- Uniswap has unveiled its v4 release timeline.
- Developers stress that the protocol upgrade would undergo extensive vetting before going live.
- Uniswap v4 promises to be a game changer for customizability and efficiency.
Despite being the largest decentralized exchange by volume and TVL, Uniswap continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in DeFi. As the long-anticipated Ethereum Dencun upgrade nears, the protocol has revealed that its version 4 upgrade will follow shortly after. The upgrade promises to bring unrivaled customizability and efficiency to the widely used protocol.
Uniswap v4 Release Timeline Unveiled
On Thursday, February 15, the Uniswap Foundation set a timeline for Q3 2024 for the Uniswap v4 release, citing the near launch of Ethereum Dencun as a critical deciding factor, likely as the release will leverage features from the network upgrade.
Per the announcement, the new version of the leading DEX is in phase one of development, which involves code completion, gas optimization, and security improvements. Following this phase, the completed code will undergo auditing and trial runs on the testnet, which the team asserts will set a standard for thoroughness on Ethereum.
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"We believe v4 should be the most rigorously audited code ever deployed on Ethereum," the team asserted.
After the extensive audits and final adjustments, the team expects to be able to push the new version of the protocol to the Ethereum mainnet in Q3.
What Uniswap v4 Brings to the Table
Uniswap v4 is expected to bring several improvements to the leading decentralized exchange protocol, first and foremost being greater customizability with “hooks.”
Hooks refer to relatively small pieces of code that can be introduced to perform specific commands at crucial points in a liquidity pool’s life cycle. As Uniswap Founder Hayden Adams highlighted in a June 2023 blog post, these small pieces of code can add anything from on-chain limit orders to customized on-chain oracles.
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"Really, the sky's the limit. Because each pool is now defined by more than just the tokens and fee tier, we'll see pools of all colors, shapes, and sizes," Adams wrote.
Aside from improved customizability, Uniswap v4 promises to reduce costs and increase efficiency. Unlike v3, which required the deployment of a new contract for every liquidity pool, v4 would hold all pools within a single contract. This model saves on gas as swap transactions no longer need to transfer tokens across pools with different contracts.
"Early estimates show that v4 reduces pool creation gas costs by 99%," Uniswap's Adams claimed.
In addition to the singleton contract, v4 introduces “flash accounting,” a feature that improves efficiency by transferring assets on net balance instead of at the end of every swap. Adams had explained that this feature would leverage “transient storage,” introduced by EIP-1153, a component of the Dencun upgrade.
On the Flipside
- The specific date for the v4 release remains unclear.
- The existence of a KYC hook has sparked concern among privacy advocates in the crypto space.
- Scammers had tried to take advantage of the v4 timeline announcement to push a fraudulent UNI airdrop campaign.
Why This Matters
Uniswap is the largest decentralized exchange by TVL and volume. The v4 upgrade promises to make the platform more robust, with increased operational options for users while lowering costs.
Learn about how to stay safe from the Uniswap airdrop scam:
Scam Uniswap Airdrop Targeting DeFi Users: How To Stay Safe
See the outcome of Polygon’s ApeCoin DAO bid:
Polygon (MATIC) Loses Bid To Build ApeCoin DAO Layer 2
