Scaling V4 and Supporting Unichain

Requests for Comment
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Scaling V4 and Supporting Unichain

GFX Labs proposes that the Uniswap DAO allocate funding to support the integration of Uniswap V4 on Ethereum in Oku, grant GFX Labs a blanket license exemption for future V4 deployments, and to add support for Unichain on Oku. This initiative aims to enhance Uniswap’s reach, encourage liquidity migration to V4, and solidify the protocol’s position as the leading decentralized exchange.

Background

In 2022, GFX Labs was granted $1.6M from the Uniswap DAO to scale the Uniswap ecosystem and expand the protocol’s presence across EVM chains. Today, Oku is live across 30+ chains, and we have expanded our services to offer best-in-class bridge and trade aggregation. With a dedicated interface for V3 pool analytics and a simplified LP management interface, Oku has served as a consistent and scalable growth channel for the wider Uniswap ecosystem.

We’ve deployed to a wide range of chains at our own expense – far exceeding the original scope of the grant – and have generated a high ROI by accelerating Uniswap adoption across new environments. Now, with the advent of Uniswap V4, it’s time to build the next generation of tooling for the next wave of liquidity.

Scale V4 and Add Unichain Support

Since the launch of Uniswap V4 in January 2025, we’ve seen a surge in interest from users, partners, and hook developers eager to experiment with the new protocol’s capabilities. As one of the most active contributors to the Uniswap ecosystem infrastructure, GFX Labs views this momentum as a timely opportunity to scale V4 usage, reduce friction for LP’ing, and host an environment for hook developers to showcase their innovative pool adaptations. As we have provided for V3, GFX Labs will develop a dedicated V4 analytics interface to support hooked pool discovery and performance tracking.

Who benefits?

The Uniswap DAO’s ability to expand V4’s reach heavily depends on ecosystem builders and infrastructure. That is why supporting the flywheel between hook builders, liquidity migrators/providers, and traders is crucial. With V4’s flexibility also comes complexity. It is key that each stakeholder’s user experience and needs are addressed and iterated upon so V4 can become the dominant DEX protocol. Oku will fill the gaps and support ecosystem players as a base layer user interface for developers, LPs, traders, and chains. EVM chains with V4 enabled will have separate interfaces to distinguish between hooked and vanilla pools.

Hook Devs: Hook developers thrive when LP’ing is made easy, unlocking exposure to their unique market architecture

LPs: Intuitive position management tools and highlighted yield farming opportunities for V4 pools

Traders: Option to include V4 “hooked” pools for unique trading strategies & best execution

DAO: Expand V4 footprint across all chains and highlight market opportunities for unique market structures

Proposed Plan

V4 Development Scope

  • V4 Liquidity management
  • Pool analytics with historical performance data
  • Oku V4 data API for anyone building in the Uniswap ecosystem
  • Hook pool discovery via V4 analytics dashboard
  • Routing support for V4 traders

For the one-time integration and build-out of V4 on Ethereum Mainnet into Oku, we are requesting a total of $250K. The Uniswap DAO could expect delivery within two months of the proposal passing. Post launch, Oku will continue to improve the V4 interface and iterate based on feedback.

  • Backend infrastructure: $150,000. This would primarily focus on indexing the V4 protocol, adding a routing setup for V4 markets, and updating our peripheral systems to support V4.
  • Frontend development: $100,000. There are two phases here. The first would be designing new UI elements for pool creation, V4 LPing, V4 analytics, V4 trading, and any other UI updates necessary to support V3 and V4 in the same interface. The second phase is implementing the design improvements.

Unichain Deployment on Oku

  • Within two weeks of this proposal passing, Unichain and the V3 deployment will be available in Oku. Unichain users will have access to a full suite of Oku features, including a smart routing system integrated into 10 trade routers and 11 bridges.
  • As soon as we have the minimum viable backend and frontend support for V4, we will integrate the Unichain V4 deployment.

