DeFi On Mantle - Securing More Voting Power On Stratum Exchange

Stratum was my first dive into the Mantle Network! The exchange is a native liquidity hub built as a public good to drive TVL and user acquisition to the Mantle ecosystem.

Taking inspiration from Solidly and Velodrome, Stratum utilizes the ‘vote escrow’ NFT (veNFT) model, to deliver a protocol on which the projects building on Mantle to derive sustainable liquidity for their tokens and enable users to transact in a cost effective and frictionless manner.

Stratum uses two tokens to manage its utility and governance: $STRAT (ERC-20 utility token) and $veSTRAT (ERC-721 governance token in the form of an NFT). You can lock your STRAT to earn rewards and governance rights. Each locked position is created and represented as an NFT, meaning you can hold multiple locked positions.

The reward came as a veNFT, claimable upon launch. I feel good about receiving mint #100, which came with 2,184.00 locked $STRAT! Managed to get some $MNT for the fees and claimed my NFT. The next step was to use it for gauge voting!

I secured more voting power by locking more $STRAT into my NFT! Tippled the amount of tokens locked until February 2024, and upgraded the power of my veSTRAT to 5,556!

The veSTRAT holders decide which liquidity pools receive emissions in a given epoch by voting on their preferred liquidity pool gauges. The $STRAT emissions are distributed proportionally to the total number of votes a liquidity pool receives, while voters receive 100% of the trading fees and bribes collected through the liquidity pool they voted for.

The best way to amplify rewards is to vote wisely and see which pools have the highest APR! The STRAT - wMNT always delivered some good returns, and the PUFF meme coin is one of my favorites. I usually rotate the votes for other pools as well, to diversify my holdings.

The weekly voting epochs end on Wednesday but I tent to leave the rewards unclaimed for few weeks. This makes the claiming more efficient, as similar earnings will add up on top of the old ones.

The April's bounty was rich in USDC, with infusions of fBOMB, PUFF and a plethora of ETH versions. I also collected different stablecoins, which I will let idle in the wallet. Swapped the USDC for MNT, as the native token of the chain has (in my opinion) potential to grow!

The May's bounty wasn't that rich, but still managed to farm a good range of tokens. I've added veSTRAT rewards to the NFT, farmed USDC and PUFF, plus wrapped MNT.

I applied the same strategy, and swapped or unwrapped in MNT. It's interesting to see how much I will farm from voting in one year, then I will consider if I will lock the $STRATUM for a shorter period or not.

The reward so far is outstanding, going for nothing on Mantle to 21 $MNT and other bounties. I like fBOMB & PUFF as memecoins, and the amount of stablecoins is growing nicely.

On top of the voting rewards I also earn veSTRAT, which is added automatically as voting power with each claim. Four months into this journey, and the Mantle exploration looks good!