The Request Network Foundation promotes the adoption of blockchain by providing a framework which allows everyone to develop their own financial solutions based on the Request Network technology. The Foundation establishes a standard for blockchain transactions, shaping the future of payments (i.e. invoices, loans, payments, salary, donations) and their compliance for accounting, tax and audit integration.

The first month of the Request Network on Ethereum mainnet is a fact. Since the launch over 200 requests have been created successfully. With the Request Network protocol live, you can send and receive payment requests to anyone securely without the need of an intermediary.

In this update we celebrate the launch of the first WooCommerce plugin that uses the Request Network to accept cryptocurrencies. We update you on both ERC20 and BTC support including release dates and supported tokens, and we have a small update on the new roadmap. Lastly, we touch base on Consensus 2018 to make sure you have the chance to meet us in NYC!

Excited yet? Let’s dive right into this week’s Project Update.

Request Network now available for WooCommerce!

Request Network is now available for WooCommerce

As of today it will be even easier to accept cryptocurrency payments online, as we celebrate the release of the first decentralized payments plugin for WooCommerce — powered by Request Network.

Handcrafted by Adam (AdmREQ), an active developer from the Request Network Hub, Request Network for WooCommerce is an easy way to accept cryptocurrency payments for anyone that is using the WooCommerce shop platform. The plugin has no fees or hidden costs, and allows you to integrate a cryptocurrency payment gateway within your existing eCommerce environment in a few simple steps. Best of all — it’s 100% free!

Integrating Request Network with WooCommerce is a great way to promote wider blockchain adoption. WooCommerce is currently the most used eCommerce platform on the web. When looking at the entire internet on Built With, the current 2018 market share for WooCommerce is an impressive 42% of all eCommerce websites.

As talked about in the project update of March 30th, building the Payments app is one of first apps the Foundation is focusing on. While expanding the Payments app with features such as an easy-to-use dashboard that shows all requests in real-time, it’s very promising to see the community developing alternatives simultaneously. The WooCommerce plugin is an example of this, and we stimulate anyone to join the community Hub on Slack to contribute to this decentralized workforce.

Is your website using WooCommerce for all your e-commerce efforts? Start accepting cryptocurrencies today by installing the plugin from www.wooreq.com.

Read the full release message by Adam on his Medium here.

ERC20 on Request Network, announcing the first supported tokens: DGX, DAI, KNC, OMG & REQ

Good news on ERC20 support progression! The ERC20 contracts are currently being audited by Clement Lesaege, CTO at Kleros, prior to mainnet launch. Once audit has passed without major vulnerabilities, the ongoing bug bounty listed here will include the ERC20 smart contracts.

When we launch ERC20 support on Request Network mainnet, the first selection of ERC20 tokens that will be supported are DGX, DAI, OMG, KNC, & REQ. The list of supported tokens will expand as we progress.

Implementation of the first supported ERC20 tokens on the Request Network mainnet is set to happen in between now and the end of May 2018.

Bitcoin supported on Request Network testnet!

As highlighted in the Project Update of the 30th of March, prioritization led to a slight delay in launching BTC support on the Request Network mainnet. To quote ourselves: Bitcoin implementation will be launched on mainnet when we are 100% sure that it functions as you would expect.

In the last month, we’ve made great progress. We are happy to inform you that we have launched Bitcoin support on the Request Network testnet. Developers can now test BTC transactions on testnet by directly using the library on Github. After successful tests, Bitcoin support will move towards mainnet.

Bitcoin support on mainnet allows anyone to request and receive payments in BTC, alongside ETH and supported ERC20 tokens. When cross-currency transactions are supported, people will be able to seamlessly request a payment in whichever currency suits their preference.

Deployment of Bitcoin support on mainnet is set to commence before the end of May 2018.

Roadmap 2.0: What to expect

The Foundation is happy to see the great amount of interest caused by the reimagined roadmap, which we are currently finalizing. To keep the Request Network ecosystem as decentralized as possible, the Foundation is using a bottom-up approach in prioritizing our current and future roadmap. This means that all data (including feedback) coming from the community, foundation team, businesses and technological advancements within the blockchain industry is merged together, forming a priority roadmap for and by the full Request Network ecosystem.

We do want to give a short summary of what you can expect to see in this new way of measuring the Foundation performance:

To more transparently track overall project progression, we will move away from quarterly based milestones, and move towards real-time tracking progress which contributes to reaching bigger missions. An inspiring example of a blockchain project that incorporates such a roadmap style is Cosmos Network.

To give the community greater insights in the role of the Foundation within the ecosystem, we incorporate department specific missions in our roadmap.

Progression is updated directly when progress is made. This means you don’t have to wait for the Project Updates to stay informed with the current project status, increasing transparency in real-time. The bi-weekly update schedule will stay unchanged for now, but might become more dynamic in the future based on community feedback.

Tracking the testing and adoption of multiple scaling solutions that are currently being developed by other teams. Finding and implementing a way to scale the Request Network while staying truly decentralized is our number one priority and is something we are progressing on daily.

To be more agile and leading as a network, we will continuously evaluate current progression and opportunities within the broader blockchain industry and shuffle prioritization of Foundation development accordingly. This means the roadmap will become a fluid, ever moving dashboard of current priorities rather than a set-in-stone roadmap which could become less relevant as industry demand moves in a different direction.

The reimagined roadmap will be available on our website when it’s finalized. Make sure to follow our official social media channels to be the first to know.

Perfecting the Request Network library

With releasing the beta version of the Request Network on mainnet, we have already started enhancing the current library, making it even easier and intuitive to use by our community developers.

This new version of the library is finished, and we are now testing it to make sure everything works as intended. Once documentation is finished and cross-checked, the new library will be made available to use by anyone through npm, with the source code on Github.

Meet us at Consensus 2018

We are fully focused on connecting with potential partners at Consensus 2018

As Consensus 2018 is getting closer, our main goal of visiting the event has shifted slightly. As we will now fully focus connecting with potential partners, it makes sense that our Strategic Partnerships manager Christophe Fonteneau is attending too. To stay efficient, he will take over the spot of Etienne at the event. Christophe will join Robbin in New York City next month.

While we gear up for attendance, we’re looking forward to meet you. Please get in contact with us by sending an inquiry towards the contact form. This way we can schedule any meetings in advance.

You will be able to follow part of our adventures on Twitter. Pay close attention, as we will be giving clues on where to find one of the limited edition Request Network power banks to keep you charged all day long! ⚡

Join the Request Network Foundation!

Are you passionate about blockchain technology, do you want to contribute to a better tomorrow and do you feel connected with our Culture?

We’re still actively looking for talented people that want to bring their unique skill set to the team. Make sure to let us know what your dream job would be at the Request Network Foundation by mailing your resume & motivational letter to jobs@request.network, or look for open positions on our job board!