Partnership Integration Proposal: Empowering Exa with Uphold’s Strategic Investment & Liquidity Injection

Summary

Proposal ID: EXAIP-21
Proposer: Uphold Ltd

This proposal outlines a strategic partnership between Exa and Uphold, detailing an investment of $2M in EXA tokens along with a liquidity commitment to bolster Exa’s lending protocol. Uphold is a global digital asset platform with over 10 million users in 140+ countries and holds over $10 billion in assets. The initiative includes token market making to prepare for a listing, a significant liquidity injection to the treasury, joint marketing efforts for the Exa app and card launch, and collaborative product development. Together, these measures aim to enhance user engagement and accelerate the adoption of Exa’s decentralized financial ecosystem.

Background

Exa is rapidly evolving its ecosystem to serve a growing community of global users. In this dynamic landscape, strategic partnerships are critical to driving liquidity, market stability, and product innovation. Uphold, with its robust financial services and expansive crypto custody capabilities, offers a unique opportunity for Exa to enhance liquidity and reach a broader audience. Uphold’s comprehensive suite of offerings—including FDIC insured USD accounts, instant multi-crypto access, and neo-bank functionalities—aligns perfectly with Exa’s vision of seamless and secure decentralized finance.

Proposal

Token Purchase & Market Making

• Investment Details: Uphold will purchase $2M worth of EXA tokens from the Treasury, equivalent to 1,000,000 tokens, subject to due diligence completion.
• Token Allocation: Half of these tokens (500,000) will be locked with a vesting schedule to ensure long-term commitment, while the other half (500,000) will be allocated for market making to support the listing of Exa tokens.

Liquidity for Lending Protocol

• Commitment: Uphold will introduce investors who will inject liquidity into the Exa lending protocol, committing to an initial injection of $5,000,000. This capital will be deployed strategically so as not to negatively impact the lender or borrower experience.
• Objective: Enhance protocol stability and foster a robust lending market within the Exa ecosystem.

Joint Marketing & Press Release

• Exa App Launch: A joint press release and comprehensive marketing campaign will announce the investment and strategic relationship between Uphold and Exa as part of the Exa app launch.
• Visibility: This initiative will not only highlight the partnership but also promote the combined benefits offered to the user base.

Collaborative Product Development

• Baseline Product: Initiate a seamless setup for an Uphold user to obtain an Exa card backed by USDC and permissible crypto assets supported by both Uphold and the Exa protocol.
• Vision: Empower Uphold users to access Exa’s smart contracts, enabling rapid participation in the protocol.
• Enhanced Features: In supported regions, users can access credit backed by their crypto holdings, obtain an Exa card for local currency spending, and participate as lenders, thereby expanding the protocol’s liquidity.
• Future Roadmap: Ongoing joint development to integrate innovative neo-bank features and further refine product offerings, empowering a global audience with cutting-edge financial services that blend on-chain and traditional finance.

Participation and Governance

• Governance Participation: Uphold will hold EXA tokens and gain voting rights in Exactly DAO, allowing it to contribute to protocol decision-making.
• Exclusive Partnership: Uphold will be the exclusive CeFi partner for the Exa App for six months after launch.
• Milestone-Based Extension: The exclusivity extends in three-month increments if Uphold hits milestones on new user activations for the Exa card.

Benefits

• Enhanced Liquidity: Injection of significant liquidity and dedicated market making to stabilize and expand the EXA market.
• User-Centric Offerings: Uphold’s robust product suite (24/7/365 FDIC insured USD accounts with yield, multi-crypto access, and advanced neo-bank features) will directly benefit Exa users.
• Increased Adoption & Engagement: Joint marketing and product initiatives will drive higher user adoption and engagement, creating a vibrant ecosystem.
• Innovative Financial Solutions: The integration facilitates a seamless transition for Uphold users into decentralized finance, enabling access to credit, lending services, and a unique crypto-backed spending experience.
• Mutual Growth: Leveraging the strengths of both platforms fosters continuous innovation and mutual growth.

Implementation

Token & Liquidity Transactions

• Agreement Finalization: Finalize the token purchase agreement, establish the vesting schedule, and set up market making operations. This investment will be subject to customary due diligence and legal requirements.
• Lock-Up Tokens: The lock-up tokens will be claimed by the Uphold treasury address:
  0xF76D5dfba4544Eb96E8d60D3cF817A34dF019e8E
• Market-Making Tokens: The market-making tokens will be sent to the Uphold address:
  0x598E7Fc64331f80d1Fc573dEd1B9f2B660C05344
• Liquidity Injection: Initiate the liquidity injection process into the Exa lending protocol in phased steps.
• USDC Transfer: Within 15 days of satisfactory completion of the approval by Uphold’s Board of Directors and customary due diligence, Uphold will transfer the required USDC to the Exactly DAO Treasury Multisig Address on OP mainnet:
  0x23fD464e0b0eE21cEdEb929B19CABF9bD5215019
  in exchange for the Exa tokens.

Marketing & Communication

• Press Coordination: Coordinate the timing of the joint press release and marketing campaign in line with the Exa app launch.
• Marketing Materials: Develop comprehensive marketing materials highlighting the benefits and innovative aspects of the partnership.

Product Integration & Development

• Onboarding Integration: Integrate the Exa card setup process within the Uphold user onboarding flow.
• Development Sprints: Initiate joint product development sprints to integrate and optimize the interoperability of Uphold’s neo-bank features with Exa’s smart contracts.
• Testing & Feedback: Plan iterative testing and feedback loops to ensure a smooth user experience and technical robustness.

Regulatory & Compliance Alignment

• Regulatory Compliance: Ensure that all integration steps comply with regional regulations and licensing requirements, particularly concerning crypto lending and digital asset management.

Conclusion

This proposal presents a transformative partnership between Uphold and Exa that promises to drive liquidity, innovation, and user engagement in the decentralized finance space. By leveraging Uphold’s investment and market-making capabilities alongside Exa’s pioneering protocols, both platforms can offer enhanced financial services to their communities. The integrated approach—combining significant liquidity injections, strategic token management, joint marketing, and collaborative product development—positions this partnership for long-term success and widespread adoption.