Given our long-standing relationship with the DAO and our concurrent request for the initial V4 integration, GFX Labs will waive the standard integration fee for integrating Unichain with Oku. Recognizing the benefit of a synergistic V3/V4 offering, instead we are requesting $90k - $7.5k per month - to cover operational and maintenance related costs. This cost structure is representative of preferential pricing for the Uniswap DAO.

Permissionless Licensing Agreement

GFX Labs is requesting a blanket Additional Use Grant, which provides licensing permissions for V4 deployments to streamline the process of bringing V4 to new chains. As an established partner of the Uniswap ecosystem, this process maximizes the DAO’s ability to scale efficiently, support hook innovation, and increase V4 pool dominance across EVM. A license for V4 deployments acts as an accelerant for adoption amongst new and existing networks and is critical for the Uniswap ecosystem to defend market dominance. GFX Labs strongly aligns with the UAC’s suggestion to provide licensing rights to maintain a competitive edge before v4 becomes open source. Further, any deployment completed by GFX must be reviewed by the UAC to be considered official.

With a new emphasis on V4 infrastructure, Oku further aligns itself as a standard bearer for the Uniswap ecosystem, with a focus on expanding utility and interoperability across EVM environments. By funding this proposal, the DAO positions itself to scale V4 usage, promote novel onchain markets, and support unique market innovation from the ground up.

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I genuinely believe Oku seems to be one of protocols that falls under grant scopes that the Uniswap Foundation received. Wondering reasons why it fell outside their scope if the team already discussed with the Foundation but they decided not to support part of their grant scope.

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AlphaGrowth, which leads the Uniswap Growth Program, supports this proposal. Through the Growth Program Trail, we’ve seen the critical role front-end partners like Oku play in scaling Uniswap across ecosystems. Oku has supported deployments across 30+ chains and consistently added value by helping Uniswap capture and retain market share. With various networks now exploring Uniswap V4 deployments and networks like Ink already live but lacking front-end infrastructure, Oku is well-positioned to fill this gap and accelerate V4 adoption.

This proposal would also unlock high-potential opportunities currently in our Growth Program pipeline, including networks interested in launching incentive programs with the V4 deployments.

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In general, we’re in favor of scaling v4 and Unichain. GFX Labs has contributed a lot to Uniswap’s multi-chain growth and we support the team. That said, we share the concern raised by @Doo_StableLab regarding the funding approach for this proposal. The $250K request for v4 feels like it falls squarely under the existing UF grants mandate. It seems more sustainable for the UF’s funding pipeline to cover this work, rather than dipping back into DAO treasury funds for an out-of-band request.

From a long-term sustainability perspective, we’d rather see the DAO adhere to established funding channels to avoid overlap or establish precedent for bypassing the Foundation’s role. Our stance is not a critique of Oku/GFX – which we wholeheartedly support – but rather about ensuring we use the right funding mechanism.

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I’d like to ask the proposer @GFXlabs and the broader community: what would be the benefit for Uniswap in deploying Oku on Ethereum —the most important network, where Uniswap already has a strong presence— thereby creating direct competition with its own official front-end and everything that comes with it (brand, integrations, metrics, communication, etc.)?

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Thank you, @Doo_StableLab, @Boardroom, and @alphaGrowth, for your feedback and support. We greatly appreciate AlphaGrowth’s endorsement of Oku’s role in scaling Uniswap’s ecosystem.

To address @Doo_StableLab and @Boardroom’s questions about why we’re pursuing funding directly from the Uniswap DAO rather than the Uniswap Foundation (UF), our reasoning is twofold:

Over the past year, GFX Labs has engaged in multiple conversations with the UF about building tooling for Uniswap V4 and integrating Oku with Unichain. We shared our vision for supporting hook developers, LPs, and traders with V4 analytics, LP management, and trading interfaces, as well as enabling Unichain’s V3 and V4 deployments. However, the UF consistently indicated that our initiatives did not align with their priorities. Given their discretion over grant funding and the lack of traction in these discussions, we determined that submitting this specific proposal to the UF would likely delay progress. Instead, we opted for the DAO’s onchain process, which, while taking three weeks, ensures transparency and community input while aligning with the urgency of scaling V4 adoption.

