ENS DAO Newsletter #40 - 08/01/2023
Welcome!
Welcome to the ENS DAO Newsletter:
New editions — published bi-weekly (Tuesday) — beginning on August 1st.
Previous editions are archived on the ENS DAO Governance Forum.
New proposals are broadcasted to Telegram.
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Newsletter Roundup (tl;dr)
- ENS DAO Newsletter: now published bi-weekly on Tuesdays starting from August 1st.
- ENS Labs Updates: ENS for the Multichain World and EthCC Recap.
- ENS Integrations: Beam, Gnosis Pay, Coinbase, XMTP, Disco, Farcaster, and Lens Protocol.
- Community Updates: ENS featured on Forbes and collaborations with Ledger.
- Recent Proposals: actions for the Endowment and ENS Invalid Name Refund Proposal.
- Draft Proposals: Platform Source Parameter and Extending ENS DAO to EIP-4824.
- Meta-Governance: discussions on voting and Real World Assets.
- Ecosystem: discussions on Sepolia, Small Grants, and 1 & 2 character .eth names.
- Public Goods: discussions on Grants, P256 Precompile, and DAO collaborations.
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Calendar
Refer to ENS DAO Calendar for ENS DAO working group calls and other events.
- Calendar: Public Access
- Calendar: Access with Gmail
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Recent Proposals
Streamlining DAO Voting
Based on delegate feedback, the Meta-Governance working group will move to consolidate proposals within a voting period. Please note that some proposals are still under review and subject to change. Voting periods will be scheduled regularly, preferably at the end of each month.
Furthermore, anyone with a minimum of 100k $ENS can submit an executable proposal on Snapshot at any time. If a proposal gains popularity in the governance forum, the stewards, along with alisha.eth, will prioritize it for a vote during the designated voting window.
Thank you for your ongoing engagement and active participation in our governance process.
| Proposal | Discussion | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| [EP4.1] [Executable] Approve further actions and strategies for the Endowment | Open | Live |
| [Draft] [Executable] ENS Invalid Name Refund Proposal | Open | N/A |
Note: The Meta-Governance working group will move to consolidate proposals into a voting period — to be scheduled at the end of each month. For more information, please review @5pence.eth thread on streamlining the voting process.
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Draft Proposals:
For details on the ENS DAO proposal process see our Governance Docs.
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ENS Labs Updates
ENS for the Multichain World
In their recent talk at EthCC, @matoken.eth discussed their work on the L2 resolver, specifically designed for rollup chains like Optimism, Arbitrum, Linea, and Starknet. They focused on demonstrating the utilization of ENS in a multi-chain setting by employing CCIP-read, wildcard, DNSSEC, and multicoin types. The talk covered various use cases, encompassing Optimism, Arbitrum, Starknet, and DNS. For more details, developers should refer to the ENS technical documentation on the L2 Resolver.
Presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYfZGx67-S8 — 19.07.23
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Ethcc Recap
At the ETHCC event, Ethereum Name Service (ENS) was a major focus, highlighting its versatility and significance in the blockchain space. Key themes discussed included community building, gaming identities with ENS subnames, decentralized frontends, wallet messaging via ENS names, and integration with Layer 2 solutions. ENS, powered by Ethereum, has potential beyond Ethereum, making it a fundamental technology for various blockchain applications. The event showcased how ENS simplifies blockchain interactions and identity. Visitors claimed their ENS identity cards with a 28% engagement rate among approximately 5000 attendees. For more, have a look at this thread by @zadok7. — 21.07.23
Event: ENS Community at Eth CC 23’. — 20.07.23
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ENS Development and Integrations
Integration: Beam x ENS
Beam is a user-friendly crypto wallet on Optimism and Base, combining crypto principles with Web2 app convenience. Payments are sent to usernames through smart contract wallets, ERC-4337, and ENS. ENS enhances the user experience with unique Beam Names instead of addresses. Beam simplifies crypto payments for mainstream users but prioritizes convenience over high-security holding of assets. Beam Names are of the form name.beam.eco, managed by ENS on Optimism, allowing seamless transactions within the Ethereum ecosystem. — 30.07.23
