# Introduction
The goal for Crux Finance is straightforward, we hold the belief that a community will thrive in an environment that is both feature rich and user-friendly. Our focus here is the latter. We're intent on producing an investment portfolio management platform, one that allows investors and traders to visualize their Defi positions and perform trade analysis, all in one place. Providing a myriad of services for the average user, as well as a robust feature set for power users. We believe simple services are critical to an investor's success. We plan to deliver these features in such a format that anyone, possessing any skillset, can enjoy an excellent user experience. The Features we propose are as follows:
# Features
## Portfolio Manager
Our Portfolio Tracking Portal aims to offer a summary of all open positions for any wallets and addresses an investor would like to track. Navigating to the “Open Positions” tab, you’ll find a list of all assets associated with your selected wallet(s) & address(es) organized in an easily digestible manner. With customizable settings that enable a variety of relevant trade related information to be clearly displayed according to your personal preferences. From general information such as, Ticker Symbol, Last Traded Price, % change, etc. to personalized data points specific to your own positions such as Profit/Loss change over the previous 24hrs, total Profit/Loss of any individual Open position, cost basis, Net liquidating value(per position), Net Liquidating value(all positions combined) to more complex liquidity provisioning positions and yield farming positions.
## Charting Package
Charts offer several benefits to investors, including a visual representation of an underlying asset’s price movements over a period of time. This allows one to easily track the underlying asset’s performance. Charts can also provide investors with valuable information enabling technical analysis. This includes utilizing indicators such as moving averages, trend lines, or identifying support and resistance levels, all of which can help investors make informed decisions about when to buy or sell that underlying asset. Overall, charts are an important tool for investors who want to make informed decisions and manage their finances effectively. We plan to offer a variety of upper and lower indicators.
## Notifications/Alerts
An important aspect of providing any robust position management platform is offering notifications informing the user of important events occurring. Our notification service will alert users of any type of interaction engaged in by any activated address. Examples of tracked events are: peer to peer transactions, staking tokens, redeeming vested tokens, swaps, liquidity provisions, yield farming, lending, borrowing, NFT sales/purchases, bridging transactions. Anytime an address is engaged, you will have the choice to receive a timely, detailed description of the event that’s occurring.
## Trading Floor
The trading floor will offer users access to all noteworthy dApps, conveniently bringing together various trading and investment opportunities in one place. Some examples are:
* Trading (AMM/Orderbook)
* Lending & Borrowing (Sigmafi/duckpools/EXLE)
* SigUSD, dexy, mint redeem
* Provide iquidity/Yield farm (Spectrum/duckpools)
* Stake, redeem (Ergopad)
* Grid trading bots
* Options minting (Sigma O)
* Bridge (with liquidity panel)
* Babel fee liquidity provision/visualization
## Accounting tools
Meticulous accounting is essential for users to remain tax compliant. Unfortunately, most ecosystems currently lack affordable options for effective accounting, leading to a costly subscription or a nightmare of manually untangling trading history and tracking profits and losses. Crux Finance will simplify this process by providing users with easy profit and loss report generation for any number of wallets. This toolset will evolve over the course of both development phases in the form of v.1 and v.2 releases. The initial version will supply a user interface allowing transaction history downloads in CSV formats compatible with pre-existing tax reporting platforms. With v.2 expanding to function as a standalone accounting service, offering a multitude of downloadable tax forms.
# Modular Development & Milestones
To achieve the goal of an accelerated product delivery, execution will take place in separate phases, spanning four months each. Each phase will consist of the following:
### Phase One
* Phase one focuses on providing much needed investor tooling that Ergo currently lacks. For that reason, phase one will target three key areas. Firstly, produce a Portfolio Management platform. Secondly, provide a robust charting package for Erg and Ergo Native Tokens. Lastly, complete v.1 of the accounting panel.
### Phase Two
* Power trader UI. A major focus of phase two will be providing a general investing user-interface for accessing existing Defi infrastructure in one place. This phase will also include a notification service and v.2 of the accounting tools to assist users in their record-keeping & filing needs.