Additionally, the request for a blanket Additional Use Grant to streamline V4 deployments across EVM chains necessitates an onchain DAO proposal, as it involves governance approval beyond the UF’s scope. Combining this with the funding request allows us to address both objectives efficiently in a single proposal.

That said, we’re fully open to collaborating with the UF if they express interest in funding this work.

We’re excited about the opportunity to scale Uniswap V4, support Unichain, and drive ecosystem growth. We invite further feedback from the community. Please let us know if you have additional questions or suggestions!

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Of course Oku / GFX team probably can respond to this better but in my opinion, Oku has been a way to utilize Uniswap pool and swaps without having to pay fee that the current Uniswap official frontends have. Oku also has more chains supported on their front end. Here’s from Uniswap frontend:

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and this one is from Oku Frontend

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I would also like to note that it is literally Uniswap Foundation itself that noted the success and benefit of Oku so for us, we don’t agree with the narrative that Oku is now suddenly competitor to Uniswap. We still believe they can work to support each other.

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What is Oku? What are the benefits of this for Uniswap?

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Oku is a leading DeFi interface built on top of the Uniswap Protocol, currently live across more than 30 EVM chains. Designed to optimize the user experience, we offer best-in-class swap and bridge aggregation, leveraging 10 trade routers and 11 bridges to enable seamless swapping of over 1000 tokens with 0% fees. Since receiving a $1.6M grant from the Uniswap DAO in 2022, GFX Labs has remained deeply committed to expanding Uniswap’s presence as the dominant DEX.

Now, with Uniswap V4 becoming the most advanced DEX infrastructure in EVM, GFX Labs sees a clear opportunity to deepen protocol usage by onboarding existing V3 liquidity and activating our expansive network of partners. With an already battle-tested, multichain interface, Oku is uniquely positioned to drive adoption of v4, giving users and LPs access to advanced liquidity provisioning tools, dynamic hooks, and customizable markets.

The relationship between the Uniswap DAO and Oku is mutually beneficial. By deploying Uniswap to networks that aren’t supported by Uniswap Labs, Oku increases protocol usage, captures new market share, and contributes to Uniswap’s ultimate DEX dominance. This relationship continues to demonstrate high ROI for the DAO, amplifying both technical reach and on-chain liquidity.

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I’m a regular user of OKU—primarily to avoid Uniswap Labs’ front-end fee and the unfair separation between Universal Navigation Inc. and UNI holders @haydenadams .

A few comments on OKU:

  1. OKU is a solid option for bypassing Uniswap’s official front end. It also offers bridging features and supports a broader range of chains for trading.

  2. However, there are some drawbacks I’ve noticed over months of usage. For instance, OKU has gated its Discord behind phone number verification, which limits easy feedback loops from users. Part of the reason why I am laying this out here.

  3. OKU has slowly evolved into a more complex platform. It started as a no-fee, unofficial Uniswap front end, but now seems to be pursuing “per month maintenance cost” business deals and incentives from various chains. Its scope has expanded significantly, and it no longer feels like the simple alternative front end it once was.

  4. The UI has become unnecessarily complicated, and it seems like the team is struggling to find product-market fit. I had hoped OKU would compete with the sleek trading interfaces of centralized exchanges (CEXs), OKU UI looks and feels dated…its 2025 not 2018. Why hasn’t OKU developed v4 Hooks for leveraged trading or introduced other unique V4 features to set itself apart and be self sustainable?

  5. To reiterate, instead of building in-house v4 Hooks, the site increasingly feels like a billboard for web3 partnerships. Where’s the innovation? Does GFX Labs not have the capacity to build truly unique products for traders?

I understand why Uniswap Foundation is taking a cautious approach with OKU, considering it gave them $1 million. What started as a simple, UNI-holder-friendly alternative to avoid front-end fees now feels like a sponsorship platform for struggling web3 L2s, bridges, and other projects looking for a GFX/OKU subscription integration deal. It honestly feels less safe to use then when OKU first launched.

