Ecosystem Update - May 2023
Alex Stoicescu
Jun 10, 2023
5 min.
Greetings, Request Network community!
Welcome to the Request Network ecosystem update for May 2023.
The Ecosystem Update focuses on protocol usage and our vision to build an ecosystem of decentralized apps for payment requests. Here you will find our ecosystem updates, major news and announcements, network usage, and anything else that interests the community.
Request Finance is the first successful application built on the Request Network protocol to generate, track and pay invoices, serving more than 2,000 companies, DAOs, freelancers, and web3 native projects such as The Sandbox, Aave, and The Graph. If you’re interested in using Request Finance, check out ‘Request Finance in numbers’, which focuses on reviewing the Request Finance application’s usage metrics, an example being the cumulative value of crypto payments made through the app.
Ecosystem Update
CodeSandBox Examples
We’ve started creating public CodeSandBox examples: cloud development environments that showcase the primary operations of the Request Network. These minimalist examples allow builders to tinker with the Request Network software without leaving the browser or setting up a local test environment. Two sandboxes have been completed so far:
Retrieve a user’s requests. This sandbox shows how to call `fromIdentity()` to retrieve a user’s requests and display them in a simple table.
Create a request. This sandbox shows how to build a simple form that creates a request using the gnosis or goerli gateway maintained by the Request Network Foundation.
Here are the parameters you can adjust when creating a request:
Payee: Select the address that is creating the request and where payment should be sent. This is the current address connected via the Connect Wallet button.
Storage Chain: This mandatory selection determines where your request is created. Select Gnosis to create a real request or Goerli to create a test request. Please note that a request can be paid on a different chain, even when the request is created on Gnosis or Goerli. The payment chain is determined by the Currency parameter, described below.
Payer (Optional): Choose the address that should pay the request. If no address is selected, then any address can pay the request.
Amount: Specify the desired amount for your request. This mandatory field enables you to indicate the number of tokens you wish to request.
Currency: Select the currency and payment chain for your request. For simplicity, the only options are FAU and USDC on the Goerli chain. But in a production system Request Network supports 20 different EVM-compatible chains as well as NEAR.
Reason (Optional): Provide a reason or description for your request. Although not mandatory, this feature allows you to provide additional context or details regarding the purpose of the request.
Due Date (Optional): Specify a due date for your request if necessary. This optional parameter enables you to set a deadline for completing the request.
Once you have configured your request to your satisfaction, simply click the “Submit” button, and the magic begins. Here’s how it works:
Request Submission: When you click “Submit,” the code sandbox promptly displays your request in a “pending” state. This indicates that the request has been persisted in IPFS, a decentralized and distributed file system, but the content-addressable ID (CID hash) has not yet been stored on-chain.
Request Creation: After some time, depending on network congestion, the code sandbox receives a confirmation that the CID hash is successfully stored on-chain. At this moment, the displayed request state transitions from “pending” to “created”, signifying that it is finalized and ready for further processing.
The parameters and operation of the code sandboxes can change without notice, so please refer to their respective READMEs for up-to-date instructions.
Try the CodeSandbox implementation in the Quickstart part of the Request Network documentation right now – https://docs.oldrequest.wpenginepowered.com/get-started/quickstart 👷
Batch payments
Batch payments in Request Network offer a convenient way to process payments for multiple requests simultaneously. The Batch Payment contract is open for use by any builder and even allows them to specify and collect their payment and batch fees. Batches can include various types of payments, including:
Native (Examples: ETH on Ethereum, MATIC on Polygon, XDAI on Gnosis)
ERC20 (Examples: REQ, USDC, DAI)
Native Conversion (Example: Denominated in USD but paid in ETH)
ERC20Conversion (Examples: Denominated in USD but paid in USDC or REQ)
However, it’s important to note that not all payment extensions can be included in batches. Escrow, Streaming, and TransferableReceivable requests cannot be part of a batch.
Batch payments do not always follow the same pattern. The `batchPayments()` function iterates over 4 payment extension types, each with its own set of steps. In complex cases, a batch can include all 4 payment extensions and multiple ERC20 tokens.
For example, processing an ERC20Conversion payment involves pulling tokens from the payer’s account, calculating the payment and fee amounts based on an oracle price feed, transferring tokens to the payee and fee address, and returning excess tokens to the payer. This process is repeated for all of the ERC20Conversion payments in the batch before processing the next payment extension type.
Overall, Batch Payments in Request Network simplify and streamline the processing of multiple payments, offering flexibility and efficiency for users.
Major News and Announcements
Encode x Gnosis Hackathon winners
Request Network was a challenge partner in the Encode Club x Gnosis Chain hackathon, offering a grand prize of 3000 DAI to whoever builds the best payment application using our protocol. We’ve had over a dozen projects to review, but only one came up on top: MoneyBoxes!
Rachel, Rose, Lucas, and Francis developed “MoneyBoxes,” an MVP that intelligently segments and allocates your crypto paycheque using Request Network and Gnosis Safe. Users create payment requests via Request Network, with funds being sent to a Gnosis Safe contract. The Gnosis Safe module manages and logically distributes the funds into user-configurable “money boxes” like Taxes, Travel Savings, and Investments. MoneyBoxes could also invest in third-party strategies or convert funds to stablecoins, aiming to streamline web3 workers’ accounting processes.
Anyone wishing to check out the team’s pitch & demo can find it here.
BerlinWeb3 event
Alex Stoicescu, communications & community manager at Request Network, participated at Web3Berlin, a conference organized in Berlin’s Estrel Hotel (very impressive – the biggest hotel in Germany and the largest convention center in Europe!). Other than attending interesting panels and checking out a few side events, the conference floor & booth area conversations have proven to be quite interesting, with some turning into potential grant leads, such as a lending protocol or a future-of-work implementation of a job marketplace.
Network Usage in May 2023
Request network transactions (i.e., creation, approvals, and/or rejections of invoices) are illustrated in the above chart.
The past month of May ended with a total of 9091 transactions and exhibited an increase of 21,2% in the value of network transactions compared to the previous month. For the near future, we expect to maintain around this level, as summer vacations are impacting companies. In general, we expect a steady increase in the number of transactions as multiple builders will be onboarded to Request Network over the following months.
ABOUT REQUEST NETWORK
The Request Network Foundation’s mission is to re-invent accounting and finance by creating a decentralized network of interoperable apps that promotes transparency and real-time reporting.
We inspire and educate developers, partners, and authorities to use the Request Network and build an ecosystem of financial applications together that is open source, seamless and interoperable ecosystem of financial applications.
We’re building a network that connects businesses worldwide, giving them ways to do business at the speed of the internet.
