On-chain liquidity protocol Kyber announced on June 29 that a major upgrade of Katalyst protocol will go live on July 7, 2020.
The upgrade includes changes to the Kyber Network Crystal (KNC) token model to attract more participants to the development of the protocol.
According to the announcement, Katalyst aims to reduce friction in liquidity contributions, introduce rebates for high-performing reserves, and allow decentralized apps to integrate with the Kyber network by adding a custom spread.

Participating in governance

Among the features included in the upgrade is the launch of KyberDAO, a community platform that allows KNC token holders to participate in governance.
KNC holders will be able to stake KNC to vote on various protocol parameters and changes, as well as KyberDAO proposals that “aim to improve protocol functionality, operations and adoption.”
Speaking with Cointelegraph, Loi Luu, CEO of Kyber Network, said, “Katalyst will harmonize our efforts towards providing a single on-chain liquidity endpoint for all takers and makers, and establish a long term virtuous loop where the success of the DeFi space, growth of the Kyber ecosystem, and value creation for KNC holders go hand in hand.”
Luu added, “The Katalyst upgrade and KyberDAO support three key groups of Kyber stakeholders: reserves who provide liquidity to Kyber, DApps who connect takers to the Kyber protocol, and KNC holders who form the heart of the network.”

Plans for the coming months

Looking ahead, Luu told Cointelegraph that Kyber will focus on providing more education regarding the benefits that come with the Katalyst upgrade.
“We also aim to increase the number of options available for KNC holders to stake KNC. This includes integrating with more crypto wallets that allow easy access to Kyber.org on their DApp browsers, as well as onboarding more third party Staking Pools that can help vote on the behalf of KNC holders and allow them to receive rewards.”