Build for users.

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Thanks for putting together this comprehensive proposal, @GFXLabs!

We agree that blanket licensing for V4 deployments, seamless V4 integration into Oku, and extended Unichain support are all critical steps to scale V4 adoption, and acknowledge that GFXLabs is the right team to do the work.

That said, to help the DAO feel confident in allocating 250k USD (and 9 k USD annually for Unichain maintenance), would you be able to share a bit more color on how those figures break down?

The high-level split of v4 budget between backend (150k USD) and frontend (100k USD) is a great start, but more details would really help us understand the rationale and guarantee that the funding is proportionate to the work to be delivered.

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Thank you, @GFXLabs for presenting this detailed proposal to scale Uniswap V4 and integrate Unichain on Oku. I appreciate the focus on hook developer support, LP management, and trader tools to drive V4 adoption.

  • The proposed V4 data API sounds promising for ecosystem builders. Will this API be fully open-source, or will there be restrictions on its use?

  • The proposal mentions a V4 analytics dashboard for hook pool discovery and performance tracking. Could you clarify the specific metrics and features this dashboard will include?

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Hi @Userisky, Thank you for being a regular user.

Glad you like it! Our bridge aggregator is probably our most underrated feature in Oku.

Oku has an in-app support ticket system for users, which is the primary method users use to create tickets and requests. With regards to Discord, we made this change recently due to a high number of scammers trying to join the Discord as we have been growing the platform. We’re continuing to explore new methods of securing the Discord so we can remove the phone requirement.

We love to receive user feedback; feel free to DM us here or by opening a ticket on Oku.trade, or by joining our Telegram group.

Since our inception, we have offered service agreements to chains that often have a monthly fee component. Revenue from chains supports us in continuing to improve Oku and marketing the platform along with Uniswap V3 on new chains.

Everything on the Oku frontend is a standard Uniswap v3 deployment owned by the DAO. We decline requests to use our infrastructure to support forks because we are aligned with the Uniswap DAO.

Our goal with Oku is to close the gap between CeFi and DeFi usage and ultimately surpass it. To do so, we’ve been progressively expanding the feature set available and iterating on our existing features. When we initially launched Oku as a basic alternative to Uniswap v3 UI, we had virtually no usage for six months; it was not until we expanded to new chains and launched our advanced order routing system that we began to see an inflection in our usage. To compete with Coinbase and Binance, Oku will need to continue to expand its feature set and simplify the user experience.

As for why we haven’t already developed and launched v4 hooks, we have had higher priority items that the team has been focusing on. For example, for the last four months, we have been integrating Morpho to be Oku’s core borrow/lend partner, and we successfully launched our phase one user experience one week ago with Corn. We will be working with Morpho to support their chain expansion efforts, similarly to what we have done for the Uniswap DAO. For more info, feel free to read the proposal on the Morpho forum.

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Thank you for your reply. You do realize that exposing users to 11 different, newly integrated bridges increases the risk of them using one that may not be as secure or reliable as the alternatives? (For example, the Bungee hack in January—you had to issue a warning advising users to revoke approvals for that bridge, if I recall correctly.) The same concern applies to some of the lesser-known L2s—what even is “Corn”? lol.

Also, the pop-up on Oku.trade when you first visit the site is just terrible.

As for the Morpho integration—good job. Now go to AAVE and ask for integration funding so they’re not left out of your UI. Then do the same with Compound, and so on. Why not just offer lending functionality with the safest options under a single, unified interface?

At the end of the day, the OKU business model feels like governance arbitrage in exchange for subscription fees. Comes off as kind of grifty.

I’ll keep using OKU.trade until there’s a viable, safer alternative to avoid the official Universal Navigation front-end fees. I just wish OKU could remain that alternative without making me feel like I’m constantly picking between bridges or aggregators, trying to guess which ones are safer. It’s an approval minefield.

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Great point. That is why we integrated Blockaid last year when we introduced our smart order routing system. Before a user completes a swap or bridge on Oku, Blockaid simulates the transaction data! They have some awesome technology, and we are happy to be one of the few non-wallet applications integrating services.

