Shortly after Mina Foundation shared its Q4’24 and Q1’25 product priorities the Mina builder community came together for the first-ever MinaCon. This wave of builder energy has helped Mina earn a spot in the Coinbase COIN50 index. In this article, we take a closer look at the progress made on the Mina Foundation product priorities and what to expect next.
While there has been encouraging progress across all key initiatives, the team acknowledges that an update is overdue and some projects are delayed. The delays can be attributed to two primary root causes: underscoping technically complex projects and underestimating the learning curve of o1js for new developers. In response the team has added engineers to underpowered teams, is expanding the community of o1js developers (see SmartOSC partnership), and is committed to more frequent community updates when timelines change.
Below is an update on the product priorities Mina Foundation set out last fall. As a reminder, priorities were bucketed into three high-level product objectives:
- Make it easier to build complex apps on Mina,
- Build key Web3 infrastructure and standards essential to reach scale, and
- Support builders in acquiring end users.
Additionally, we are actively listening to the Mina community’s feedback and iterating with partners to improve as we go. Many thanks for your input and support. Because of these efforts, Mina is well-positioned to make 2025 the best year yet.
Make it easier to build complex apps on Mina
Protokit: Protokit is an appchain framework that enables developers to more easily build scalable applications across shared state. An alpha version was released at the end of October. The team is completing the development of bridging tokens from the L1 and settling transactions to it, and these new features are currently in testing.
Projects are already building on Protokit–DinoDex, Revl.tech – providing valuable feedback on the developer experience and code maturity. The start of the security audit has been pushed back as the remaining work on Protokit is ongoing. This remaining work before kicking off the security audit includes L1 reorg support, integration of all features into the starter-kit, contributor documentation, and additional field testing. Additional engineers joined the Protokit team in the fall to help mitigate the schedule delays. Visit the #protokit-general channel on Discord to get the latest and ask questions. Start building your own appchain with Protokit’s starter-kit here. Expect another update on Protokit in the spring.
Build key Web3 infrastructure and standards essential to reach scale
Ethereum Token Bridge: The initial version is a wETH Ethereum<>Mina bridge. The bridge is live on devnet and the security audit kicked off with Zellic in December. The smart contract audit is complete and the identified issues have been fixed. The full audit is on track to be completed in early February. Assuming no major issues are found in the audit, the first mainnet deployment is expected shortly after. In parallel, work has already begun on adding wUSDC support to the bridge. Join the #token-bridge-test channel on Discord to get more information and ask questions.
Note: In addition to the token bridge, there are several state bridge projects ongoing. Mina Foundation is soliciting bids for the security audit of the Mina>Ethereum state bridge by Aligned after which it will be merged into Aligned Layer mainnet. Simultaneously, a new project, Nori, has begun development of an Ethereum>Mina state bridge leveraging the sp1-blobstream work. The Nil Foundation project was deemed too expensive for most apps to use in production and has been discontinued.
DEX: There are two DEX projects building on Mina: Lumina and DinoDex. Lumina is a DEX backend that enables anyone to launch their own front-end with shared liquidity. The security audit of Lumina is now complete. Gizmo Labs was announced as the first front-end partner. Follow further updates at @LuminaDEX on X. In October the DinoDex project had not been announced and already they’ve run a trading competition on localnet. Development is ongoing and will be ready once Protokit is security-audited and ready for mainnet.
Mina Attestations (formerly Private Credentials API): Mina Attestations will provide a standardized interface for issuing credentials and proving attestations of private credentials to verifiers. In the fall, the zkSecurity team behind the development of the library held a community design review and demo and development is now nearly complete. Just this week Hacken kicked off the security audit. Assuming no major issues are discovered during the security audit, it is expected the library will be ready for mainnet as planned. Join the #credential-and-id-builder channel on Discord to stay up to date with the latest news and check out the GitHub repo to dig into the tech.
NFT Standard: Similar to the fungible token standard, the NFT standard will provide a canonical implementation of NFTs on Mina. Development is complete and the project is soliciting bids for the security audit. Refer to the repo here and docs here. MinaNFT, Minaliens, Tileville’s NFT marketplace are already integrating the standard. Expect an update once a security auditor is selected.
Launchpad: A first token launchpad on Mina will simplify the minting and distribution of fungible tokens. The Mina Tokens launchpad is now on mainnet as planned and the team is onboarding its first creators. Expect a community demo and further updates in the next few weeks. Head to the #🚀-token-launchpads channel on Discord to stay up to date and learn more.
Support builders in acquiring end-users
Mobile Proving: The importance of mobile should be no surprise, and indeed it’s the most requested feature from the community. Due to unforeseen technical complexity, project kick off was delayed, but Auro Wallet has now begun work. Refer here for the design of a new Wallet Connect-style interface to facilitate a seamless user experience for mobile proving. Development is expected to be complete in the next few months, at which point the security audit will begin.
User Growth Incentives: In the same way Navigators grants bootstrap developer growth, user growth will require similar incentives. The pilot test was deprioritized, but SmartOSC has been awarded a grant to build the user growth incentive platform and development has begun.
Wallet API: A standardized Javascript API for wallet interactions will accelerate app and wallet development. While this project had been deprioritized, development has restarted and a release is expected in the coming weeks.
Mina Foundation’s mission is to serve and empower the Mina community. The projects listed above represent just a few of the projects that received funding from Mina Foundation.
One example is the Web Node, a full-security, block-producing Mina node that runs in the browser. The Web Node has been part of Mina’s vision from the start and demonstrates the benefits of Mina’s succinct blockchain design, representing a significant step towards an internet that’s accessible to all. Last fall community members ran it on a Tesla, a smart fridge and a Raspberry Pi! With the momentum and excitement generated, an incentivized community challenge for running the Web Node on devnet is near. While the Web Node is an exciting milestone, it doesn’t shift focus away from the areas the community has prioritized. This is a key moment to engage the broader Mina community, gather feedback, and collaborate on a roadmap toward the Web Node’s production launch—and we can’t do it alone.
Other notable projects include scaling frameworks like Zeko; new cryptographic primitives like dynamic string hashing; novel DeFi protocols like zkUSD; the Mina Rust Node; new libraries like zkML and the Mina Security Token Offering Privacy Extension; and breakthrough zkApps like Punkpoll, zkVot, ZKON, and ZKNoid’s lottery to name just a few.The future for Mina is bright and we’re already looking forward to the rest of 2025.
We at the Mina Foundation are thankful for the support and continued contributions of the Mina community. We’re excited about what’s to come and we believe Mina is well positioned. Expect another update on priorities around the start of Q2. Until then, find us on Discord and let’s keep building!
Disclaimer:
All timelines, dates, and schedules provided are for informational purposes only and may be subject to change without notice. While we endeavor to keep track of projects’ progress, and keep information accurate and up to date, we make no warranties or representations, express or implied, regarding the completeness, accuracy, reliability, or availability of the projected details. We disclaim any liability for reliance on the information provided, and readers assume all risks associated with such reliance.
About Mina Protocol
Mina is the world’s lightest blockchain, powered by participants. Rather than apply brute computing force, Mina uses advanced cryptography and recursive zk-SNARKs to design an entire blockchain that is about 22kb, the size of a couple of tweets. It is the first layer-1 to enable efficient implementation and easy programmability of zero knowledge smart contracts (zkApps). With its unique privacy features and ability to connect to any website, Mina is building a private gateway between the real world and crypto—and the secure, democratic future we all deserve.
