MASTER ROADMAP
what's built · what's next · what's a multi-year vision · effort estimates throughout✓ DONE — shipped today, verifiable in repo
◐ IN-PROGRESS — partially built
◯ PLANNED — clear scope, solo-doable
⚠ HARD — needs real team / capital / multi-quarter
⊕ READ THIS FIRST
This is the entire Liqua scope — from current EVM exchange through native L1 + full ecosystem. Most of it is multi-year work for a real team with real capital.- Phase 0–2 is solo / small-team achievable. Stabilize, deploy to testnet, ship core DeFi additions. ~3 months end-to-end at the current pace.
- Phase 3 is small-team work. 3–6 months, 5–8 people, ~$80k/mo + audits.
- Phase 4 (native Liqua L1) is real engineering. 12–18 months, senior Rust + Solidity team, $1.5–2.5M total including audits.
- Phase 5 (full ecosystem maturity) is multi-year. Foundation, treasury, listings, partnerships — that's a $10M+ ongoing organization, not a project.
WHAT EXISTS
PHASE 0 · STABILIZE
PHASE 1 · TESTNET
PHASE 2 · DEFI EXPANSION
PHASE 3 · ECOSYSTEM INFRA
PHASE 4 · LIQUA L1
PHASE 5 · FULL ECOSYSTEM
PARALLEL TRACKS
COST + TEAM TABLE
HONEST CONCLUSION
DONE
WHAT EXISTS TODAY · the current EVM exchange
Everything in this block is shipped Solidity / Node / HTML / JS code running on Hardhat local today, and ready to deploy to Base Sepolia / Arb Sepolia testnets.
| item | ||
|---|---|---|
| ✓ | done | Exchange.sol — 0x-style EIP-712 orderbook fillOrder · partialFill · cancelOrder · cancelAllBefore (epoch mass-cancel) · setFee · transferOwnership · 20 tests passing |
| ✓ | done | InfinityFactory + InfinityPool UniV2-style x·y=k AMM · 0.30% LP fee · flash-swap callback · seeded at deploy |
| ✓ | done | Matchmaker.sol atomic orderbook ↔ AMM cross via flash-swap · keeper-callable · profit-only · 5 tests |
| ✓ | done | LiquaToken (ERC-20) 100M cap · owner-mintable · burnable · ownership-transferable |
| ✓ | done | LiquaStaking multi-token reward accumulator · sweepIn pattern · 11 tests cover gaming + late-staker + orphan reward + no-LIQUA-as-reward |
| ✓ | done | Off-chain relayer (Express + ws) 8 fleets (INGEST·BOOK·WATCH·SELF·HEALTH·CHAT·EXTERNAL·AMM·MATCHMAKER) · molecular telemetry · LEDGER + kernel persistence · /ws fan-out |
| ✓ | done | Live Binance ETH/USDT mirror binance-mirror keeper signs Liqua orders from real depth · book stays continuously full · anyone can fill |
| ✓ | done | 8 frontend pages trade · profile · staking · explorer · api docs · spec · mining demo · roadmap (this page) |
| ✓ | done | Wallet derivation CLI BIP-39 HD wallets · --cold/--hot split · --out file mode |
| ✓ | done | MM bot scripts mm-quoter · mm-arber · rogue-order (chaos tests) · probe (diagnostic) |
PHASE 0
STABILIZE the current build
Clean up before any public deploy. Mostly housekeeping — no new product features. Goal: anyone with the repo can
npm install && npm run chain && npm run deploy:local && npm run relayer and have everything Just Work.| item | ||
|---|---|---|
| ◯ | 1 d | README + GETTING_STARTED.md explain repo layout · how to run · where each piece lives · known gotchas (cancun fork, viaIR, no double-deploy) |
| ◯ | 1 d | CI on GitHub Actions run npm test on every push · matrix Node 20/22 · matrix Hardhat/Foundry · cache deps |
| ◯ | 2 d | One-command runner npm run start:all — spawns chain + deploys + starts relayer + tails logs in one terminal · concurrently-style supervisor |
| ◯ | 1 d | Fix kernel staleness on redeploy currently must manually delete book.kernel.json · auto-detect address mismatch on relayer boot → clear stale state |
| ◯ | 2 d | Settings module extract env-var config into one place · validate on boot · fail loud if misconfigured |
| ◯ | 1 d | Frontend WS subscription UI currently polls · subscribe to /ws topics for instant updates (book/trades/external/health) |
| ◯ | 2 d | Balance-aware mirror mirror posts orders without checking quoter balance · cap order size to available balance, refuse if depleted |
| ◯ | 1 d | Logging cleanup structured logs · log levels · single transport · drop console.log spam |
PHASE 1
TESTNET DEPLOY · publicly accessible
Get Liqua running where anyone can use it. Base Sepolia is the primary target (cheap, fast, Coinbase-backed). Arb Sepolia as backup.
