Polygon, the platform builder for Ethereum scaling, recently unveiled its upcoming project known as Polygon 2.0. Despite a tough regulatory environment in the United States, the company has been emphasizing its roots and development outside the US. This strategic shift aims to attract the global community’s attention amid unfriendly US regulators and a divided Congress.
The company’s native token, MATIC, has been under pressure following the SEC’s mention in its pending Coinbase and Binance lawsuits, prompting Robinhood to delist the token in June. Emphasizing on community decisions made outside the US, Polygon responded by highlighting the token’s technical role in providing network security to Polygon’s PoS layer-1 network and its development and deployment outside the US.
Highlighting its journey since inception, Polygon recalls raising $5.6 million in an ICO-style token sale in April 2019, followed by seed and venture funding rounds. They have maintained that these fundraising activities did not target the US at any point in time, even though US investors and firms participated in the funding process.
Polygon 2.0 is being described as a network of ZK-powered L2 chains that resemble using a single chain for users. The announcement also stressed that the community is calling the shots, and only the Polygon community, who controls the protocol, has the right to accept and implement Polygon 2.0. However, the extent to which the community can exercise governance control remains limited as Polygon Labs seems to wield tremendous influence behind the scenes.
The company’s territorial expansion outside the US has both advantages and potential consequences. A significant representation from the global community could help the company embrace emerging market trends and take the lead on a larger scale. At the same time, the US regulatory crackdown on digital assets becomes a crucial challenge for projects that seek global recognition and growth.
With Polygon leading this venture outside the US, other projects are similarly grappling with issues of decentralization and jurisdictional nexus. Crypto enthusiast Jake Chervinsky believes, “there’s no doubt that crypto will thrive. The only question is where.” Meanwhile, prominent firms such as dYdX and Uniswap remain based in the US, reinforcing their faith in the country’s tech growth potential.
As Polygon 2.0 develops and deploys outside the US, the broader implications of its shift away from the US regulatory scene will continue to manifest. It remains to be seen whether these decisions will help or hinder the project’s long-term success.
Source: Blockworks
