Introduction
Comdex is a decentralized ecosystem built on the Cosmos network that aims to streamline and digitize commodity trading. It includes a DeFi-focused Layer-1 blockchain and a close-ended Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform for commodity trading and settlement. The Comdex chain recently launched its first three applications: cSwap, a hybrid orderbook-automated market maker (AMM) decentralized exchange (DEX), Harbor, a collateralized debt position (CDP) protocol (with its own native stablecoin, CMST), and Commodo, a decentralized money market protocol. As Comdex progresses along its roadmap, it plans to expand the Comdex chain ecosystem by releasing a wide range of applications and attracting external developers.
Background
Comdex was founded in 2018 with the aim of using Cosmos and its ecosystem to streamline and digitize commodity trading. However, the lack of DeFi primitives in Cosmos constrained Comdex’s design space and made it difficult to build a comprehensive offering. As a result, Comdex shifted its focus to creating the building blocks for Cosmos DeFi through its own Layer-1 blockchain. The Comdex chain is a Tendermint-based, IBC-enabled, layer-1 blockchain built on top of the Cosmos SDK with CosmWasm-integration.
Comdex Ecosystem
The Comdex ecosystem is best understood as an ecosystem consisting of services such as Zenscape and the Enterprise Trading Platform, and the applications built on the Comdex chain. The Comdex chain offers permissionless entry into its validator set and also has its own Validator Delegation Program. Developers are required to whitelist new applications and assets through governance. They can then build their applications using 13 customizable, plug-and-play modules.
Applications on the Comdex Chain
The three live applications on the chain, cSwap, Harbor Protocol, and Commodo, were all developed by the Comdex team. Harbor Protocol functions like Maker, enabling overcollateralized loans by allowing users to lock governance-approved IBC assets as collateral in smart contracts (“vaults”). By doing so, users mint Composite (CMST), an IBC-enabled stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar.
Commodo, similar to Aave, is an IBC-native decentralized, collateralized lending and borrowing platform for digital assets. It’s primarily designed to provide passive yield to IBC asset holders. Commodo aims to solve two recurring pain points in DeFi lending and borrowing: fragmented liquidity and shared pool security.
cSwap is Comdex’s hybrid orderbook-AMM. It enables traders to swap between IBC-enabled assets. Liquidity providers (LPs) can passively manage liquidity by depositing assets into liquidity pools and earn trading fees (paid in CMDX).
Enterprise Trading Platform
The Enterprise Trading Platform facilitates cross-border trading lifecycles (end-to-end) for physical commodities. It does so on a permissioned blockchain (Persistence SDK), as a closed-ended SaaS application without any cryptocurrency at the interface layer. Instead, it conducts settlement by minting and exchanging NFTs that represent physical commodities and fiat deposits (“RFTs”) on the Persistence blockchain.
CMDX Token
CMDX is the native token for the Comdex blockchain. The token serves five functions in the ecosystem: usage, staking, governance, collateralization, and rewards for liquidity provision. The supply of CMDX is inflationary with a maximum supply of 200 million CMDX. 100 million CMDX minted at genesis, and the remaining CMDX will be unlocked over the following four years.
Roadmap and Future Plans
Comdex’s roadmap can be divided into two sections. The first is building on existing infrastructure and applications. The second is releasing new primitives. The roadmap items that fit cleanly into the former primarily center around the Harbor Protocol, Commodo, cSwap, and Zenscape. Beyond building out a complete DeFi suite, Comdex’s end goal is to attract real-world commercial and financial activity. The ShipFi application on the roadmap has particularly strong synergies with the Enterprise Trading App as it will facilitate the creation and exchange of commodity trade finance debt.
Conclusion
Comdex is entering a saturated and competitive market, but it is doing so with a unique foundation. With strong execution, the protocol has a promising path to leverage its background and the open, democratizing ethos of DeFi to onboard the many underserved participants of the global commodity trade. While Comdex faces stiff competition in its standalone DeFi offerings, its foundation with underserved commodity traders offers a unique and promising avenue for growth.
