I. Introduction
The WAX blockchain is one of the fastest in the world, and this is in large part because of its underlying algorithm: Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS). DPoS has a number of interesting characteristics, including its governance model.
1. What is Delegated Proof-of-Stake?
DPoS is a consensus mechanism used by the WAX blockchain (among others). Instead of ‘validators’ competing over blocks with raw processing power as is the case in a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, blockchain users become stakeholders by ‘staking’ their tokens, or locking them into the blockchain. Not only is this a greener solution, it also enables users to participate in blockchain governance.
II. Governance
1. What is Governance?
Governance in the world of blockchain simply describes the system by which decisions are made. The specifics vary by blockchain and consensus mechanism, but on the WAX blockchain, participation in its governance is open to all community members. Like ancient Athens, but digital, and with cool collectibles!
2. How Can I Participate?
The first thing you will need to participate in WAX governance is a WAX account and wallet. If you don’t already have these, follow our guide to get set up.
Next, you’re going to need some $WAXP, the native token of the WAX blockchain. This can be acquired from a number of exchanges, and we explain the process of buying them in this useful guide.
Now that you’re ready with your WAX account and $WAXP tokens, the next step to participate in governance is to stake your tokens. More on this below.
III. How to Stake
You can learn about staking in detail from our previous article, but here’s an overview of how the process works:
- Log into your Wax Cloud Wallet (WCW)
- Navigate to the ‘Resources’ page up on the right-hand side of the WCW dashboard
- Stake WAX for CPU and NET
- Click on ‘Staking Rewards’ on the left-hand column.
- ‘My Staked Tokens’ shows how much WAX you have staked.
By clicking ‘Stake all my WAXP tokens’ at the bottom of this page, you can stake all of your available tokens. However, we don’t necessarily recommend this option as you may want to keep some $WAXP handy for that next NFT drop!
Just above, you will see a ‘Vote for WAX guilds’ button, underneath which is written ‘Vote To Earn Your Staking Rewards’. If you know who you want to vote for, click on ‘Select a proxy…’.
Doing so will expand a long drop-down menu of available proxies. This is where governance happens! The ‘Delegated’ part of DPoS means you are selecting a proxy or ‘guild’ to act on your behalf. If you don’t know who you want to vote for, you may want to do some research to find out which guild is right for you (more on this below).
IV. Guilds
A ‘guild’ on the WAX blockchain describes a group of ‘block producers’ whose task is to validate ‘blocks’ or transactions. Your staking rewards will not change based on which guild you vote for, but guilds will receive rewards based on their success in block production. Guilds with less than 50% block success will receive no rewards.
You can see a full list of WAX guilds and their key metrics here.
V. Summary
We’ve taken a short look at how you can participate in governance on WAX, but this is only the beginning! You can also vote for specific development proposals on WAX Labs, as well getting involved in community discussion on the WAX Discord and Telegram channels. WAX has a welcoming and supportive community and the system of governance is designed to encourage involvement and inclusivity.