PoNWDevThe Actuator is arguably the most benevolent product ever built ontop of $HEX.
The protocol uses an innovative system based on 'HEX Time Token's ($HTT) (fully backed & redeemable 1:1 for $HEX) to turn illiquid $HEX stakes into liquid ERC20 tokens.
The $HTT token represents a pricing mechanism for monetizing new or existing HSIs based on the accrued value of the underlying HEX.
*Note: An HSI (Hex Staking Instance) is essentially a smart contract that "wraps" around your HEX stake.
If you're familiar with the Hedron & Icosa protocols built ontop of $HEX, the Actuator is similar. However, where HDRN only enables users to tokenize their HEX stake into an illiquid NFT, HTT's turn your HSI into fully liquid tokens.
There are a few key differences in the form of benefits that HDRN doesn't offer. First, because HDRN is an NFT, it only allows you to sell your entire position, because the NFT is not divisible. Whereas HTT tokens can be traded on Uniswap liquidity pools, making them fully liquid.
Second, because the HTT is fungible, users do not have to completely end their stake in 1 order if they want to exit. Instead, they can sell portions of their stake (represented by their HTT tokens minted), & claim part of the HEX stake at maturity.
Third, unlike HDRN's use of ICSA, which allows users to sell their HSIs to the Icosa contract in exchange for ICSA tokens, HTT tokens are minted by the Actuator protocol directly, fully collateralized by native HEX stakes. This means there is no need to support the price of an additional ticker.
A big problem with the ICSA, HDRN ecosystem is that the ICSA token is highly inflationary. And because new tokens are being minted (which unlike HTTs are not fully collateralized in HEX), it causes a need for external capital to constantly be injected into the ICSA token for it to hold a price floor.
This causes people from the HEX ecosystem to need to use money they could have otherwise been using to buy more HEX or provide liquidity, to maintaining ICSA's price floor.
Instead, HTT creates a market for people to divide these previously indivisible stakes up into many tokens, giving users more flexibility & an additional layer of HEX game theory.
Example: Let's say someone creates a native HEX stake via the Actuator protocol & mints themselves their proportional HTT tokens. But suddenly, they want to exit their position a year ahead of their end stake date. They could sell their HTT at a 0.5 discount rate per HEX, giving the buyer 2x the amount of HEX at the HTTs maturity.
This allows the original staker to become liquid again & end their stake, but without having to incur EES (early end stake penalties) or exit their entire position at once. There is also no need to support the price of an inflationary dump token.
Instead, HTT represents an arbitrage on the time between the current moment & your HEX end stake date, tokenized in HTT.
If widely adopted, this should in theory increase the amount of HEX stakers, as many participants who were apprehensive about staking because of the time commitment may feel more comfortable to stake, if they know they can exit at any time.
IMO, the Actuator offers a pure net benefit for the HEX ecosystem, & the guys behind the project seem to be highly knowledgeable OG Hexicans. Highly impressive 5 star project Show Less