| item | ||
|---|---|---|
| ◯ | 1 d | Funded testnet wallet drip Base Sepolia + Arb Sepolia faucets · cold-derive deployer key separately |
| ◯ | 1 d | Deploy contracts to Base Sepolia npm run deploy:baseSepolia · verify on Basescan · update shared/deployment.json |
| ◯ | 3 d | Public relayer hosting Railway / Fly.io / Render · persistent volume for kernel · auto-restart · env-var config · custom domain (relayer.liqua.app) |
| ◯ | 1 d | Public frontend hosting Vercel / Netlify / Cloudflare Pages · static-only (no SSR needed) · domain at app.liqua.app |
| ◯ | 2 d | Monitoring Sentry for relayer + frontend errors · Better Uptime for endpoints · Grafana Cloud for /api/health charts |
| ◯ | 3 d | WalletConnect integration @walletconnect/ethereum-provider · QR pairing · works with Trust, Rainbow, MM Mobile · adds ~80 lines to each page |
| ◯ | 2 d | Faucet UI /faucet.html · pull testnet ETH from a relayer-held key · rate-limit per IP + per address |
| ◯ | 2 d | Performance smoke tests k6 / artillery load test against relayer · WS subscriber count limits · book ingest throughput |
| ◯ | 2 d | Privacy + ToS simple privacy policy · ToS noting "experimental software, no financial advice, testnet only" |
| ◯ | 3 d | Discord + governance forum community Discord · Discourse or Commonwealth for governance discussion · bot pipes /api/health into a #status channel |
PHASE 2
CORE DEFI EXPANSION · veLIQUA + bridge + governance
Build out the Solidity surface to match the chain spec — but on existing L2s, not yet on Liqua's own chain. Most of the spec's design fits as ordinary EVM contracts.
| item | ||
|---|---|---|
| ◯ | 1 wk | LiquaVoteLock.sol (veLIQUA) lock LIQUA 1d–4y · boost = 1.0 + (lockDur/4y) · hard lock (no early withdraw) · vote weight = boost × stake · 15+ tests |
| ◯ | 1 wk | /locked.html dashboard top 100 lockers · total LIQUA locked + $ value · avg duration · cliff calendar · time-series chart · stake×duration scatter |
| ◯ | 2 wk | LiquaGovernance.sol — 98% supermajority propose · vote (YES/NO/ABSTAIN) · 50% quorum · 7d window · 48h timelock · vote weight snapshotted at proposal · delegation |
| ◯ | 1 wk | DAO voting UI /governance.html · active proposals · vote with your veLIQUA · proposal authoring form · history |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Multi-pair UI currently hardcoded mWETH/mUSDC · pair selector dropdown · per-pair orderbooks · per-pair AMM pool detection |
| ◯ | 3 d | WETH wrap/unwrap UI native ETH can't transferFrom · wrap-to-WETH before trading · unwrap-on-withdraw · UI helper widget |
| ◯ | 3 d | EIP-1271 in Exchange signature check falls through to ERC-1271 isValidSignature() for contract wallets · Safe/Argent users can post orders |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Hardware wallet integration Ledger via @ledgerhq/iframe-provider · UI test EIP-712 + ERC-20 approve · works with Ledger Live |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Subgraph (The Graph hosted) index Fill/Cancel/Sync/Matched/Stake/Unstake/Vote events · GraphQL endpoint for historical queries · powers analytics |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Notification service email/push when: order fills · stake unlock approaches · proposal opens/closes · liquidation-equivalents · webhook delivery for power users |
| ⚠ | 2–3 wk | Mainnet bridge via existing protocols use Wormhole / Axelar / LayerZero standard pattern · NOT building our own bridge · LIQUA flows from L2 to other chains · documented trust assumptions per protocol |
| ⚠ | 3–4 wk | First external audit Trail of Bits / OpenZeppelin / Spearbit · $30–60k · Exchange + Staking + VoteLock + Governance · fix findings before mainnet |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Bug bounty program Immunefi · tiered payouts based on severity · funded from treasury · scope: deployed contracts |
PHASE 3
ECOSYSTEM INFRASTRUCTURE · SDKs · wallets · DeFi apps · the "missing" list
Build the things real users need: mobile wallets, SDKs in multiple languages, analytics, NFT, launchpad. Most of the items the user flagged as "missing/forgotten" live here.