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Integration: Gnosis Pay x ENS
Gnosis Pay is a decentralized payment network that bridges the gap between on-chain and off-chain worlds. Its main role is to enable web3 developers to integrate traditional payment methods like Visa, bringing millions of new users into the web3 economy. The Gnosis Card is the world’s first Visa-certified, self-custodial consumer debit card, linked directly to an on-chain wallet. Gnosis Pay uses a custom Layer 2 solution on the decentralized Gnosis Chain to handle large transaction volumes securely. Notably, it connects on-chain identity and self-custodied crypto with real-world spending, envisioning a non-custodial crypto debit card linked to the Ethereum Name Service (ENS). — 17.07.23
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Integration: Coinbase x XMTP x ENS
ENS plays a crucial role in enabling the new messaging feature on Coinbase Wallet. This integration with the XMTP (Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol) allows Coinbase Wallet users to engage in end-to-end encrypted, decentralized messaging directly through their wallets. ENS facilitates the seamless connection and communication between users, enabling them to send payments across various cryptocurrencies, make offers on NFTs, and participate in token-gated messaging, all while maintaining full control and ownership of their identity and chats. Additionally, ENS subnames can be used to verify the authenticity of the sender, providing an added layer of security and convenience for users. — 25.07.23
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Integration: Disco x ENS
Disco simplifies digital identity management, allowing users to own and control their private data securely. It now integrates with ENS names for easy search and display. Users have autonomy over data sharing, promoting privacy and interoperability. A user-centric and trustworthy identity ecosystem is created with this integration. — 27.07.23
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Integration: Farcaster x ENS
Farcaster, the decentralized social network, now supports ENS names as usernames, allowing users to fully own their assets and online presence. The platform enables easy movement of social identities between apps, showcases NFTs, and offers verified avatars connected to Ethereum addresses, promoting user empowerment and democratizing usernames. — 26.07.23
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Integration: Lens Protocol x ENS
Nader Dabit, director of Developer Relationships at Aave and Lens Protocol, recently published an announcement about the upcoming integration. This integration speaks to the permissionless integrations that are only possible in open ecosystems. Read Nader’s announcement here. — 31.07.23
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Update: ENS Dashboard
Nick.eth announced an update to the ENS dashboard’s daily and monthly active users charts. The update involved refreshing the queries behind the charts to include recently deployed ENS contracts. The charts now accurately display the number of unique addresses interacting with ENS contracts as intended. View it now. — 31.07.23
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Update: ENSIP-14
In support of ENSIP-14, @avsa.eth shared intriguing ENS registration stats: since May 2023, 10% of ENS registrations an independent team — ENS Vision. The open tracking system revealed impressive numbers for ENS lab’s frontend app and ENS Vision, with over 146k and 18k years of name durations registered, respectively, while ENS Fairy contributed significantly with 4 centuries’ worth of name durations. They’ve suggested that the Ecosystem Working Group should experiment with this approach, considering revenue generation and renewals for sustainability and growth.
View the Dune Dashboard here and review the discussion on the forum. — 24.07.23
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Update: Reclaimed ETH
Recently, darkmarket.eth reclaimed 39,712 ETH ($74.17M), locked in a now deprecated ENS registrar which had been replaced about four years ago, and transferred 63,734 ETH ($119M) to a new wallet.
