An In-Depth Guide to the Kin Foundation Grant Program

A Step-By-Step Guide to the Application and Approval Process for Kin Grants

The Kin Foundation has announced the start of its Grant Program, allowing qualified teams and individuals to apply for grants of Kin in order to bring meaningful contributions to the ecosystem.

Here is an in-depth guide on the Kin Foundation Grant Program, and the new & improved application and approval process.

Grant Program Overview

The Kin Foundation is offering Kin grants to qualified teams and individuals that can successfully bring meaningful contributions to the Kin Ecosystem. The Kin Foundation currently has an open call for proposals from developers and service providers who believe they can generate additional demand for Kin as a currency with their applications.

Goals

The purpose of the Grant Program is to incentivize Kin developers to make strategic contributions to the Kin Ecosystem in an open, fair and transparent way.

Grant seekers that submit a proposal to develop a strategic initiative that is approved by the Kin Foundation may receive a grant of Kin upon the completion of certain milestones.

The Kin community will have an opportunity to comment on proposals that are going to be reviewed by the Board.

Grant seekers will have an opportunity to pitch their ideas before the Board and Kin Representatives.

Eligibility

All developers, both individuals and teams, are welcome to submit grant proposals. Each applicant should designate a sponsor, who will present the proposal to the Kin Board and Representatives.

Only grant seekers that are residents in jurisdictions where the program is legally permissible may seek a grant. All grantees are subject to all rules of compliance, including KYC and AML regulations, where applicable.

Any Board Member or Representative who has a material direct or indirect interest in a proposal would be required to disclose the interest and recuse him/herself from discussion and vote.

Grant Specifications

Approved applications will be subject to a one year holding period, contingent upon completion of specified milestones.

Developers may request an upfront award of a portion of the Kin grant to cover costs. Decisions whether to provide such upfront grants and the terms of any grant are subject to the sole discretion of the Kin Foundation.

All IP developed as a result of a Kin Foundation grant must be subject to open-source licenses to ensure the continued development of the Ecosystem.

Application Process

Step 1: Complete Application

The first step is completing the grant application form here: https://form.jotform.com/193437571993169

The application will be checked for completeness, validity, and accuracy. After applying you may be contacted for a consultation session, in which clarification might be sought, and feedback given on the application before it is presented to the Kin Foundation Board. Applicants may also request a consultation session. To expedite the potential approval of your grant, make sure that proposals are complete and specific, explaining clearly what problem is being solved and the perceived benefits to the Ecosystem.

Step 2: Comment Period

After being contacted by the Kin Foundation, your sponsor will be invited to publish the latest version of their proposal (after receiving any necessary consultation) on Github via the KF Grant Program RFC repository for a 20-day period to allow community comment.

Step 3: Initial Application Review by Kin Foundation management

Once your proposal has gone through its comment period, its most recent iteration will go through an initial economic analysis and summarization, and the combined summary and analysis will be presented to the Kin Foundation for review.

Step 4: Sponsor Presentation at Board meeting

Following receipt of the application the Kin Foundation Board will invite the sponsor to present their proposal to the full Board including Representatives at a monthly meeting.

The Board and Representatives will have the opportunity to ask questions directly to the sponsor.

After presentation, the Board and Representatives will then discuss the proposal together without the sponsor present, and Representatives will signal approval or disapproval in a nonbinding vote.

Proposals may be sent back to sponsors for additional information and clarification, to be presented at the next meeting.

Step 5: Approval/Disapproval

The next step is the vote by the Board, for approval or disapproval.

Whether approved or disapproved, the sponsor will be notified of the result.

The board may, but is not required to, reconsider its vote upon application from the sponsor.

Step 6: Contracting

If approved, all Teams shall provide information for payment and KYC purposes.

Legal contracts including milestones will be drawn.

Note: For efficiency, it is expected that legal contracts will be substantially similar, with only specific economic terms subject to negotiation.

All grants will be subject to a one-year holding period; however, initial “up-front” milestone payments of immediately liquid Kin may be provided under specific conditions. Typically, this would be no more than 20% of the total grant.

Generally speaking, it is expected that IP created with Foundation grant assistance will be subject to open-source license.

Step 7: Execution and Payments

Grantees will provide information to Kin to enable validation of completion.

Upon validation of milestones being met, agreed-upon payments would be made, subject to holding periods.