In the ever-evolving world of blockchain technology, Namada stands out with its groundbreaking innovations aimed at enhancing privacy and functionality. Among its key technical advancements are the Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP) and the Convert Circuit (CC). These innovations not only elevate the security and privacy of transactions but also introduce programmable asset conversions, making Namada a pioneer in the blockchain space.
What is Namada?
Namada network is the first fractal instance of Anoma, a multi-chain vision that aims to achieve homogeneous architecture and heterogeneous security. Developed by Heliax, one of the organizations in the Anoma ecosystem, Namada network is expected to launch its mainnet in the nearest foreseeable future, offering users a gateway to multichain privacy.
Namada is a proof-of-stake L1 for interchain asset-agnostic privacy and Anoma’s first fractal instance. The Namada protocol focuses on a subset of components of Anoma that enables shielded transfers for any kind of asset (fungible and non-fungible ones) independent of the platform they were created on, such as Ethereum or IBC-compatible chains. Using Namada, you can transfer your ETH, DAI, or any other fungible asset or NFT from Ethereum or your ATOM or OSMO from any IBC chain and send them around privately with a few-second transaction latency and near-zero fees.
To make privacy-preserving transfers more accessible for end users, Namada is vertically integrated and will be released with user-friendly interfaces very soon.
Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP)
Introduction to Namada MASP
The Multi-Asset Shielded Pool (MASP) is an extension of Sapling, a circuit originally developed by the Electric Coin Company for Zcash. MASP takes privacy to the next level by supporting arbitrary assets and creating a unified privacy set for all transactions. This innovation is crucial for maintaining the anonymity of transactions, especially for unique or low-volume assets.
Functionality of MASP
MASP handles the minting and burning of shielded assets, known as notes, as they move between shielded and transparent Namada accounts. Unlike traditional systems where each asset has its own privacy pool, Namada uses a single shielded pool for all assets, both fungible and non-fungible. This approach significantly enhances privacy by making all transactions within the pool indistinguishable from one another.
Mechanics of MASP
Within the MASP, the creation of notes is visible, but the sender, recipient, asset type, and amount are all obfuscated. This ensures that while the existence of a transaction is known, the details remain hidden. Outside of the MASP, everything is visible in transparent accounts, similar to how transactions are handled on other chains like Ethereum.
Technical Aspects of Notes in MASP
A note in the MASP is minted using a zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) with three key values:
- Asset type: This denotes the type of asset, such as ETH, NAM, or an NFT.
- Amount: The number of units of the asset.
- Address: The owner of the asset(s) and note.
These notes exist in a UTXO-like model, recording the values of assets. However, unlike traditional UTXOs, these notes are not part of the public chain state. Instead, they are represented on-chain by two Merkle trees: a commitment tree and a nullifier tree.
Spending Notes in MASP
To spend a note, two steps are required:
- Proving Inclusion: This step confirms that the note exists in the commitment tree, the user controls it, and the transaction balance is preserved (no assets are created or destroyed in the transfer).
- Revealing a Nullifier: This ensures that the note has not been spent before, preventing double-spending.
Convert Circuit (CC)
Introduction to Convert Circuit
The Convert Circuit (CC) is a separate circuit that works in tandem with the MASP circuit. It enables programmable asset conversions through a predefined conversion table and a mint and burn mechanism. This functionality allows for added features without requiring assets to be withdrawn from the MASP, enhancing internal programmability.
Functionality of CC
The primary purpose of the CC is to privately reward MASP depositors with NAM. When an asset is deposited into the MASP, it is tagged with the current epoch. When a user wants to reclaim their asset, it is converted from the old epoch to the new epoch. This system determines how long an asset was held in the pool, abstracting the complexity away from the user. Users receive NAM rewards based on the asset type, amount, and duration they hold it in the pool.
Additional Applications of CC
Beyond rewarding depositors, the CC can be used for various applications, including:
- Voting: Enabling private voting mechanisms.
- Prediction Markets: Facilitating private and secure prediction markets.
- Shielded Borrowing and Lending: Allowing for private financial transactions within the ecosystem.
Interoperability
Integration with IBC
Namada is integrated with the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) protocol, which allows for trustless interoperability with Cosmos and other IBC-compatible chains. This integration is crucial for enabling seamless cross-chain transactions and expanding the utility of Namada’s innovations.
Ethereum Bridge
In addition to IBC, Namada is developing a native light client-based bridge to Ethereum. This bridge is operated by Namada validators as part of the core protocol. Validators run Ethereum full nodes and monitor bridge contracts to facilitate asset transfers to Namada. For transferring assets back to Ethereum, a more complex design is employed due to the lack of efficient light client support on Ethereum. Bridge requests are compiled into a “mempool” and stored as a Merkle tree. Anyone can relay any subset of these requests to Ethereum, reducing gas costs by pooling transactions, similar to how a Layer-2 (L2) sequencer batches transactions.
Conclusion
Namada’s technical innovations, MASP and CC, are setting new standards for privacy and functionality in the blockchain space. By providing a unified privacy set and enabling programmable asset conversions, Namada is paving the way for a more secure and versatile blockchain ecosystem. As Namada continues to integrate with other chains and develop new features, it promises to remain at the forefront of blockchain technology.
Stay updated with Namada’s developments to witness the future of blockchain privacy and innovation unfold.
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