As part of the plan to restructure the decentralized finance platform MakerDAO, it has been rebranded to Sky Protocol. The main changes include new token names and functionalities.
Token Changes
MakerDAO has officially announced the renaming of its tokens: the DAI stablecoin is now called USDS, while the MKR token has been renamed to SKY. This rebranding is another phase in the 'Endgame' plan to restructure the protocol. USDS will remain an algorithmic stablecoin pegged to the US dollar, but each MKR will now be worth 24,000 SKY. Currently, MKR is trading at $2,120.
Optional Token Upgrade
The upgrade of DAI and MKR tokens will become available by September 18, but holders can already sign up for early bird rewards. MakerDAO has made the upgrade voluntary and plans to keep the DAI and MKR tokens as legacy tokens on the Sky Protocol. Nevertheless, most users will likely upgrade as the new tokens come with more rewards. For instance, USDS holders get SKY tokens as rewards in some jurisdictions. More features will likely be announced for the new tokens over time. In addition to the changes in tokens, MakerDAO now has a new DeFi application and website, Sky.money, which will replace Makerdao.com. Protocol founder Rune Christensen noted that the rebrand does not change the core essence of MakerDAO or DAI; it will only make protocol governance mechanisms immutable and allow it to become fully decentralized.
Community Reaction
The crypto community has reacted positively to the rebranding, judging by the performance of MKR tokens after the announcement. The token rose almost 4%, reaching from $2,037 to $2,165. This contrasts with the rest of the market, where major cap assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana, fell in value. However, some users have criticized the new platform for banning VPNs. Defillama founder 0xngmi first observed that Sky.money has a VPN blocker that automatically blocks anyone using a VPN from accessing the protocol. Makerdao.com did not have such a feature. Many in the crypto community believe this defeats the whole purpose of decentralization and would prevent many people from accessing it. This is likely a deliberate move by MakerDAO to avoid legal liabilities, as its Spark protocol also blocks VPN usage.
The rebranding of MakerDAO to Sky Protocol marks a new phase in the platform's development with updated tokens and new features. The key changes include new token names, a new DeFi application, and website, as well as an optional token upgrade. The community's response to these changes has been mostly positive, with some criticisms regarding the VPN blocking.
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