Developer stack
| ◯ | 2 wk | JS SDK (liqua-sdk) typed client for relayer REST + WS · helpers for order signing · npm publish |
| ◯ | 2 wk | Python SDK pip package · async + sync · primarily for bot devs and backtesters |
| ◯ | 3 wk | Rust SDK for HFT bots and infra · matches JS SDK API surface |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | AI Agent SDK tool definitions for Claude / GPT to interact with Liqua · sign orders · query book · monitor positions · backed by JS SDK |
| ◯ | 2 wk | Public docs site Docusaurus or Astro · API ref · tutorials · architecture diagrams · spec content moved over |
Wallets + identity
| ⚠ | 1 mo | PWA wallet installable from browser · works offline for signing · keys in IndexedDB (encrypted) · designed mobile-first |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Browser extension wallet MetaMask-equivalent for Liqua · injects window.ethereum · multi-account · seed import/export · ~3-engineer-month |
| ⚠ | 3–6 mo | Native mobile (iOS + Android) React Native or Flutter · biometric unlock · push notifications · App Store / Play Store review |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | LiquaNS (name service) register liqua.name strings · resolve address ↔ name · subdomain support · reverse records · ENS-compatible interfaces |
| ⚠ | 1–2 mo | Identity layer DID-style profile attached to address · verifiable claims (KYC where required, badges, reputation scores) · opt-in |
| ⚠ | 3 wk | Key management service MPC custody option for institutions · shard threshold · works alongside (not replacing) self-custody |
Data + analytics
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Analytics warehouse BigQuery / ClickHouse · pre-aggregated tables for volume, fees, top makers, MM-bot performance |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Data lake S3 + Parquet · raw event archive · ETL pipelines into the warehouse |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Webhooks user-registered HTTP endpoints fired on order/fill/cancel/proposal events · signed payloads for auth |
| ◯ | 2 wk | Event bus (Redis Streams / NATS) decouple relayer publishers from consumers · multiple workers can subscribe without stepping on each other |
| ◯ | 2 wk | Liquidity intelligence dashboard /intelligence.html · maker depth concentration · MM bot fingerprints · suspected wash trading · spread quality |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Governance archive /governance/history.html · every proposal + votes + outcome · permanent record · IPFS pin for off-chain copies |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Chain snapshots periodic state exports · IPFS pinned · enables fast bootstrap of new nodes (matters more in Phase 4) |
Trading + bots
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Backtesting engine replay historical book + trades · strategy sandbox · slippage modeling · uses subgraph data + data lake |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Risk engine per-wallet max drawdown · position size limits · circuit breakers · alerting hooks · for MM bots + treasuries |
| ⚠ | 3 wk | Copy trading subscribe to a leader address · mirror their trades with custom size scaling · opt-in fees split with leader |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Treasury trading framework DAO-controlled trading account · approved strategies · gated by governance vote · reporting dashboard |
DeFi expansion
| ⚠ | 2 mo | NFT marketplace ERC-721/1155 listings · offers · auctions · royalties · integrates LIQUA as payment + fee |
| ◯ | 2 wk | NFT metadata service cached + indexed metadata · trait filtering · rarity scoring · serves marketplace |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Launchpad curated token launches · fair pricing modes (Dutch auction · LBP) · KYC option · vesting schedules |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Cross-chain swaps aggregator pattern — route through 1inch/0x/CowSwap · NOT building swap routing from scratch · UI presents single quote |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Insurance fund contract community-funded pool · pays out on validated incidents (bridge hack, oracle failure) · governance-gated claims |
Ecosystem programs
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Liqua Lab (experiment marketplace) sandbox where outside teams ship strategies / contracts as "experiments" · live with sandboxed risk caps · winners get treasury support |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Grants program treasury-funded · application + review process · quarterly cohorts · public reporting on outcomes |
| ◯ | 2 wk | Ecosystem registry curated directory of projects building on Liqua · self-submission + DAO review |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Token registry verified token list · logo · description · trust signals · UI auto-picks from here |
| ◯ | 1 wk | Asset registry non-token assets — NFT collections, oracle feeds, indexes · metadata + verification |
PHASE 4
LIQUA L1 · native chain · the actual blockchain
Stop being just-an-EVM-app. Ship Liqua's own L1 with RandomX PoW, EVM-compatible execution, multisig bridge, and native LIQUA gas. See /spec.html for the full design. This phase is real engineering — not a solo project.
| item | ||
|---|---|---|
| ⚠ | 6 mo | Fork Reth → RandomX PoW engine strip Reth's PoS engine · link librandomx · checkpoint contract on Ethereum L1 for finality · single-node devnet |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | P2P mesh (libp2p) Reth has this; needs tuning for our block time + checkpoint cadence |
| ⚠ | 2 wk | Genesis tooling + faucet deterministic genesis · initial supply allocation (treasury / staking / airdrop) · testnet faucet |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Multi-node testnet 5+ validator nodes across regions · public testnet for ecosystem to integrate against · 6-month testnet before mainnet |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Reference mining pool fork nodejs-pool (Monero) · stratum-v2 protocol · PPLNS payouts · share validation · admin dashboard |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Liqua-native block explorer richer than /explorer.html (which targets local Hardhat) · archive + indexer · full search · contract verification · token holder pages · token transfer history |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Multisig bridge (5-of-9) Ethereum-side lock-mint · Liqua-side mint-burn · validator client · ops runbook · per-day caps |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Bridge monitoring PagerDuty integration · real-time alerts on suspicious patterns · per-validator health · auto-pause hooks |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Validator hosting portal /validators.html · how-to-run-a-validator · one-click deploy to AWS/Hetzner/etc. · health monitoring |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Validator marketplace curated list of validator operators · commission rates · uptime history · delegator selection UI |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Delegator dashboard stake LIQUA with a validator · auto-compound rewards · slashing exposure · withdrawal queue |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Archive nodes long-term historical state (all blocks since genesis) · runs publicly at archive.liqua.app · enables historical queries beyond what light clients can do |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | Indexers (Postgres) block + tx + log indexer feeding analytics + explorer · designed for HA + rebuild-from-genesis |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | RPC clusters load-balanced public RPC · WSS subscriptions · rate-limited free tier + paid premium |
| ⚠ | 1 mo | GraphQL API layer complement REST + WS · powers complex queries (e.g. "all txs from address X in last week affecting contract Y") |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Light client browser-runnable trustless client · verifies block headers + checkpoint contracts · powers wallets that don't trust RPC providers |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | State sync fast-bootstrap new nodes from snapshot · enables joining without replaying all history |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Cross-chain messaging arbitrary message passing between Liqua ↔ Ethereum (built on top of the bridge) · enables governance signals, token migrations, etc. |
| ⚠ | 2 mo | Oracle network decentralized price feeds · Chainlink-style aggregation · feeds LIQUA/USD, ETH/USD, etc. · governance-curated oracle set |
| ⚠ | 3 mo | Reward Claim L2 contract the "keypair instance" + L2-gated claim mechanism from spec §4 · K-confirmation enforcement · slashing + bonus hooks |
PHASE 5
FULL ECOSYSTEM MATURITY · foundation · listings · zk · multi-year
Everything from here on is "real company" work — legal entities, real treasury management, exchange listings, ongoing operations. This is what successful chain projects build over years, NOT what one engineer ships.
| item | ||
|---|---|---|
| ⚠ | 6 mo | ZK proof bridge replaces multisig with a zk-SNARK proving Ethereum block contained Locked() event · trustless · ~$1M engineering project |
| ⚠ | multi-yr | zk Proof Layer (general) L2 / validium for Liqua-specific high-throughput apps · scope and design TBD as ecosystem grows |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Foundation (legal entity) Swiss / Cayman / Singapore association · IP holder · grants administrator · long-term steward · ~6 months legal setup |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Treasury management system multisig treasury · diversified holdings · spending approvals through governance · public reporting |
| ⚠ | ongoing | CEX listings Binance / Coinbase / Kraken / OKX · each has its own bar (volume, legal, market making commitment) · don't pursue until Phase 4 stable |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Partnerships integrations with major DeFi protocols · cross-chain liquidity deals · ongoing biz dev role |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Recovery procedures documented protocol-level response playbooks · emergency multisig procedures · communication protocols · disaster drills |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Insurance fund operations real treasury reserves · validated incident process · claim adjudication via DAO vote · transparent payouts |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Security org dedicated security team · regular external audits (every release) · monitoring infrastructure · incident response on-call |
| ⚠ | ongoing | Compliance + legal per jurisdiction MiCA in EU · evolving US framework · APAC patchwork · ongoing legal review per market |
PARALLEL
TRACKS THAT RUN ACROSS ALL PHASES
These don't slot into one phase — they're ongoing functions that mature alongside the technical roadmap.