Regarding the pop-up, unlike many DeFi applications, users can browse Oku without needing to connect their wallet. The pop-up you are referring to does not appear until a user begins to execute a swap. If you have a suggestion for how we could improve it, feel free to send us a message.

Bingo! Our long-term goal is to integrate DeFi’s leading protocols into one seamless user experience. As you can imagine, integrating a new protocol is a lot of work. Nonetheless, Uniswap V3 and Morpho Blue are just the tip of the iceberg.

While Oku was started through a grant by the Uniswap Foundation, our business model has little to do with protocol governance, and most of our revenue does not come from DAOs.

We appreciate your feedback. We will continue to grind to improve the user experience and ultimately close the gap to CeFi platforms.

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Hi @Tane,

Thank you for your support and for requesting more details on the $250K V4 and $90K Unichain budgets. We appreciate the DAO’s emphasis on transparency and are happy to provide a breakdown to ensure confidence in the funding allocation.

V4 Integration ($250,000):

  • Backend Infrastructure ($150,000):
    • Indexing V4 Protocol: To index V4 events, enabling real-time pool analytics and hook discovery. This is the single most challenging part of integrating V4. We expect it to consume at least one dedicated month of a senior backend engineer and likely one to two additional months of ongoing improvements/maintence.
    • Routing Setup: Basic Uniswap V4 routing should not take more than a week for a senior engineer to sort out. However, as we build out additional layers to support more V4 markets, we can see this potentially ballooning.
    • Peripheral Systems: Everything we have right now is set up for having Uniswap V3. We’re going to need to make quite a few updates to go from 1 → 2 integrated DEXs.
  • Frontend Development:
    • UI Design: We are budgeting at least one month for total UI updates related to
      adding V4 support. This will include time to create new V4 pool creation, LP management, analytics, and trading elements.
    • Implementation: We are budgeting at least two months to implement and test the UI updates, ensuring seamless V3/V4 integration with one senior and one junior frontend engineer. Post-launch, we are expecting the engineers to continue to improve and iterate on the user experience for at least two months.
  • Deliverables: V4 liquidity management tools, analytics dashboard, data API, and trade routing, delivered within 2 months.

Unichain Maintenance ($90,000), $7,500/month for 12 months:
For historical context, as previously posted on the forum, our typical rate is $45K for a chain’s initial integration and $5K/month for ongoing support. Recently, we have begun to step up our V3 monthly pricing.

  • Server: Ongoing costs for hosting Oku globally and performantly.
  • Indexing: RPC costs for indexing Unichain V3 & V4 data.
  • Support and Maintenance: Our team of 16 pushes new site releases multiple times a week, we have around-the-clock user support, and we’re continuously improving.
  • Deliverables: Unichain V3 deployment within 2 weeks, V4 support post-Ethereum integration, and continuous UX improvements.

The figures reflect preferential pricing for the DAO (e.g., waiving Unichain’s standard integration fee).

We’re committed to delivering measurable outcomes and will provide the DAO with regular progress updates. Please let us know if you need further granularity or have suggestions for optimizing the budget!

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Hi @Jengajojo,

Thank you for your support and thoughtful questions about the V4 data API and analytics dashboard. We’re excited about their potential to empower the V4 ecosystem and are happy to provide clarity to ensure they meet the needs of developers, LPs, and traders.

V4 Data API:

  • Accessibility and Documentation: The V4 data API will be free to use for all ecosystem builders, with comprehensive documentation hosted on Oku.Trade/API. While the API’s source code will not be open-sourced to maintain quality control, ensure stability, and provide consistent updates, there are no cost barriers for reasonable use. For commercial applications with extremely high request volumes, we may offer enterprise support to ensure general usage remains unaffected. Rate limits may apply to prevent abuse, but these will be set generously to support most use cases, with dedicated developer support available.
  • Use Case: By providing free, documented access to V4 pool data, hook performance metrics, and trading activity, the API enables hook developers to showcase innovative pool designs, LPs to analyze yield opportunities, and traders to craft strategies around hooked pools, driving V4’s growth across EVM chains.

