This is a copy. Original article at https://medium.com/stafi/stafihub-validator-program-introduction-c419e28896da
Introduction
The StaFiHub Testnet has been in operation for over 2 months, and we are now preparing for the mainnet release within the next few weeks. We have seen about 137 community members running nodes for StaFiHub testnet and want to thank them for their support.
StaFiHub welcomes anyone who meets the eligibility requirements (listed below) to apply for the validators and join our growing community to build a secure, decentralized and community-owned network for StaFiHub together.
Based on the StaFiHub validator network design, we will steadily open the validator slots to the community to make the network secure, stable and decentralized. StaFiHub Validator Program will be divided into the following 3 stages:
1.First Stage
Onboard the first batch of validators as the Mainnet Genesis Validators.
2.Second Stage
Open another batch of slots to the validators joining after the public mainnet launch.
3.Third Stage
Review the performance and contributions of the selected validators to decide whether un-/re-delegation is appropriate with respect to any particular validator.
PoA Network for Validators on StaFiHub
In order to realize that the community mainly stake their $FIS tokens on the StaFi Chain and avoid any potential governance attack, StaFi Core chose not to build another validator and community stakers relationship on StaFiHub, which might act as a distraction for the FIS stakers. As for the detailed considerations and reasons why we choose PoA consensus for StaFiHub, please refer to the StaFiHub Tokenomics.
The delegations for the StaFiHub validators will also not be open to the community. This means the validators on StaFiHub will only be selected by StaFiHub Foundation based on the factors including reputations in crypto, validation expertise and contributions for StaFiHub. Any individual or institution could submit the applications to be one of the official validators.
Now the PoA Network of StaFiHub is designed to have 21 slots of validators at top, and StaFi Foundation will consider opening more slots in the future based on the operations of the StaFiHub PoA network.
Validator Rewards & Slash
The profits of node are mainly from block production reward and transaction fees. The total FIS rewards amount for StaFiHub validators is calculated through the following formula written in StaFiHub Tokenomics:
We have made a Reward Calculator for StaFiHub Validator Daily Revenue based on the different parameters like FIS reward amount, FIS price, commission rate, validator slots, staking ratio, etc.
The selected validators for StaFiHub have no need to attract the delegations from the community. Instead, they will get the delegations from the StaFiHub Validator Delegation Fund based on their performance score and contributions to the StaFiHub ecosystem.
If a validator misbehaves, their delegated stake will be partially slashed. There are currently two faults that can result in slashing of funds for a validator and their delegators:
Double signing: If someone reports on chain A that a validator signed two blocks at the same height on chain A and chain B, and if chain A and chain B share a common ancestor, then this validator will get slashed by 5% on chain A.
Downtime: If a validator misses more than 95% of the last 10.000 blocks, they will get slashed by 0.01%.
Validator Application Requirements
In order to be eligible for the StaFiHub Validator Program, the validator applicants have to meet the following requirements.
1.The validator applicant who has run the StaFiHub testnet with 95% uptime will gain a preference.
2.The validator applicant who has the great brand in Crypto Validator Space will gain a preference.
3.The validator applicant who has great influence in the Cosmos Ecosystem will gain a preference.
4.The validator applicant who has made great contributions to the StaFi and StaFiHub will gain a preference.
5.The validator applicant has to write the potential contributions you could commit to the StaFiHub.
6.Node software, hardware and network environment requirements are as follows:
Recruitment Guidance
StaFi Foundation shall pick up to 21 validator applicants who receive the highest Performance Scores to be the official validators for StaFiHub. We will pick 10 applications for the Mainnet Genesis Validators in Stage 1, and another 10 applicants for the Official Mainnet Validators in Stage 2.
Each such validator shall undergo the requisite anti-money laundering and know-your-customer (“AML/KYC”) check in accordance with StaFiHub Foundation’s AML/KYC policy, and must receive clearance in order to participate in StaFi Foundation’s delegation program. The validators in China and USA will not be eligible to apply for the StaFiHub validators due to the regulations.
StaFiHub validator recruitment plan will be launched on July 12, 2022, which will be open for long-term. Any organizations and individuals who meet the requirements written in the Validator Requirements can submit their applications immediately. All submitted node information will be reviewed by StaFiHub one by one to prevent malicious nodes from being created.
Validator Delegation Grant Rules
Once the list of StaFiHub validators is finalized, StaFi Foundation uses the StaFiHub Validator Delegation Fund, which is allocated from the StaFi Protocol Treasury and not from additional FIS token inflation, to delegate FIS tokens to the selected validators. We will release the details of the StaFiHub Validator Delegation Fund, like the total amount of FIS tokens, wallet address and how it will be distributed, etc.
Since there is no actual FIS inflation to reward the validators, the rewards for StaFiHub validators will also come from the StaFiHub Validator Delegation Fund. Each selected validator will be allowed to charge 5% ~ 20% commission of the staking rewards. All voting rights associated with such delegation shall be exercisable by such validators, and StaFi Foundation shall have no control over, and shall not seek to direct, influence or interfere with their voting.
When the applicants become the official validators of StaFiHub, they will get the FIS delegation grant from the StaFi Foundation. But this is not the end. The official validators have to make the contributions they committed on the application after running the nodes for StaFiHub.
Once every quarter, or more frequently as determined by StaFi Foundation, StaFi Foundation will review all the validators’ performance and contributions submission to determine whether un-/re-delegation is appropriate with respect to any particular validator, taking into account the following exclusive factors:
1.Updated Performance Scores, provided that any un-/re-delegation determination shall not include the number of blocks produced
2.Whether a particular validator exercises more than 5% of voting power
3.Whether a particular validator resides in the “old” chain (i.e., chain with less blocks produced) in the event a hard fork has happened
4.Whether a particular validator poses an AML/KYC concern
5.Whether any validator did not properly remit back the staking rewards; and any regulatory investigation or adverse event affecting such a validator’s reputation has occurred.
If there should be any change to the list of selected delegators, StaFi Foundation will publish the new list within one week after the review process.
In order to minimize the potential governance attack risk, each participating validator is limited to one wallet address per participant. Any multi nodes running under the same controller are prohibited. If multiple participants are working together as a team, that team will be limited to one wallet address.
Participation Process
1. Fill in the application form.
2. Official review and feedback (within 1 week).
3. Register to run the node according to the Validator document.
4. Announce new node information and get voting.
References
1.StaFiHub Website: https://www.stafihub.io/
2.StaFiHub Testnet Validator Guide: https://docs.stafihub.io/welcome-to-stafihub/developer/getting-started/join-the-public-testnet
3. StaFiHub Validator FAQ: https://docs.stafihub.io/welcome-to-stafihub/developer/concepts/validator-faq
About StaFi
StaFi is the first DeFi protocol unlocking liquidity of staked assets. Users can stake PoS tokens through StaFi and receive rTokens in return, which are available for trading, while still earning staking rewards. rToken is a synthetic staking derivative issued by StaFi to users when users stake PoS tokens through StaFi rToken App . rTokens are anchored to the PoS tokens staked by users and the corresponding staking rewards. rTokens can be transferred and traded at any time.