# backd: Curve Ecosystem Grant Application

_Application form:_ https://form.typeform.com/to/zRwr8KqD
_Website:_ https://guides.curve.fi/community-grants/

**1. Name and links (Twitter/GitHub) of yourself (and your team if there is one)**
* Daniel Perez (@danhper, Github: danhper)
* Sam Werner (@samwern, Github: samwerner)

**2. Contact details (email and/or telegram accounts)**
* Daniel Perez: @danhper (Telegram), [e-mail]
* Sam Werner: @samwern (Telegram), [e-mail]

**3. Describe what you are building or your project in 1-3 sentences**

backd is a decentralized and non-custodial protocol, which protects owners of overcollateralized loans on borrowing and lending protocols against becoming liquidable. The protocol incentivizes deposits, which are intended to be used to top up positions endangered of becoming liquidable on different protocols. However, when these deposits are not required they are employed to generate additional income.

**4. Describe how it relates to Curve or the Curve ecosystem**

A share of the total liquidity provided on backd is allocated to third party protocols for generating interest for LPs. The allocation "strategy" depends on the underlying asset. We aim to create a backd DAI pool, whereby funds are allocated to the Curve Compound pool. Thereby, we envision backd to become a long term liquidity provider for Curve.
Furthermore, by preventing borrowers across borrow and lending protocols (e.g. Compound, AAVE) from becoming liquidable, backd enhances the overall stability of the DeFi ecosystem.

**5. Describe how your project will contribute to the long term growth of the Curve protocol**

Our protocol will act as a direct liquidity provider for Curve by allocating locked funds to the Curve protocol as described above.
This will create a natural bridge for users wanting to borrow funds on lending platforms and generate returns on Curve.

**6. Describe the viability of your project/idea.**

Unlike many DeFi protocols that solely offer yield farming mechanims to attract LPs, backd provides value by offering a mitigation to an ongoing risk DeFi borrowers are exposed to. We believe that by preventing overcolleteralized loans from becoming liquidable, backd can help bring more stability to DeFi protocols. However, the way we envision backd, there is quite a lot that needs to be done - and it needs to be done thoroughly. We are well aware that backd being viable is not a given.

In order for backd to be viable, there are some fundamental prerequisites:
* Secure contracts
* Robust economic mechanisms
* Active users
* A backd community

Our current aim is to develop a robust first version of backd, where we create an incentive structure that incentivizes individuals to interact with the protocol. We are currently close to having the first working prototype of backd and we see the completion of backd v1 as very feasible. However, we do not see ourselves as being the sole governors, paving and dictating the long term road map. The first version of backd will hopefully demonstrate that an active and decentralized governing body is very appropriate for the protocol. Therefore, the project's long term viability, will substantially depend on whether a dedicated backd community can be formed. Given the communities which have formed around DeFi protocols, specifically for borrowing and lending, as well as yield generating protocols, we are optimistic that backd, being at the intersection of the two, has the potential for experiencing similar community interest and support.

**7. Describe the grant size you are requesting and how you plan on utilizing it.**

We would like to request a total grant size of $30,000, paid out in instalments over a period of 3 months.

The grant would predominantly be used to fund an audit of the backd protocol. We are well aware that an audit does not imply absence of risk, however, we deem this a critical prerequisite to deploying backd on mainnet. Furthermore, as there is an off-chain element to backd, we would cover initial infrastructure costs (e.g. running servers).

**8. Please provide links to previous projects, code, MVP, art, anything that might be of interest.**

backd Material:
* Medium post - The backd Protocol: https://backdfund.medium.com/backd-a-protocol-protecting-borrowers-from-becoming-liquidable-ffbd937fdcf
* Github: https://github.com/backdfund/monitor (off-chain monitoring part; contracts and UI are still private)
* Landing page (temporary): https://backd.fund/
* Twitter: https://twitter.com/backdfund

Prior projects:
* antalla: a cryptoasset exchange data aggregator (https://github.com/dudo-project/antalla)
* PoolSim: a mining pool event simulation framework (https://github.com/samwerner/PoolSim)
* evm-analyzer: Ethereum execution trace analyzer (https://github.com/danhper/evm-analyzer)
* blockchain-analyzer: Transaction analysis framework for EOS, XRP and Tezos (https://github.com/danhper/blockchain-analyzer)

Selected academic work:
* Liquidations: DeFi on a Knife-edge (Daniel, Sam) https://arxiv.org/abs/2009.13235
* Smart Contract Vulnerabilities: Vulnerable Does Not Imply Exploited (Daniel) https://arxiv.org/abs/1902.06710
* DeFi Protocols for Loanable Funds: Interest Rates, Liquidity and Market Efficiency (Daniel, Sam) https://arxiv.org/abs/2006.13922
* Broken Metre: Attacking Resource Metering in EVM (Daniel) https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.07220

**9. Have you previously received grants? Anything else worth mentioning?**
In the past, the two of us received a grant from BinanceX in 2019 to write open-source software for centralized cryptocurrency exchange data aggregation.

**10. Can your project be discussed publicly on Curve Discord and Telegram?**
- [x] Yes
- [ ] No