Introducing Karak V2 Mainnet

Karak pioneered the concept of universal security and restaking with any asset across any network, which is now the industry standard. Today, we are accelerating this vision by announcing Karak V2 Mainnet–unlocking significant utility, rewards, and innovation for everyone.

Karak V2 Testnet launched in July and it was an instant success. Since launch, Karak has seen tremendous growth across the board:

• $1B+ in security
• 240,000+ unique users onboarded
• 50+ asset integrations including stablecoins, liquid staking tokens, liquid restaking tokens, and even governance tokens
• 5+ chain integrations including Ethereum Mainnet, Arbitrum, and more
• 20+ Distributed Secure Services building on Karak with several dozen more on the way
• 40+ Distributed Secure Service consumers and applications building on Karak with more on the way
• 50+ Operators onboarded and successfully running the Karak example DSS with several dozen more on the way

From day one our mission remains the same: to create a universal, verifiable network that scales global economies. To that end, we are happy to introduce Karak V2, beginning with Phase 1, the next evolution of the Karak Protocol. Karak V2 introduces everything needed to build a fully functioning shared security ecosystem including slashing, which is a prerequisite for true restaking.

Phased Launch

To ensure maximal security and success of the Karak network, Karak will be launching in three distinct phases.

Phase 1

• Migration: Migrating assets from V1 to V2, with only Arbitrum migrations enabled and other chains to be enabled on a rolling basis.
• Staking: Depositing of assets
• Services: Initial cohort launching on testnet on a rolling basis
• Operator Delegation: Delegation of stake to operators and ability to opt into initial cohort of DSSs on testnet on a rolling basis
• Permissionless asset listing: More assets will be enabled beginning with USDC, USDT, wETH, and WeETH
• Permissionless network listing: More and more networks will be enabled beginning with Arbitrum
• Invite Codes: Invite codes will no longer be required to deposit into V2

Phase 2

• Slashing: The first restaking protocol to have slashing
• Services: Initial cohort launching on mainnet on a rolling basis
• Operators: Opt into initial cohort of DSS’s on mainnet on a rolling basis
• Rewards: Rewards begin streaming to operators and stakers

Karak V2

Karak V2 introduces the simplest, most flexible, and most scalable restaking protocol to date. Our simple design requires only four deployed contracts: Core, Vault, SlashingHandler, and Distributed Secure Services (DSS). The purpose of each contract is simple. The Vault contract manages deposits, and withdrawals, and obeys slashing requests. The SlashingHandler contract simply defines how a specific asset should be slashed, whether it should be burned, sent to the zero address, or something custom. DSS contracts are written by external teams and contain a task to be performed by operators and slashing conditions to punish those operators for failing to perform the task. Finally, the Core contract governs the other contracts, adjudicates slashing requests, and makes it easy to add new assets and vaults.

Asset Issuers

Previously, users were able to restake a wide variety of assets such as stablecoins, liquid staking tokens, liquid restaking tokens, and even governance tokens. However, integrating new assets was a slow, manual process. Starting today, asset issuers can list their assets on Karak, define custom slashing handlers for those assets, and work with operators and DSSs to get them adopted.

Developers

Now with V2 Mainnet, developers can start building and deploying their Distributed Secure Services (DSS) and custom restaking strategy vaults. Karak’s modular, lightweight DSS template makes it easy for anyone to start building their first DSS. If you have any questions, our docs strive to be the best in the industry around shared security and explain all facets of restaking from key management to normalizing stakes.

Operators & Strategists

Today, operators can begin registering on Karak mainnet and start accepting various assets in their vaults. Operators can also begin configuring and running various DSS in testnet to get familiar with them. More details can be found here.

In Closing

Since day one, security has been the foundation of the development of Karak. While building the protocol, we solicited advice from our security partners to ensure V2 Mainnet is secure and fair for everyone. Karak V2’s core contracts have already been individually audited five times which can be seen here. We’ve also partnered with Hypernative to create a robust security monitoring suite for Karak V2.

FAQs

What assets and networks will be supported on Karak V2 Mainnet?

All networks and assets on Karak V1 will migrate to Karak V2 on a rolling basis.

What assets can I migrate to Karak V2 Mainnet now?

As of now, please check the V2 app here to see what assets and networks are available. If your asset or network is not available yet, just sit tight until we enable them as all remaining assets and networks will be migrated on a rolling basis.

How do I migrate my assets to V2?

If your asset and network is enabled on Karak V2 mainnet, visit the portfolio tab on Karak V2 and click "migrate" to migrate your position from V1 to V2, which will appear only if that asset and network is enabled on Karak V2.

If you have any issues try again in an hour as there may be an issue with the indexer. If you're still having issues, open up a ticket on Discord and our team will get to it.

Do I need to migrate to Karak V2 Mainnet to earn XP?

You will still earn points, for now. If your asset or network is not available yet, please remain patient. Once all assets are migrated and enabled, we may update the multiplier. Check #announcements on Discord for updates.

How do referrals work on Karak V2 Mainnet?

Karak V2 Mainnet does not have the concept of invite codes and referrals and thus XP will no longer be earned from referrals. This is a feature only from V1.

About Karak

Karak is a universal network for verifiable finance that makes it easy to provide security with any asset on any network, and unlocks a new design space for developers to seamlessly and securely create innovative distributed systems. Karak is designed to be inherently flexible, extensible, and scalable, making it the only platform for any distributed service to be secured with any asset on any network.

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