ZKSync Aims to Revamp Its Tokenomics Model

Welcome to The Protocol, CoinDesk’s weekly wrap of the most important stories in cryptocurrency tech development. I’m Margaux Nijkerk, a reporter at CoinDesk.

In this issue:

• ZKsync Proposal Aims to Tie ZK Token to Network Revenue
• Olas Unveils Pearl v1, the First ‘AI Agent App Store’
• Ethereum Developers Lock In Fusaka Upgrade for Dec. 3 With PeerDAS Rollout
• The Graph Builders, Edge & Node, Unveil “ampersend” Dashboard to Manage AI Agent Payments

Network News

PROPOSAL TO CHANGE ZKSYNC TOKENOMICS: The creator behind the Ethereum layer-2 network ZKsync introduced a proposal to transform its ZK token from a governance instrument into a token with real economic utility. The proposal, “From Governance to Utility: ZK Token Proposal, Part I,” published by Alex Gluchowski in the ZKsync community forum, outlines how network usage and enterprise licensing could directly feed value back into the token’s economy. The move could shift how ZKsync’s ecosystem will generate and distribute value. Instead of ZK functioning purely as a governance token, the proposal would make network activity, like interoperability and enterprise use, directly influence its economy. The proposal argues that the network’s growing ecosystem, which now includes modular chains, private “Prividium” networks and a cross-chain interoperability layer known as the Elastic chain, needs a token model that evolves with it. “The ZK token began as a tool for governance,” the post says. “Through governance, it can now become the heartbeat of an incorruptible economy.” Under the plan, ZKsync would introduce two main revenue streams. The first would come from onchain interoperability fees, charged when users move assets or messages between the rollups in the ecosystem. The second would be offchain licensing revenue from enterprise tools such as compliance or reporting modules tailored for institutions building on the protocol. — Margaux Nijkerk Read more.

OLAS UNVEILS FIRST AI AGENT APP STORE: Olas unveiled Pearl v1, a decentralized “AI agent app store” that lets users own and operate autonomous AI agents, blending, it said, the ease of Web2 with the self-sovereignty of Web3. Unlike centralized AI platforms that rent access to users, Pearl gives full control and transparency: every agent action is verifiable onchain. Users can start with familiar logins like Google or Apple, fund agents via card and retain full data custody. Built on principles of ownership, curation and transparency, Pearl offers a growing library of agents for finance, creative and social use cases. The introduction follows a beta success story where Modius, a decentralized finance trading agent, earned over 150% return on investment in 150 days. “Centralized infrastructure has achieved global reach and performance, yet this concentration means decisions or faults can strip users of their data and work completely. This is why ownership is so important,” David Minarsch, a founding member of Olas, said in the release. — Will Canny Read more.

FUSAKA ON ETHEREUM MAINNET INKED IN: Ethereum developers officially inked in the long-awaited Fusaka upgrade for Dec. 3 during the network’s bi-weekly coordination call. The decision kicks off the countdown to Ethereum’s second hard fork of 2025. The upgrade’s headline feature is PeerDAS. PeerDAS, one of 12 improvements included in the release, allows validators to verify only portions of data, rather than entire “blobs,” significantly reducing bandwidth requirements and cutting costs for both validators and layer-2 networks. This will make Ethereum faster and cheaper, both for users making transactions and developers building on the network. The decision was finalized during the All Core Developers Consensus Layer (ACDC) call #168, just two days after the upgrade was successfully deployed on Hoodi, the third and final testnet, without any issues. The upgrade will activate on the Ethereum mainnet when the blockchain reaches slot 13,164,544, expected to occur at 21:49 UTC on Dec. 3. — Margaux Nijkerk Read more.

EDGE & NODE COME OUT WITH AMPERSEND: Edge & Node, the team that created The Graph, launched ampersend, a management platform for coordinating how autonomous AI agents operate and transact, the company said. Built on Coinbase’s x402 payment protocol and Google’s A2A communication framework, ampersend adds automation, observability and compliance controls to what’s becoming known as the “agentic economy.” As AI agents begin to handle payments, data and communication on behalf of users and organizations, the lack of standardization has made their operations difficult to monitor. Coinbase released x402, its agentic payments protocol earlier this year. It’s an open-source system that enables instant stablecoin payments on any website. The addition of ampersend offers a single dashboard where companies can set spending limits, manage policies, and track activity across networks. Edge & Node developed the platform alongside Coinbase, Google, and the Ethereum Foundation’s decentralized AI team. The system also integrates with emerging Ethereum standards like ERC-8004, designed for agent discovery and reputation tracking. – Ian Allison Read more.

