Polygon Labs Proposes Protocol Council for Smart Contract Governance
Polygon Labs has put forth a new governance improvement proposal, known as PIP-29, with the aim of establishing a Protocol Council to oversee changes made to its core smart contracts. The Protocol Council will consist of 13 members who will be responsible for supervising modifications to Polygon’s system-level smart contracts.
The introduction of the Protocol Council is crucial for ensuring the security and smooth transition to updated versions of Polygon’s smart contracts, given the significance of upgradeability in the platform’s system architecture.
Proposed Members of the Protocol Council
The list of individuals and organizations proposed to join the Protocol Council includes ZachXBT, Polygon’s chief information security officer Mudit Gupta, Coinbase’s protocol operations lead Viktor Bunin, and Sommelier Finance founder Zaki Manian, among others. The complete list can be found here.
The Role of the Protocol Council
The Protocol Council will oversee time-locked changes to Polygon’s smart contracts on the Ethereum network, both for current and future Polygon 2.0 protocols. For the upcoming Polygon 2.0 upgrade planned for the first half of 2024, a decentralized network of multiple ZK-based Layer 2 chains is being developed by the core team.
A regular change to Polygon’s smart contracts will require consensus from at least 7 out of 13 Protocol Council members within a 10-day timelock. In case of emergencies, a change would need consensus from at least 10 out of 13 members with no timelock requirement.
Changes related to Polygon’s infrastructure will be implemented through a Gnosis Safe contract, following the guidelines outlined in the Polygon improvement proposals. The governance mechanism proposed by the Protocol Council will operate independently of the existing community-led governance determined by on-chain voting.
Hot Take: Enhancing Governance and Security
Polygon Labs’ introduction of the Protocol Council demonstrates its commitment to enhancing governance and security within its platform. By establishing a council of influential individuals and organizations, Polygon aims to ensure smooth transitions and secure smart contract modifications. This initiative reinforces the importance of upgradeability in Polygon’s system architecture and highlights the platform’s dedication to maintaining a robust ecosystem for its users.