Polygon Labs has announced that the POL token upgrade is now live on the Ethereum mainnet.
The upgrade to POL has been initiated on the Ethereum mainnet following several months of development, community consultation, and a successful testnet launch.
Even though POL has been deployed on the mainnet, this does not imply that the token will automatically replace MATIC. Such a transition requires approval through governance processes and will be synchronized with the launch of the Polygon 2.0 upgrade.
According to the official announcement, the POL upgrade serves as a stepping stone for the upcoming goals outlined in the Polygon 2.0 roadmap.
“POL, a next-generation hyperproductive token, will power a vast ecosystem of zero knowledge-based Layer 2 chains via a native re-staking protocol that allows POL holders to validate multiple chains and perform multiple roles on each of those chains (sequencing, ZK proof generation, participation in data availability committees, etc.).”
This includes the introduction of a staking layer to support Polygon L2s, the improvement of Polygon PoS to zkRollup, and the implementation of ZK-powered interoperability and shared liquidity protocol for all these L2s.
Polygon Labs clarified that the upgrade does not alter active systems on either the Polygon PoS or Polygon zkEVM networks at this time. In fact, all existing contracts will continue to function as previously designed.
In June 2023, Polygon Labs introduced Polygon 2.0 with a vision for a scaling ecosystem comprising four distinct protocol layers – staking, interop, execution, and proving – in a bid to create an interconnected chain ecosystem that facilitates rapid value transfer and seamless information exchange using zero-knowledge technology.
Subsequently, the scaling tech company introduced three Polygon Improvement Proposals (PIPs) detailing its ambitious roadmap.
The latest development does not seem to have had any impact on MATIC, which was down by 4.10% over the past day and was currently trading at $0.634. Zooming out, the token recorded nearly 25% in monthly gains despite being embroiled amidst regulatory turmoil.