Synthetics: The Future of the PriFi Revolution

October 19, 2021

In our last Offshift blog, Crypto, PriFi , and the Fight Against Surveillance Capitalism , we outlined our perspective on the journey of privacy in the internet age, and its (often lackluster) evolution in crypto and Web3. From Facebook to Google, many people still remain unaware of the extent to which our data and identities are tracked and commoditized in the digital domain. While many turn to blockchain and DeFi applications to evade the corporations that mine and profit from our data, privacy only protects users if it’s properly augmented in established internet communities. Offshift is a cryptocurrency project with privacy coded into every aspect of what we do, from our zkAssets to our anonymous team.

While our previous blog post focused on the data side of the surveillance spectrum, this article will draw on a more financial focus, honing in on the growing role of synthetics. Synthetics, such as Offshift’s forthcoming zkAssets, are artificial renditions of existing financial assets whose prices are inextricably linked to the value of the assets they represent in real-time. For open-minded traders that normally occupy traditional financial markets and value profit margins, accessibility, and privacy, crypto’s tokenized synthetics represent revolutions in ownership and accessibility, and even increased profit potential.

By virtue of representing real-world assets privately and completely on-chain, zkAssets allow their holders to circumnavigate the limitations and gatekeeping that comes standard on centralized platforms. More broadly, synthetics return power back to traders - no matter their order size.

OPEN FINANCE = DATA EXTRACTION

While most of the conversation concerning data mining and manipulation revolves around the Facebooks and Instagrams of the world, very few are aware that Big Tech’s reach extends beyond the sphere of social media. Enter Robinhood, the centralized trading platform that fancies itself as an advocate for making the stock market more accessible and retail-friendly. Sure, platforms like Robinhood have made it easier for people, especially millennials, to get in on the market’s action. However, they’re still packaging and selling user data, just like social media platforms. But while social media platforms sell user data to marketing agencies who use it to generate demographic-specific advertisements, trading platforms like Robinhood sell user data to large-scale hedge funds who pluck pennies from Robinhood’s users in real-time. To put it bluntly, social media platforms monetize user data, whereas Robinhood monetizes user money. Even the most prominent critics of social media would agree that Facebook’s algorithms do sometimes present users with products or brands they like and want to explore - else the business model would not be sustainable. Robinhood, however, commoditizes user data so a few big players at the top of the food chain can pick the pockets of the millions of minnows trading the markets. There’s no real value flowing to users, except the illusion of zero trading fees.

FINANCIAL FREEDOM AND PEACE OF MIND

History has proven just how much the powers that be are averse to change. Certainly, this aversion encompasses the oligopoly of institutions that have owned a disproportionate market share of global finance for generations. It has taken years for adoption to take form in crypto, and financial institutions are still warming up to the idea that Bitcoin might occupy a small space on their balance sheets. In lockstep, stablecoins too have generated significant attention for themselves over the past couple of years, as units of fiat currency that can be transacted across borders and without all of the complexities introduced by the correspondent banking system.

Private synthetics offer a similar brand of innovation to that which was introduced by stablecoins, creating a “free market for markets” for the first time. Our forthcoming zkAssets, an unprecedented line of fully private synthetics, confer superior benefits to their counterparts in traditional markets. Our native token, XFT, allows you to convert public assets into private assets via a single transaction - what we call a “Shift.”

THE OFFSHIFT TAKE

So what’s Offshift bringing to synthetics? Our fully private zkAssets are slated to launch in January 2022. zkAssets are integral to the functionality of our platform, which is fully decentralized to protect against any level of intrusion - be it from third-parties of any kind. We are leveling the playing field in finance, and keeping your data where it belongs: with you and you alone. Our proprietary zkAssets live completely on-chain, which means that users won’t need to rely on any roll-ups or other L2 gymnastics when they get Shifting. In short time, we anticipate that traders across the globe, fed up with the encroaching authoritarianism and clunky legacy financial systems, will migrate to synthetics to leave behind the inefficiencies, digital surveillance, and exploitative models that have plagued markets for generations. For those who value privacy and freedom, the next-generation financial landscape is being built as we speak. To learn more and get involved, join us and become a PriFi Pioneer today .

About Offshift

Offshift is leading private decentralized finance (PriFi) with the world’s first Private Derivatives Platform. It leverages zero-knowledge (zk) proofs and sources reliable, real-time price feeds from Chainlink’s decentralized oracle network to enable users to mint zkAssets, an unprecedented line of fully private synthetics. Offshift’s mostly anonymous team has developed a trusted reputation for their thorough privacy research, development and execution.

To learn more and get involved, visit the links below: