Overview of the Migration
On September 4, Polygon completed a significant migration from its native token MATIC to the new POL token. This transition is a crucial part of the Polygon 2.0 roadmap, aimed at enhancing the network’s utility and scalability.
1:1 Technical Upgrade of MATIC to POL
The migration from MATIC to POL represents a critical upgrade for Polygon. According to Polygon’s official announcement, POL will now serve as the native gas and staking token for the Polygon PoS network. This change aligns with Polygon’s vision of becoming an aggregated network of blockchains.
During the initial phase, POL will take over from MATIC as the primary token for gas fees and staking. In subsequent phases, POL will play a key role in the AggLayer, which aims to unify various blockchains and support “infinite scalability.” The successful testnet upgrade on July 17, 2024, has paved the way for a smooth transition.
Impact on MATIC Holders
Holders on Polygon PoS
MATIC holders on the Polygon PoS network will have their tokens automatically upgraded to POL. However, users might still see MATIC listed in their wallets due to RPC (Remote Procedure Call) settings, which may not have been updated yet.
To reflect the upgrade, users can manually change MATIC to POL in their wallets if necessary. The RPC is a communication protocol that may cause a delay in displaying the updated token name.
Holders on Ethereum or CEXes
MATIC holders on Ethereum or centralized exchanges (CEXes) may need to take additional steps to upgrade their tokens to POL. Some decentralized applications (dApps) and DEX aggregators, such as KyberSwap and CoW Swap, have integrated the migration contract, allowing users to perform the upgrade through their interfaces.
Advanced users can interact with the migration contract directly on Ethereum. However, caution is advised to avoid potential fund loss due to:
- Incorrectly calling the migration contract
- Directly sending funds to the migration contract
Automatic Conversion for MATIC Stakers
MATIC stakers on Ethereum will have their staked tokens automatically converted to POL without any additional actions required from their side.
Reasons for the Upgrade
The transition from MATIC to POL is driven by several key objectives:
- POL will act as a “hyperproductive” token, becoming the native gas and staking token on Polygon PoS.
- The upgrade supports Polygon’s future expansion and enhances the network’s security as an aggregated blockchain network.
Polygon’s team anticipates a seamless transition, marking a significant milestone in the development of Polygon 2.0.