In Other News

• Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini (GEMI) is planning a move into the prediction market sector, Bloomberg reported. The exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss discussed unveiling products as soon as possible, according to the report, citing people familiar with the matter. Gemini, which became a publicly traded company on the Nasdaq Global Select Market in September, is eyeing a move into an industry that has gained considerable traction in the last year. Market leaders such as Polymarket and Kalshi shot to prominence during the 2024 U.S. election campaign during which more than $8 billion in bets were made on the former’s platform. This has prompted an array of other firms in the financial, technology and media sectors targeting entries into the market. Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT), the parent company behind President Donald Trump’s social platform Truth Social, said last month it planned to roll out predictions markets in partnership with Crypto.com. — Jamie Crawley Read more.
• The U.S. Treasury imposed fresh sanctions on a group of North Korean bankers and institutions accused of laundering millions in cryptocurrency tied to cyberattacks and illicit IT work schemes that help fund Pyongyang’s weapons programs. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said eight individuals and two entities were designated for “laundering funds derived from cybercrime and information technology worker fraud,” including proceeds linked to ransomware and crypto thefts. “North Korean state-sponsored hackers steal and launder money to fund the regime’s nuclear weapons program,” said Undersecretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley in a press release. — Oliver Knight Read more.

Regulatory and Policy

• Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s chances of getting a fresh trial seem to be dwindling, judging by the pointed questions of an appellate court during a hearing in Manhattan. Bankman-Fried’s push for a new trial largely hinges on his long-standing argument that because the majority of FTX creditors were made whole in the bankruptcy process — which relied heavily on the sale of illiquid assets including real estate and venture capital investments — there was, in fact, no actual theft. During defense attorney Alexandra Shapiro’s presentation, the appellate judges repeatedly cut in to question her arguments. “There’s a right to present evidence as to his intent, absolutely, but I don’t understand what you’re saying about there [being] objective corroboration, when the objective corroboration seems to be that, well, after the bankruptcy, more money was made,” said Circuit Judge Eunice Lee. When Shapiro responded saying that it was clear at the time of the bankruptcy that there were “very valuable assets in the FTX estate that corroborated Mr. Bankman-Fried’s view that [FTX and Alameda Research] were solvent,” another judge, Circuit Judge Maria Araújo Kahn, pushed back, saying: “But [Bankman-Fried’s] misrepresentations were not to solvency, but liquidity … part of the government’s theory of the case is that the defendant misrepresented to investors that their money was safe, was not being used in the way that it was the government claims and the jury convicted it was, in fact, used. So it wasn’t an issue of solvency, right? It was an issue of liquidity, whether they could get their money if they asked for it.” — Cheyenne Ligon Read more.
• President Trump reiterated his claim that he doesn’t know who Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao is during an interview with CBS News. Trump granted Zhao a presidential pardon in October, nearly a year after the executive pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act and served a four-month prison sentence. Trump told CBS’s Norah O’Donnell that Zhao “was treated really badly by the Biden administration,” describing the former Binance CEO as a “victim of weaponization by government.” The president said he had been told Zhao “was set up,” and that his pardon was intended to ensure the U.S. remained competitive in the cryptocurrency sector. “I don’t know the man at all. I don’t think I ever met him,” Trump said during the interview with CBS. “Maybe I did. Or, you know, somebody shook my hand or something. But I don’t think I ever met him. I have no idea who he is. I was told that he was a victim, just like I was and just like many other people.” During the CBS interview, Trump dismissed questions about conflicts of interest, emphasizing his focus on keeping the U.S. “number one in crypto” and insisting his sons’ business ventures were separate from government. — Sam Reynolds Read more.

Calendar

• Nov. 17-22: Devconnect, Buenos Aires
• Dec. 11-13: Solana Breakpoint, Abu Dhabi
• Feb. 10-12, 2026: Consensus, Hong Kong
• Feb. 17-21, 2026: EthDenver, Denver
• Mar. 30-Apr. 2, 2026: EthCC, Cannes
• Apr.15-16, 2026: Paris Blockchain Week, Paris
• May 5-7, 2026: Consensus, Miami