## Milestones
Funds will be raised for each phase independently, and only after completion of the previous milestone.
### Milestone one
* Deliver a charting package and Portfolio Management platform.
* Provide a UI for simplifying one's accounting process (v.1).
### Milestone Two
* Release the dApp portal, providing access to available Defi on a single platform.
* Launch the notification service.
* Upgrading the pre-existing toolset for accounting and tax filing to v.2.
# Financing Goals
Our goal is to raise $100,000 for phase one. Then, after completing phase one, the phase two token allocation will be offered to fund development for the phase two milestones. Pricing for phase two will be offered at a 10% discount to market rate, at the start of the contribution period.
After successfully delivering on milestone one and two, focus will shift to researching optimal platform expansion. The platform expansion allocation is intended to be utilized following this research stage to make further improvements with integrations such as multi-chain asset support.
# Business Model
A subscription-based business model is fitting for this platform design. With significant discounts to users who opt to pay their subscription dues using our native token and those willing to commit to longer subscription periods. The fee schedule will be denominated in Stablecoin. When paying fees with the Crux token, a 30% discount will be awarded. Subscribers that prefer to use stablecoin or $Erg will have the option to do so while also benefiting from a rebate. The rebate amount is dependent on your subscription duration, with annual subscribers receiving a 10% rebate, and lifetime subscribers receiving a 20% rebate. Note: Lifetime subscriptions will only be available to early subscribers.
**Example:**
Initially, a Premium level lifetime subscription will be $1500 in stablecoin, or $1050 paid using Crux token. Users paying dues with stablecoin or $Erg receive a 20% rebate ($300 value) credited to the user in the form of Crux tokens.
For a Premium level annual subscription, payment would be $105 paid in Crux tokens or $150 paid in stablecoin, minus the 10% rebate ($15 value) paid to the user in Crux token.
# Initial Platform Fees
* Basic entry level access: Free to all users, but with limited features.
* Premium level access: Comprehensive features.
1. Paid monthly, $15 stablecoin/$10.50 token.
2. Paid upfront annually, $150 stablecoin/$105 token.
3. Lifetime subscription available for $1,500 stablecoin/$1,050 token. Lifetime subscriptions will only be offered within the first year of the platform after Phase 1 launch.
* Enterprise level. B2B features. Paid monthly, $150 stablecoin/$105 token. Or paid annually $1,500/$1,050.
Our subscription fee schedule will scale with our user base. For example, after our first 100 subscribers, the fee schedule will increase by 10%. Following our first 500 subscribers, the fee schedule will increase an additional 10%.
To the benefit of early supporters, subscriptions will be priced at a conversion rate of $0.03 per Crux token (or market rate, whichever is higher) when purchasing annual or lifetime subscriptions during the early subscriber period.
Immediately preceding the official platform launch, subscriptions will be priced at a conversion rate of $0.02 per Crux token (or market rate, whichever is higher).
# Market Analysis
The Ergo Ecosystem at a glance.
At present, the Ergo ecosystem offers a plethora of unique dApps and tools. The open source ethos and community development have provided a huge trove of code to learn from and build exciting new dApps and protocols. Unfortunately, many of these tools lack quality frontends, documentation, or accessible UX to get up and running with the applications.
The impact of high quality UX should not be underrated. A prime example of this can be seen in[ SigmaFi](https://sigmafi.app/#/). The smart contracts were open source for many months with little interest from users, because most were unable to do anything with them. With the creation of a quality frontend and some good documentation, it is much easier to onboard a community to a new application. This dilemma is what Crux finance aims to solve. There is huge untapped potential lying dormant within the incredible development talent in the Ergo ecosystem. Crux Finance will unlock that potential wherever possible.