V4 Analytics Dashboard:
Our V4 analytics will build on Oku’s existing Uniswap V3 analytics, which provides detailed token, pool, position, and user analytics. Delegates can review our V3 dashboard to see the depth of our current offering, which we’ll enhance for V4’s unique features like hooks.

  • Metrics:
    • Pool Performance: Real-time and historical data on V4 pool trading volume, fees earned, APY, and impermanent loss, segmented by hooked and vanilla pools, similar to V3’s pool volume charts but with hook-specific insights.
    • Hook Usage: Adoption rates (e.g., % of V4 transactions using specific hooks), transaction counts, and liquidity distribution for hooks like dynamic fees or leverage.
    • LP Insights: Position-level analytics, including returns, risk exposure, and yield farming opportunities, to optimize LP strategies.
    • Market Trends: Chain-specific V4 activity, top-performing pools, and hook developer contributions to highlight emerging market structures.
  • Features:
    • Hook Pool Discovery: A searchable interface to explore hooked pools, with filters for hook type (e.g., dynamic fees, TWAMM), pool performance, and chain.
    • Customizable Views: Dashboards tailored for LPs, traders, and hook developers (hook analytics), with toggleable metrics.
    • Exportable Data: Downloadable CSV reports for offline analysis or integration with external tools.
  • Use Case: The dashboard simplifies V4’s complexity, enabling LPs to manage positions efficiently, traders to discover unique strategies, and hook developers to gain visibility for their innovations, ultimately driving liquidity to V4.

We’d love your input, and that of all delegates, on additional API features or dashboard metrics that could further benefit ecosystem builders.

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Hi @GFXlabs,

A few questions on OKU’s business model:

“have generated a high ROI by accelerating Uniswap adoption across new environments”

How many DAUs does OKU currently have?

How much is a blanket additional use grant worth?

Does OKU leverage this additional use grant to get business dealings with other web3 teams?

Of the $1.6 million granted to OKU from Uniswap DAO, has it all been fully allocated? Do you have financial reports on how the $1.6 million was spent?

Is this the last planned ask for grant money from the UNI DAO from OKU?

The Ethereum Foundation released a blog post today clarifying its role and vision in the ecosytem. I found it insightful for how Uniswap could avoid some of the optic issues that EF experienced, and could be emulated with Uniswap grant’s going forward. The main quote that stuck out to me was:

What Ethereum Foundation is not:

  • 100 strong teams in education, client development, or organizing events, yet all dependent on EF for funding
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Hi @TimeRows, thank you for taking the time to write a comment.

We wanted to get a reply to the core of your question in a timely manner, and we will layer on with a second post later to cover the remaining questions.

Oku, in its two and a half years, has not requested funds from the Uniswap DAO to add new features or make other improvements. At the DAO’s request, we have expanded to five chains, but otherwise, the only DAO-related funding we have received was the initial grant from the Uniswap Foundation.

The initial grant funded a team of 10 to work on building Oku for the first 11 months. The last part of the grant was paid out in July 2023. Since then, GFX Labs has invested $2.5M-$3M further into building Oku into what it is today and plans to continue to invest in its growth.

Further, GFX Labs is in good financial condition today. The DAO should not approve this grant because it is concerned about our financial position. It should approve it because we are one of the highest leverage points the DAO can allocate capital to.

When an organization thinks about resource/capital allocation, including our own, it considers the following:

  1. What is the goal?
  2. What are some of the ways to get to the goal?
  3. How much would each method approximately cost? (opportunity cost, labor, advertising, etc)
  4. What is the execution risk of each possible method?
  5. Ultimately, which avenue has the best outcome, with the least cost, and the least execution risk?

Compared to other organisations, the GFX team has proven, over a multi-year sample, to develop a unique and high-quality application. We have been the core entity securing Uniswap’s presence on new EVM chains, and we have built a robust team that has become experts in Uniswap V3. Most importantly, we have weathered the turbulent environment of the last three years.