Please describe your proposed solution.

<u>In Short</u>: Imagine you own five NFTs that you don't have use for, and can't manage to sell either. What would you rather do, let them sit in your wallet for eternity or would you consider the option to exchange or swap your NFTs with others who have use for them, against ones you might have use for? Sounds like a reasonable idea, right? Well, that is exactly what we are aiming for! Now read on for the long version…

<u>Market Size</u>:

The Cardano ecosystem boasts 17 NFT marketplaces with over 10K verified projects, with a total value of ₳797M*. Till date, the total number of NFTs minted is over 8M with just over 2M NFTs ever traded. This leaves roughly 6M Cardano NFTs – the vast majority, currently in circulation either buried deep down in a marketplace waiting for a sale, or lying stagnant somewhere in someone’s wallet.

And, it is this existing market of ~6M NFTs that needs to be pulled out of stagnation with ingenuity in order to make these assets liquid.

Non-fungible tokens are also witnessing a paradigm shift from being static images that could only be used as profile pictures, to more active and engaging use-cases, especially in the Cardano ecosystem with NFTs that carry some utility with them, such as: books, entry tickets to events or to gated communities, metaverse, gaming, art, photography, etc.

<u>The Problem</u>:

Currently, most low to average value NFTs are still lying stagnant somewhere in a wallet or on a marketplace. They are either for sale for too long, or have been bought but are not being actively used for any purpose. The ability to swap NFTs (instead of having to buy or sell them) aims to bring liquidity to these assets blocked and lying stagnant in some wallet or buried deep down in a marketplace.

<u>Our Solution</u>:

The Swapaire NFT Swap dApp will be an easy to use, decentralized exchange that will provide non-fungible token (NFT) owners a secure platform to exchange NFTs (for NFTs) instantly. The platform will offer an efficient and seamless user experience (UX) via an intuitive user interface (UI) with a clear call to action right from the landing page – ‘Connect Wallet’.

Users once connected to the dApp via their wallets will be able to directly consult NFTs available for a swap, or to offer their own NFTs up for a swap to others in just a few easy steps or clicks. Once connected to the decentralised exchange via their wallets, users will be able to:

➔ <u>Offer NFTs</u> for swap: Connect wallet > offer NFT up for swap > wait for someone to swap > swap complete.

➔ <u>Swap NFTs</u> instantly: Connect wallet > select NFT for swap > validate transaction > swap complete.

➔ <u>Propose NFTs</u> for a swap auction: Connect wallet > put NFT on auction > wait for bids > highest bid automatically wins OR accept best offer before auction timeout > swap complete.

➔ <u>Bid on NFT</u> swap auctions (with their own NFT + extra incentive): Connect wallet > bid on an auction with your NFT + add extra incentive amount (ADA) > wait to win > swap complete.

<u>The Aim:</u>

The solution aims to bring liquidity to existing low to mid-range assets and encourage a circular economy – where we don't just buy and hoard assets, but use and circulate them to continuously bring value to us.

Bringing movement to this stagnant market segment has the potential to gradually increase the value of these assets, while at the same time increasing user engagement with NFTs, as well as with the Cardano ecosystem on the whole.

<u>Examples to illustrate the use case</u>:

Scenario 1: Bob owns a gaming NFT that he is no longer using and does not mind swapping it with Alice for her gaming NFT, to try out a new game.

Scenario 2: Bob has an entry ticket NFT to the Cardano summit, but for some reason he can’t make it. Alice doesn’t mind swapping her entry ticket NFT to a metaverse concert with Bob, to attend the summit instead. The price difference, if any, can always be settled in ADA.

(*source: https://opencnft.io/market-overview, accessed on 26 November 2023)

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community.

User engagement with the platform will be quantifiable by the number of trades/swaps generated via the Swapaire dApp, and the impact of the project will be publicly visible given the public nature of blockchain transactions. Project progress will also be shared with the community via the usual social media channels: Discord, X (Twitter), Telegram, website, etc.

Regular project completion reports and Proof of Achievement (PoA) as per the Fund11 rules, will be communicated to the community to justify honest use of the funds granted.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

The Swapaire project is fortunate to have the approval and backing of some of the most brilliant teams behind some of the most ambitious projects – with proven track record, in the Cardano community.

IOG Marlowe: "This proposal will include limited advisory and mentorship from the IOG Marlowe team"

TxPipe: "TxPipe team has committed to providing consultancy services through TxPipe-Shop and infrastructure and backend services through Demeter.run"

The feasibility of this approach has already been ascertained to a great extent by its acceptance by the aforementioned teams, and the project will continue to lean on their industry expertise with continuous and on-going discussions throughout the life cycle of the project.

The project is at an early stage, currently being coordinated by the applicant and is open to more collaborators. So, if this project speaks to you and you would like to be part of it, please feel free to reach out (esp. women in blockchain tech!).

What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Phase I – Smart contract development;

The acceptance criteria for this milestone will be to ascertain if the smart contract can successfully carry out a simple swap as well as a swap auction.

Budget=15% of the grant.

>Phase II – Back-end development and infrastructure;

The acceptance criteria for this milestone will be the setting up of the infrastructure (node, communication with Cardano blockchain, etc.) and the development of the query/indexing features required by the dApp; and their successful functioning.

Budget=20% of the grant.

>Phase III – Front-end development with user interface and website;

The acceptance criteria for this milestone will be the smooth functioning of the website with the back-end and smart contract.

Budget=20% of the grant.

>Phase IV – User acceptance testing (UAT) and ‘Hackathlon’;

This phase will require satisfactory acceptance testing by the end user and a hackathlon to identify possible security loopholes.

Budget=20% of the grant.

>Phase V – Marketing and communications.

The key milestone for this phase will be a launch campaign, however, marketing and communication will be an ongoing effort throughout the life cycle of the project.

Budget=10% of the grant.

>Smart contract security will be a top priority, followed by scalability and continued efforts to improve user experience and engagement with the dApp.

Budget=15% of the grant.

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Preeta Singh, LI: /preetasingh

Project founder and coordinator so far with the aforementioned teams.

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

The funding allocation will follow the overall budget distribution proportions for building the dApp, with development operations (phases I, II and III, mentioned above) including testing, accounting for the bulk of the expenditure at 75%. Publicity, marketing, communication and community building will be a continuous effort, will be accorded an estimate 10% ; and the remaining 15% will be kept aside for security and bug fixing.

It is early stage to give precise breakdown but the concerned teams have been contacted and discussions are on-going.

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The bigger picture: bringing liquidity to the existing segment of low to mid-range utility NFTs and encouraging a circular economy in this non-negligible and ever growing segment of the Cardano ecosystem.

The possibility to be able to swap NFTs with ease, instead of only being able to buy or sell them will encourage CNFT holders to confidently engage with, and embrace NFTs further.