## Ecosystem Analysis
*Total addresses:*
*Jan 1, 2021: 3,284*
*Jan 1, 2022: 79,179*
*Jan 1, 2023: 174,895*
*Source:* [*Ergo.watch*](https://ergo.watch/metrics/addresses)
When examining the year-over-year data for on-chain addresses, we observe a surge in activity from 2021 to 2022, aligning with the bull market and the bullish narratives surrounding the Cardano-Ergo relationship. Remarkably, this growth continues into 2023, even during the bear market.
However, the Ergo ecosystem faces a unique challenge. While there are considerable numbers of dedicated users interested in utilizing the chain for financial activities, the speed and quality of deployment of these protocols have impeded the community's ability to do so effectively.
Let's take a closer look at two case studies: [SigmaFi](https://sigmafi.app/#/) and [SigmaUSD](https://sigmausd.io/).
The initial design for SigmaFi bonds was developed by Kirat Singh and openly shared on [GitHub](https://github.com/K-Singh/Sigma-Finance/commit/72f362a1f8cc51d149f29730791a37388120af22) on November 18, 2022. Although the project remained dormant for several months, a [high-quality frontend](https://github.com/capt-nemo429/sigmafi-ui) for the dApp was developed and published at the beginning of February 2023. Subsequently, the TVL (Total Value Locked) of the dApp experienced rapid growth, even amidst the bear market. On March 16, 2023, the TVL amounted to approximately $10,000 USD, which increased 22-fold in roughly 6 weeks time to $220,000 USD by May 1st, 2023, according to data tracked by SigmaFi Telegram users.
An even more striking case study can be observed with the initial launch of [SigmaUSD.io](https://sigmausd.io/).
Within a 24-hour period, the SigUSD bank received 1.2 million ERG, equivalent to just over $3 million USD at the time. While this occurred during the bull market, the surge in activity was significant, highlighting the Ergo community's eagerness to engage with financial tools and dApps.
Additional benchmarks as of May 24, 2023, include Spectrum TVL at $1.91 million USD and Ergopad staking with 3,415 active stakers and TVL at $1.15 million USD.
*Sources:* [*Defillama*](https://defillama.com/chain/Ergo?tvl=true)*,* [*Ergopad*](https://www.ergopad.io/staking)
These case studies provide a glimpse into the potential user activity within other dApps and tools if they were to offer similar user experience (UX) quality and accessibility. Here are some examples:
### [SigmaO](https://www.sigmao.cc/)
SigmaO is a sophisticated tokenized options platform combined with an orderbook market for selling options and other tokens. The depth of novel trading strategies it offers is comparable to SigmaFi. However, the current UI and UX require further refinement to gain substantial adoption from the community. Interaction with UI elements feels clunky and confusing, and there is little information to help new users understand what they are doing. Given the complexity of options trading, comprehensive documentation and guides are essential for the platform's success.
### [Ergo mixer](https://github.com/ergoMixer/ergoMixBack/releases/tag/4.3.0)
Ergo Mixer, the first non-interactive, non-custodial mixer in the cryptocurrency space, has struggled to gain adoption and the necessary liquidity to be widely used. It is impossible to pinpoint the exact reason for lackluster adoption, but an easy area for improvement could be the unapproachable user experience of seeking the release on github and running it in conjunction with a full node or SAFEW wallet.
### [Babel Fee Liquidity](https://tokenjay.app/app/#babelfee)
Babel fees, an attractive and marketable feature on the Ergo blockchain, allow users to spend non-ERG tokens for transaction fees. Presently, TokenJay is the only application that enables interaction with and creation of babel boxes, but it has limitations. Users are unable to view existing babel box orders or assess the depth of liquidity for potential fees. While the UI allows users to create a babel box, it lacks information crucial for those intending to use babel boxes as their fees or users who wish to arbitrage between market price and babel box price.
### [Decentralized grid bots](https://www.ergoforum.org/t/decentralized-grid-trading-on-ergo/3750)
Development of these bots by Kushti is nearly complete, with ergoscript contracts shared on the Ergo forum. However, the off-chain bots have not been open-sourced, and a functional UI is currently unavailable. Grid bots would be an immensely appealing dApp for users seeking new DeFi trading strategies.
