFi market.
Enhanced Protocol Engagement: Artichoke’s innovative offerings are likely to draw more users to Arbitrum, not only benefiting our protocol but also increasing engagement across other protocols and services within the ecosystem.
Incentivizing Innovation: The success of Artichoke’s model could inspire further innovation within the ecosystem, encouraging other developers and protocols to explore new solutions and collaborations.
Do you accept the funding of your grant streamed linearly for the duration of your grant proposal, and that the multisig holds the power to halt your stream?
Yes
SECTION 5: Data and Reporting
OpenBlock Labs has developed a comprehensive data and reporting checklist for tracking essential metrics across participating protocols. Teams must adhere to the specifications outlined in the provided link here: Onboarding Checklist from OBL 12. Along with this list, please answer the following:
Is your team prepared to comply with OBL’s data requirements for the entire life of the program and three months following and then handoff to the Arbitrum DAO? Are there any special requests/considerations that should be considered?
Yes.
Does your team agree to provide bi-weekly program updates on the Arbitrum Forum thread that reference your OBL dashboard?
Yes.
First Offense: *In the event that a project does not provide a bi-weekly update, they will be reminded by an involved party (council, advisor, or program manager). Upon this reminder, the project is given 72 hours to complete the requirement or their funding will be halted.
Second Offense: Discussion with an involved party (advisor, pm, council member) that will lead to understanding if funds should keep flowing or not.
Third Offense: Funding is halted permanently
Does your team agree to provide a final closeout report not later than two weeks from the ending date of your program? This report should include summaries of work completed, final cost structure, whether any funds were returned, and any lessons the grantee feels came out of this grant. Where applicable, be sure to include final estimates of acquisition costs of any users, developers, or assets onboarded to Arbitrum chains. (NOTE: No future grants from this program can be given until a closeout report is provided.)
Yes.
Does your team acknowledge that failure to comply with any of the above requests can result in the halting of the program’s funding stream?:
Yes.