Key takeaways
- Bundles Finance launched a decentralized prediction market in October 2020 with gamified elements including live leaderboards and hall of fame to drive user engagement.
- The platform expanded from Ethereum to RootStock RSK to address high gas fees and access RSK's South American and North American communities.
- BUND token holders can stake to participate in prediction pools, earn NFTs, and receive revenue sharing from the NFT marketplace and other token staking fees.
- Bundles is building an exclusive NFT marketplace requiring artist whitelisting, partnering with established artists like Bran Simonson and major sports teams launching in July.
- Future roadmap includes expanding prediction assets beyond current offerings and opening more prediction pools on the RSK platform.
Why build a DeFi prediction market
Ashton Addison: What is your background in blockchain, and why did you create Bundles Finance?▶ 00:23
Simon Lewis: I've been in blockchain since 2017. I have another ongoing project, a blockchain-based health project called Elevate Health, which doesn't have a token. In October last year my co-founder Sid and I launched Bundles Finance. We felt one of the main use cases for DeFi was prediction markets. We wanted a platform where users could use their crypto prediction skills to compete against other users and win or lose cryptocurrency.
Ashton: Earlier prediction markets never reached a wide audience. What gives Bundles a competitive advantage?▶ 01:23
Simon: We have a gamified element. You compete against other token holders within the prediction pools, and we have live leaderboards and a Hall of Fame. We wanted to bring in a competitive element so that users would engage. In terms of marketing, it's a constant theme, with winners being added on a regular basis. I think that competitive, gamified element is what makes us somewhat unique.
Now the market is very impatient, so you need to be constantly delivering, constantly evolving.
Leaving Ethereum's gas fees behind
Ashton: Most DeFi runs on Ethereum. Why bring in RSK?▶ 02:41
Simon: We originally launched on Ethereum in October last year and had very high user engagement in the prediction pools. Subsequently, gas fees became significantly higher, which made it expensive for smaller investors to take part, so we had to find a cross-chain solution. Launching on Binance Smart Chain has been popular, but we wanted a cross-chain partner that was actually supportive and invested in Bundles. My previous project, Elevate Health, shares the same venture capitalists as RSK, so we already had a relationship. Today we're launching our prediction pools on RSK. They've provided liquidity on RSK Swap, their decentralized exchange, and they're providing liquidity rewards. Users who provide BUND and RBTC liquidity can stake those tokens on our platform and earn rewards in RIF, RSK's native token.
Ashton: How big a move is RSK for growing adoption?▶ 04:53
Simon: It was one of the important factors in deciding who to partner with. RSK has a very big South American and North American community. I'm not sure the DeFi space has engaged that audience before, particularly in South America. One of the main reasons we chose RSK is that we'd be putting Bundles in front of an audience that had probably never heard of it.
The BUND token and an exclusive NFT marketplace
Ashton: What does the BUND token do, and does it create a sustainable ecosystem?▶ 06:38
Simon: We're constantly building on its utility. Initially, you need BUND to stake in our prediction pools. We're a single-token staking platform, so BUND is all you need to take part. Since then we've got heavily into NFTs, and you need to stake BUND to earn our NFTs. We're also developing two sources of revenue in other tokens. First, we're opening the prediction pools to other tokens in the RSK ecosystem, so people can stake RIF or RBTC on Bundles, and there's a network fee for that. Second, our NFT marketplace takes payment in Ethereum, either at a fixed price or by auction. All the fees we earn in RIF or Ethereum will go back to BUND holders. We have a fixed supply of BUND, and you'll be able to stake it and earn an APY in either Ethereum or RIF.
Ashton: How will your NFT marketplace differ from existing ones?▶ 08:30
Simon: We already have a range of BUND NFTs, but the purpose of the marketplace is to give other artists, sports clubs and designers a platform to launch NFT drops. We plan to be more exclusive than the marketplaces available now. OpenSea is a fantastic platform but it's extremely crowded, and it can be very hard to get noticed. You'll have to be whitelisted to launch an NFT on Bundles. There will be far fewer NFTs, but they'll be more exclusive and high-end.
OpenSea is a fantastic platform but it's extremely crowded, and it can be very hard to get noticed.
Roadmap and the competition
Ashton: What do you plan to deliver on the prediction market over the next six months?▶ 11:15
Simon: We're going to open up a higher number of assets that you can choose to predict the price of. We'll also open more pools with different reward structures. The crypto space is very different from 2017 and 2018, when you did a raise and your product might arrive in six to 18 months. Now the market is very impatient, so you need to be constantly delivering, constantly evolving. It's hard work, but we're a very innovative and engaged team, and you'll see regular updates throughout 2021 and beyond.
Ashton: What challenges are unique to Bundles as a DeFi prediction market?▶ 13:08
Simon: The level of competition. There are projects launching on a daily basis, new platforms and new projects every day. Keeping ahead of the competition and constantly innovating is what will enable Bundles to succeed. Keeping that competitive advantage is probably the main thing we'll need to do well.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Recorded April 2021.