The user had bid on and won several names back in 2016/2017, but when ENS was upgraded in 2019, had not released the deeds to claim their locked funds. The user reclaimed their funds via reclaim.ens.domains where many other users still have substantial amounts of ether locked up in the old registrar, with hundreds of thousands of unclaimed deeds holding tens of thousands of ether. You can check if you have any ETH to reclaim by visiting the Reclaim site now. — 31.07.23
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ENS Podcasts and Spaces
- ENS Interviews: Domico.eth — 25.07.23
- Commit Podcast: Luc.eth — 26.07.23
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Community Updates
ENS featured on Forbes
In commemoration of Ethereum’s 8th anniversary, Chris Castiglione spoke with several key leaders throughout the ecosystem, including @alisha.eth, Governance Lead at ENS Domains — they highlighted ENS’s success in issuing 2.7 million decentralized names, revolutionizing asset transfers, logins, and messaging on Ethereum. Read the article in full now. — 28.07.23
“The 2030 version of Ethereum that excites me is one where critical pieces of internet infrastructure are powered by Ethereum. In an ideal world, this infrastructure would be built on credibly neutral open source public goods, like ENS.” - Alisha.eth
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Working with Ledger
Ledger’s second Developer Experience Hackathon at the Vierzon Ledger Plex was a resounding success, marking the second year that this initiative that brings together external developers from various renowned organizations — @lucemans (Luc.eth) joined the Hackathon to build upon the achievements of last year’s inaugural hackathon, notably the integration of ENS into Ledger Stax and Clear Signing into the manager app. He shared his thoughts on working with the Ledger team and expressed excitement about future prospects, acknowledging that Ledger holds a significant market share and is widely recognized as a trustworthy hardware device for securely storing private keys. Hear more from Luc.eth. — 31.07.23
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Opinion: Proving humanity in an AI world is not an option — it’s a necessity
In an op-ed piece published by Forkast, @khori.eth argues that as AI becomes more human-like, it is essential to prove our humanity in Web3. Distinguishing humans from bots is challenging, so they advocate for technologies like decentralized identities with human-readable names (ENS) to ensure a human-friendly Web3 and prevent it from becoming a “bot zoo.” Building a safer and more secure internet requires prioritizing humanity over code and creating ways to verify human interactions online. — 31.07.23
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Request for Feedback: Automatic ENS Linktree Alternative For All ENS names
@kolar.eth has requested feedback for their proposal to create a service called ETH.CZ, by RC.xyz, which aims to provide a link directory for ENS (Ethereum Name Service) domains. The service will automatically generate a link directory profile for each ENS domain, based on available information from sources like ENS profiles, LENS, SuperRare, OpenSea, and Twitter.
This link directory will allow users to quickly view associated links with ENS domains across blockchain services, access OpenSea or Etherscan profiles of any ENS holder, and create a custom link directory similar to Linktree. It will also act as a link shortener, enabling users to redirect to personalized URLs.
You can offer feedback by reaching out to the team on Twitter (@rightclick). — 25.07.23
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Working Group Bulletin
Q3/Q4 Lead Stewards + Secretary Appointment
Lead Stewards:
- MetaGovernance – @katherine.eth
- ENS Ecosystem – @slobo.eth
- Public Goods – @Coltron.eth
The responsibilities of Lead Stewards are set out in Rule 8.7 of the Working Group Rules.
Secretary:
- Stewards have appointed @Limes as the Secretary for this Term.
The responsibilities of the Secretary are set out in Rule 9.8 of the Working Group Rules.
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ENS DAO Working Group Schedule (Q3/Q4 2023):
| Working Group | Time | Day | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
 Meta-Governance |
3pm UTC | Tuesday | Google Meet |
 Public Goods |
4pm UTC | Tuesday | Google Meet |
 ENS Ecosystem |
4pm UTC | Thursday | Google Meet |
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Meta-Governance
The Meta-Governance working group hosted its weekly meetings on July 25th, 2023:
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Real-World Assets Discussion
Steakhouse presented the concept of Real World Assets (RWA) in the DeFi space to the ENS community, emphasizing the potential benefits of diversifying the DAO’s treasury into RWA. Particularly, Steakhouse highlights the appeal of low-risk products like Tokenized T-bills, which align with ENS’s preference for safer investments. The idea is that by venturing into RWA, the DAO can potentially boost returns, considering that ENS currently holds fiat-backed stablecoins in its treasury without generating significant yield.
@katherine.eth offered a first response, supporting the idea of treasury diversification and acknowledging the attractiveness of RWA strategies by comparing the APR yields of top DeFi protocols to the yield on T-bills. Katherine also points out the risks associated with having a large portion of the treasury invested in a single volatile asset like ETH, making a case for the importance of prudent diversification.
