## Sovryn is Live: The Alpha Launch and the Path Forward
Community Call #20 was a celebration of a monumental achievement: the **Sovryn protocol is officially live on mainnet**. The team marked this historic moment and then immediately set expectations for the journey ahead, explaining the nature of the ‘alpha’ launch and outlining the high-level roadmap for the future.
### The Alpha Launch: A New Beginning
The launch of `alpha.sovryn.app` brought the core features of the protocol to the public for the first time. Users could now, with real assets, perform key DeFi actions on Bitcoin:
* **Permissionless Swapping:** Trade assets via the Sovryn Automated Market Maker (AMM).
* **Lending and Borrowing:** Deposit assets to earn interest or borrow against collateral.
* **Margin Trading:** Open leveraged long or short positions.
### What ‘Alpha’ Means
The team was clear that ‘alpha’ signifies that the protocol is new, experimental, and still evolving. While the code has been audited, the alpha phase is a period of real-world, battle-testing. Users were encouraged to start with small amounts of capital and to be aware that the user interface was still a work in progress. This cautious approach prioritizes security and responsible iteration.
### The High-Level Roadmap
The alpha launch was just the beginning. The team outlined the major milestones on the road to a full public release:
1. **Token Genesis Event:** The initial distribution of the SOV governance token to decentralize ownership.
2. **Launch of Bitocracy:** The activation of on-chain, community-led governance.
3. **Continuous Improvement:** Ongoing work to enhance the user interface, optimize smart contract gas costs, and improve performance.
4. **New DeFi Primitives:** The research and development of future products, such as a native stablecoin and perpetual swaps.
5. **Security Fortification:** A continuous cycle of security audits and the launch of a public bug bounty program.
This call marked the transition of Sovryn from an idea to a living, breathing financial protocol on Bitcoin. It set the tone for the next phase of the project: one of building in public, listening to the community, and relentlessly iterating towards the vision of a complete, sovereign financial system.