Please describe your proposed solution

Midnight is a new data protection L1 blockchain. While it is positioned as the first Cardano partner chain, it has its own consensus and ledger. As such, it has no native capability to send/receive assets or other data structures to/from the Cardano mainnet.

To address this lack of interoperability, Wanchain, with support from Midnight, will deploy decentralised cross-chain bridges connecting the Cardano mainnet and Midnight mainnet. This will allow users to move digital assets like ADA and NIGHT seamlessly between the two networks.

To facilitate cross-chain transactions between Midnight and Cardano, a novel cross-chain mechanism that leverages a Zero Knowledge Proof relayer will be investigated. A basic overview of this kind of mechanism is:

• A user initiates a transaction on the source chain
• A ZKP prover detects the user’s transaction on the source chain
• A ZKP prover computes a proof attesting to the authenticity of the successful completion of the user’s transaction on the source chain
• A ZKP prover transmits this proof to a smart contract on the target chain for verification
• A user receives asset on the destination chain

Should development of this kind of mechanism fail, a Multi-Party Computation (MPC) relayer will serve as a fallback option to ensure that a decentralised bridge between the Cardano mainnet and Midnight mainnet is delivered.

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

This proposed solution will positively impact the Cardano community in several ways:

First, as Midnight is the first Cardano partner chain, there is likely to be a large overlap between the Cardano and Midnight communities. Indeed, many Cardano SPOs will eventually help secure the Midnight mainnet. However, the two chains are technically distinct. This proposal helps remedy this disconnect.

Second, the NIGHT token will initially be minted on Cardano. There will undoubtedly be great demand for the capability to move NIGHT between the two chains. This proposal makes this possible.

Third, once connected, the engineering burden of adding support for other assets, like ADA and USDC, will be lessened. In other words, this proposal lays the foundation for broader interoperability between Cardano and Midnight.

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?

Wanchain is a global leader for decentralised blockchain interoperability solutions and has been in operation since 2017. Wanchain launched the blockchain industry’s first decentralised cross-chain bridge, deployed the first direct bridge connecting Bitcoin and Ethereum, and is the only decentralised bridge servicing the Cardano ecosystem. Currently supporting more than 35 public networks, Wanchain continues to earn its reputation for enabling interoperability between EVM and non-EVM networks.

In addition, Midnight is based on Substrate. Wanchain has pre-existing experience connecting Subtrate-based networks to Cardano, having bridged Cardano and the Polkadot Relay Chain.

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

Milestone 1: Smart contract that can lock/unlock assets on Cardano Pre-Production.

Milestone 2: Smart contract that can lock/unlock/burn/mint assets on Midnight testnet.

Milestone 3: End-to-end cross-chain transaction between Cardano Pre-Production and Midnight testnet.

Milestone 4: Smart contract that can lock/unlock assets on Cardano mainnet.

Milestone 5: Smart contract that can lock/unlock/burn/mint assets on Midnight mainnet.

Final Milestone: End-to-end cross-chain transaction between Cardano and Midnight mainnet.

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

Wanchain Team

• Temujin Louie - CEO

Temujin Louie is CEO of Wanchain, the longest-running blockchain interoperability solution. His blockchain journey began in 2012 as a graduate student at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he studied Bitcoin’s impact on incumbent power structures. Temujin is a subject matter expert in blockchain interoperability. He is committed to unifying all blockchains and driving Web3’s mainstream adoption through universal interoperability standards.

Other

• Fahmi Syed - CFO, Ian Kane - Head of Partnerships, and Inigo Querejeta Azurmendi - Midnight Lead Crypto Engineer at IOG Midnight

Fahmi Syed, Ian Kane and Inigo Querejeta Azurmendi will provide required strategic support and serve as key consultants throughout this project. Their contributions will not impact the project budget, as their costs are already covered by IOG. However, their involvement is acknowledged as a significant benefit in kind, contributing valuable expertise and insights to the delivery team. This support is integral to the project's success and reflects their commitment to the overall goal to expand institutional and custodial support for the Cardano ecosystem. The project will benefit greatly from Fahmi, Ian and Inigo's direct engagement, as the IOG team is highly motivated to see it succeed and wider support for ADA and all Cardano Native Assets. Without their expertise and active involvement, the project could likely progress at a much slower pace. Their participation is, therefore, crucial, and securing their continued support is a key factor in ensuring the project moves forward efficiently, which is why it requires approval.

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Approximately 300,000 USD will be needed to successfully complete this project (above the maximum boundary of F13: Cardano Use Cases: Product). It will require the input of one of Wanchain’s primary development teams and select contributors from the Midnight team. Certain components may also require input from other 3rd party teams and developers.

The Midnight mainnet needs to launch.

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

As Cardano’s first partner chain, interoperability with Midnight is vital. However, developing a bridge between these two networks is a gargantuan task.

Not only do both Cardano and Midnight have different underlying architecture/consensus mechanisms, both use different smart contract programming languages. In fact, Midnight introduces a new programming language called Compact.

This project will also research and develop a novel ZKP relayer, which itself demands the creation of an off-chain proof server and on-chain proof verification mechanisms. Should a ZKP relayer be deemed unachievable at this time, a MPC relayer will be used to ensure that a decentralised bridge connecting Cardano and Midnight is delivered.

It is certain that more than 20 developers will need to contribute to this project. All things considered, the incurred cost of executing this project will exceed the requested funds. As such, the project represents good value for money for the Cardano ecosystem.