Katherine cited MakerDAO as a successful example of a mature DAO that effectively implements RWA strategies, serving as a promising reference point for ENS. She emphasizes the significance of sustainable yield and low-risk strategies, which align with the responsible treasury management ethos. Follow the discussion. — 24.07.23
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Coming soon: Endaoment Dashboard
In the coming weeks, Karpatkey will introduce a new dashboard for endowment web reports, replacing PDF sharing, with relevant information for decision-making and metric tracking, offering support and feedback opportunities to users. Monthly endowment-specific reports will be posted, and the Karpatkey team will be available for questions and discussions on endowment strategies through Meta-Gov calls and forums. — 25.07.23
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EP4.1 — Approve further actions and strategies for the Endowment (Now live)
@karpatkey provided updates on Endowment & Executable Proposal, including adding swapping options on Cow Swap — the proposal is now live on tally, vote now! — 25.07.23
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ENS Invalid Name Refund Proposal
The ENS invalid name refund proposal was discussed with an in-call vote on two options — an executable vote will be pushed to the August or September voting window to determine distribution logic, with potential gas and ETH savings using the claim option. — 25.07.23
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Ecosystem
The Ecosystem working group hosted its weekly meetings on July 27th, 2023:
Reminder: The Ecosystem Working Group offers rolling grants, and interested parties can apply anytime. The evaluation process lasts approximately four weeks — unsuccessful applicants are encouraged to reapply.
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Sepolia
Efforts are being made to enhance support for Sepolia by deploying additional contracts and verifying existing ones. However, front-end support is currently paused until thegraph provides compatibility for Sepolia. For more information, visit the Github repository: ens-contracts/deployments/sepolia/. — 28.07.23
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Small Grants
The Small Grants program is transitioning to a new quarterly schedule. This move is inspired by successful models like Gitcoin Grants. The grant dates will align with those of the Public Goods Working Group’s small grants, which are also shifting to a quarterly cadence. — 25.07.23
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Discussion: 1 & 2 Character .eth Names
There is an on-going discussion on 1 and 2 character .eth names, but there are currently no plans to take immediate action on this matter. The release of the Namewrapper has sparked renewed interest in these discussions from a technical perspective. Progress will keep a steady pace and require consensus and multiple steps to move forward. For more in-depth discussions and input, participants are encouraged to join the discussion and share their thoughts. — 24.07.23
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NameSys: Off-chain ENS Records Manager
NameSys.eth is an off-chain ENS Records Manager that provides free and secure ENS record management using IPNS and CCIP-Read. Users can set records off-chain without sharing private keys. It enables dynamic avatars and addresses, ensuring a similar level of security as on-chain records while saving on gas costs. Future features include wallet-specific records, on-chain signers, and record redirection. Review the technical discussion. — 26.07.23
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Public Goods
The Public Goods working group hosted its weekly meetings on July 25th, 2023:
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Grants
Large grants and Growth grants will continue to receive support throughout the second term. Small grants will have a quarterly grant round with the possibility of 10 ETH being awarded each quarter. Funding will prioritize collaboration bounties, hackathons, and direct awards to builders. There have been discussions about collaborations with individuals at in-person events.
The dates for grants will be synchronized with Ecosystem grants and communicated beforehand. Quarterly grants offer several benefits, including increased focus on sharing and exposure, clear scheduling for project submissions and voting, addressing voter fatigue, facilitating a more thorough selection process, and promoting transparency and progress tracking through updated submissions for better funding decisions in the future. — 25.07.23
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P256 Precompile
@coltron.eth, @vegayp, and @ulerdogan et.al discussed the P256 precompile support in the EVM during an ENSParis event. The project requires further specification and discussions, and it will involve a significant collaborative effort, possibly funded by Large Grants to support Open Source code development.
Read: Public Goods: P256 Precompile Support — motion to advocate for EIP-7212. — 25.07.23
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DAO collaborations
Both ENS and Gitcoin recognized the value of the Gitcoin Passport plug-in for Discourse initiative and could have individually sponsored it, but they chose to collaborate instead. Opportunities to explore more collaborative sponsorships & generating goodwill, e.g., at ETHNewYork, ETHIstanbul will be focal points. — 25.07.23
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Further Initiatives
ENS may be willing to contribute more funds to various projects if people knew these events were known to be associated with ENS. The working group wants to emphasize the importance of documenting sponsors’ information and building social capital around their donations — a collaborative approach to funding public goods is top of mind. — 25.07.23
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Security Tip
Check out this helpful thread for information about some of the latest scams, and ways that you can protect yourself.
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Get Involved
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2. Governance:
3. Discuss:
4. Contact:
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Thank you very much for reading! Goodbye. 