# User Acquisition
## User Base
Crux Finance seeks to serve a wide user base in the cryptocurrency DeFi industry. By simplifying the DeFi experience. Crux will onboard New Users in hopes of accelerating the growth and adoption of numerous open-source protocols. For average and power users already familiar with or proficient in DeFi, Crux will not merely provide a factor of convenience but rather a chance to accelerate one’s process of identifying opportunities by providing a new set of analytics tools.
## Targeting New Users
Our target audience consists of individuals who are new to eUTxO and DeFi. These users are seeking a simplified and user-friendly experience when it comes to cryptocurrency and investing. Crux aims to provide value by facilitating their learning and exploration of the crypto world. DeFi can be daunting, with various websites and user experiences to navigate. Crux simplifies this process by presenting DeFi in a streamlined and intuitive manner. Our platform will offer a Research panel enabling new users to familiarize themselves with an ecosystem. The Trading panel will allow them to explore at their own pace, and the tax portal addresses the concerns of users who may feel overwhelmed by accounting for their trades, offering a solution that encourages their engagement with DeFi.
## Targeting Non-Power Users
Our target audience also includes individuals who have used DeFi protocols in the past but do not consider themselves 'Power users.' These users are likely familiar with various dApps, but may not feel proficient in DeFi strategies. Crux caters to their needs by offering the Research and Analytics panel. These features educate and empower users to make informed trading decisions and develop effective strategies. With Crux as their primary platform, users will enhance their knowledge and interaction with the ecosystem’s dApps and tools.
## Targeting Advanced Users
In addition to catering to new and non-power users, Crux also serves individuals who possess extensive investing and trading experience, whether that expertise stems from TradFi or other areas of the DeFi universe. Crux will enable advanced users to focus on identifying opportunities and capitalizing on them quickly, rather than juggling across multiple platforms or relying on external tools and spreadsheets. A large aspect of successful investing relies on clearly visualizing a whole portfolio of positions. The Portfolio Manager will be the advanced user's most utilized tool. Without easily assessing asset correlation, determining risk exposure for an investor's entire portfolio is obscured, and effective hedging of that portfolio is nearly impossible. This is an absolutely critical aspect of the platform’s appeal to the advanced user group.
# RoadMap 2023-2024
## Third Quarter 2023
* July: Phase one contribution round.
* End of July: Work commences towards milestone one.
## Fourth Quarter 2023
* November: Launch liquidity pool.
* November: Cliff begins for phase one.
* November: Earlybird Subscription Signup.
* December: Release Portfolio Management platform with v.1 accounting and charts.
* December: Launch phase two contribution round after completion of milestone one.
* December: Launch liquidity incentives v.1
## First Quarter 2024
* January: Phase two development begins.
* January: First distribution of liquidity incentives v.1
## Second Quarter 2024
* April: Phase one vesting begins.
* April: Report Q1/2024 subscriber metrics, updated token metrics, total burnt tokens to date, new total maximum token supply.
* May: Complete Milestone two.
* May: Community review of milestone 1 and 2.
* May: Official platform launch (full features from phase 1 and 2).
* May: Phase two vesting begins.
## Third Quarter 2024
* July: Report Q2/2024 subscriber metrics, updated token metrics, total burned tokens to date, new total maximum token supply.
* July: User incentives v.1 launch.
* July: Conclude research on expansion opportunities.
* July/August: Release proposal for platform expansion.
## Fourth Quarter 2024
* November: Phase two vesting concludes.
* December: Liquidity incentives v.1 is exhausted.
# Token Utility
The Crux token’s central utility is to serve as the platform’s primary payment option. Discounts will be granted to subscribers who opt to pay dues using Crux. Paying subscription dues using the Crux token will award subscribers a 30% discount.
