Polygon Labs is making big steps toward the future of its network on Wednesday.
On September 4, the Ethereum scaling network will complete a migration from its long-standing MATIC token to POL, which will then become the native token of its network. The migration is an integral part of the Polygon 2.0 roadmap.
Before the switch, here is an overview of what you can expect from the migration, and what you need to do if you are a MATIC holder.
What is the migration from “MATIC” to “POL”?
The POL migration will phase out MATIC as Polygon’s native token.
Instead of MATIC, POL will become the native gas and staking token for Polygon’s main proof-of-stake chain, Polygon said in a July blog post.
Why is Polygon moving to POL?
The POL migration lays the foundation for Polygon 2.0, the roadmap for Polygon’s evolution to a zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM) system, complete with its own network of interoperable application-specific blockchains.
Per Polygon, POL will add extra functionality to the network. Similar to MATIC, Polygon blockchain validators who participate in staking can earn rewards by repossessing their POL to secure other chains in the Polygon supernet.
In subsequent updates, POL will be used to secure other blockchains within Polygon’s broader “aggregate” network, known as the “AggLayer,” a core component of Polygon 2.0.
The AggLayer will collect zero-knowledge proofs from all connected chains and ensure the security of near-instantaneous, atomic cross-chain transactions. explained in a blog post in January.
Do users need to do anything before POL migration?
MATIC holders in the Polygon proof-of-stake chain do not need to do anything prior to the POL migration, according to Polygon. Their tokens are automatically converted to POL.
Meanwhile, MATIC holders on the Ethereum network can transfer their tokens via the Polygon portal interface.
MATIC holders on the Polygon zkEVM layer-2 network or centralized exchanges may also need to take some action to upgrade MATIC to POL, such as a bridge to Ethereum. An already deployed migration contract is available to help holders move from MATIC to POL on Ethereum in a permissionless manner. However, Polygon warns that this process is for advanced users.
Finally, MATIC holders who hold MATIC as ERC-20 tokens in hardware wallets like Ledger may need to manually convert to POL using their wallets, although Polygon has not yet detailed this process.
When is the deadline for converting MATIC to POL?
There is currently no deadline for MATIC holders on Ethereum and Polygon zkEVM to convert MATIC to POL, according to Polygon’s blog post.
However, the Polygon community may be given the authority to set a deadline in the future, Polygon said in its post.