⌬ AUDITS
- Phase 2 → first external audit (Exchange + Staking + VoteLock + Governance)
- Phase 3 → audit per new major component
- Phase 4 → consensus audit (cryptographer-grade)
- Phase 5 → ongoing per-release audits + formal verification of critical paths
⌬ DOCUMENTATION
- README + GETTING_STARTED (Phase 0)
- Public docs site (Phase 3)
- API + SDK references kept current with releases
- Architecture deep-dives (per L1 component, Phase 4)
⌬ COMMUNITY
- Discord (Phase 1)
- Governance forum / Discourse (Phase 1)
- Grants program (Phase 3)
- Liqua Lab + experiment marketplace (Phase 3)
- Conferences + meetups (Phase 4+)
⌬ MARKETING
- Locked-liquidity dashboard as transparent proof-of-commitment (Phase 2)
- Public testnet launch announcement (Phase 1)
- Brand site at liqua.app (Phase 1)
- Whitepaper + spec polished for distribution (Phase 2)
- Listings + exchange partnerships (Phase 5)
⌬ BUG BOUNTY
- Internal bounty program (Phase 2)
- Immunefi listing (Phase 2 onward)
- Tiered payouts funded from treasury
- Critical bug payouts in 6+ figures (Phase 4+)
⌬ COMPLIANCE
- ToS + Privacy (Phase 1)
- Token launch legal review (Phase 2)
- Per-jurisdiction analysis (Phase 3+)
- MiCA compliance for EU (Phase 4+)
- Ongoing legal counsel (Phase 5)
COST
HONEST COST + TEAM TABLE
If anyone tells you Phase 4 can be done for less than $1M, they've either never built a real L1 or they're lying. Same for Phase 5 and $10M.
| phase | wallclock | team size | monthly burn | one-time costs | total range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase 0 · Stabilize | 1–2 weeks | solo | $0 | — | $0 |
| Phase 1 · Testnet | 2–4 weeks | solo | $200 hosting | $50 domains | ~$500 |
| Phase 2 · DeFi expansion | 1–2 months | 2–3 ppl | $20–30k salaries | $30–60k first audit | ~$80k–$120k |
| Phase 3 · Ecosystem infra | 3–6 months | 5–8 ppl | $60–100k salaries | $100k+ multiple audits | ~$400k–$800k |
| Phase 4 · Liqua L1 | 12–18 months | 5–8 senior Rust+Sol | $80–120k salaries | $200k+ audits, $50k tooling, $50k hosting | $1.5M–$2.5M |
| Phase 5 · Full ecosystem | 2–4+ years | full org (15–30+) | $300k+ salaries + ops | ongoing audits, listings, partnerships | $10M+ ongoing |
TOTALS
BY-THE-NUMBERS
DONE
10
contracts + pages + bots
PLANNED (◯)
~40
solo / small team
HARD (⚠)
~50
team + capital
TOTAL ITEMS
~100
across 6 phases
⊕ HONEST CONCLUSION
This entire plan is technically achievable. It is not achievable solo or quickly past Phase 2.If you're solo or near-solo: ship Phase 0 + Phase 1 cleanly. Then Phase 2 if you want to be on a real testnet with usable features. Stop there. That gets you to "Liqua exchange, working, public testnet, with a credible spec doc for the future L1." That is itself an excellent portfolio piece + demo + proof-of-thinking.
If you raise (~$2–3M seed): Phases 0–4 over 18 months with a senior team of 5–8. End state: live L1 testnet + EVM L2 product · early ecosystem · ready to launch mainnet pending audits + listings.
If you raise (~$10M+ Series A): Phases 0–5 over 3–4 years with a real org. End state: live mainnet · CEX listings · grants ecosystem · brand + community · ongoing operations. This is what successful L1s like Avalanche, Aptos, Sui, Sei looked like at year 3+ — all of them raised $200M–$300M and spent it.
The roadmap doesn't change based on who's building. The cost does. Pick the phase you can honestly finance and stop there until the next dollar arrives. Don't promise Phase 4 features in marketing if you haven't funded a 6-person Rust team for a year.
Update this page as items move from ◯ to ◐ to ✓. It's both the punch list and the truth-teller.