25% of platform revenue will be distributed to token holders who have staked their tokens using our staking portal. Revenue is distributed Monthly and will begin 3 months after the official platform launch. Note: Revenue shared from subscriptions paid in Crux token will be shared with stakers in the form of Crux tokens. **However, revenue shared from subscriptions paid in $Erg or stablecoin will be shared in $Erg. This means dues paid in stablecoin will be used to purchase $Erg, to then be distributed to stakers.**
Additionally, 10% of all subscription dues collected in Crux tokens will be burned, imposing deflationary pressure on the token supply, permanently removing burned tokens from circulation.
Further token utility will come in the form of User Incentive rewards. This allocation is labeled “User Incentives v.1 and v.2” in the tokenomics section. Both v.1 and v.2 will equally share the 20% allocation (10,000,000 tokens each). This program offers rewards that include rebates to incentivize longer subscription commitments from users. Lifetime subscriptions receive the most significant rebate, followed by annual subscribers. Monthly subscribers will not qualify for subscription rebates. However, with consistent platform usage all subscribers can qualify for a variety of loyalty rewards. User incentives v.2 will be reserved to reward users after the platform expansion phase.
The Crux token will also be utilized to offer benefits for holders who support the token’s liquidity pool and are willing stake their liquidity pool tokens. This allocation is labeled “Liquidity Incentives v.1 and v.2” in the tokenomics. Both v.1 and v.2 will equally share the 16% (8,000,000 tokens each). Liquidity incentives v.2 will be reserved to further bootstrap liquidity during the platform expansion phase.
## Liquidity
After each contribution phase, 10% of the total amount raised will be committed to liquidity. The initial Crux token liquidity pool will be created on November 1st. To aid in liquidity growth, users who commit to staking their liquidity pool tokens will begin accruing rewards from the liquidity incentives earmarked in the tokenomics section. This reward is meant to be sizable, yet short lived, since the design purpose is to bootstrap liquidity. The emissions for v.1 will be exhausted after 12 months.
## Loyalty Program
In addition to the rebate for subscribers, (20% for lifetime subscribers, 10% for annual subscribers) user metrics will determine Loyalty Program rewards over the first 60 months after official platform launch. The intention here is to reward the long-term active user base.
Examples of Token bounties awarded for the following activities:
* First lifetime subscriber.
* First 10 lifetime subscribers.
* First 25 lifetime subscribers.
* First annual subscriber.
* First 25 annual subscribers.
* First 100 annual subscribers.
* Most active user of the month, each month.
* Top 10 most active platform users of the month, each month.
* Most active user of the year, each year.
* Top 25 most active platform users of the year, each year.
* First 50 monthly plan subscribers.
* First 250 monthly plan subscribers.
* First tax form download.
* First 10 tax form downloads.
* First 100 tax form downloads.
####
# Tokenomics
Maximum supply is 100 million tokens.
| Description | Token Allocation | Number of Tokens | % of Total Supply | Price Per Token | TGE Issuance (%) | Emission Frequency | Cliff | Emission Length (MONTHS) |
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | ---------------- | ----------------- | --------------- | ---------------- | ------------------ | ----------- | ------------------------ |
| Portfolio & position tracking + Full charting suite. | Phase 1 | 10,000,000 | 10.00% | $0.010 |
| Daily | 8 | 15 |
#### \* Phase 2 price will be set at a 10% discount to market rate at time of contribution
# Platform Expansion
The goal for this platform is to provide users access to ample resources, ultimately providing a quality of life improvement in their cryptocurrency endeavors. For this reason, the natural course of action for expanding the platform is to integrate wallets and assets from multiple blockchains. To have a platform where one can view an amalgamation of investments, complex financial positions and assets spanning across several blockchains is the aspiration of Crux Finance. Supplying such instruments will impart meaningful benefits to each supported ecosystem.
With the Ergo community's support, we’ll deliver the first iteration of this platform, not only as a proof of concept, but as a vital foundation for the future multi chain platform we envision.
Any release of tokens from the Platform Expansion allocation will be done so at no greater than a 10% discount to the market rate at that time and must coincide with a cliff and vesting period no shorter than 3 months each.
