Intention
This post will serve as the first entry in a growing thread that outlines the history, vision, and contributions of Exactly Protocol and the Exa App to the Optimism ecosystem. We’ll use this space to transparently share relevant milestones, updates, and technical contributions.
We believe in building in the open, and this thread is part of that commitment.
Exactly Protocol
Exactly Protocol is a decentralized, non-custodial, open-source protocol providing an autonomous fixed and variable interest rate market.
The earliest stage of building Exactly Protocol began in 2021 with a team of stakeholders with expertise in technology, economics, finance, and math. We launched the protocol to Ethereum Mainnet in November 2022 and to the OP Mainnet in March 2023.
Our mission: to make decentralized finance innovative and user-friendly. A cornerstone of this mission was addressing the challenge of fixed interest rates.
Why Optimism
Optimism was selected as Exactly Protocol’s first L2 deployment due to its scalability, low transaction costs, and strong alignment with Ethereum’s security and values.
By operating on Optimism, we are able to:
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Deliver lower gas costs for borrowers and lenders
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Improve user experience through faster transaction finality
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Expand protocol accessibility while preserving decentralization
We see Optimism not only as a performant L2 solution, but as an ecosystem committed to building a sustainable, user-owned financial future.
Exactly’s deployment on Optimism reflects our commitment to this vision and our focus on building infrastructure that serves crypto-native users and the next wave of adoption.
OP rewards on Exactly Protocol
Our first engagement with the Optimism ecosystem began in early 2023 through a Partner Fund grant allocation aimed at incentivizing early protocol usage.
In March 2023, Exactly Protocol launched an incentive program distributing up to 600,000 $OP tokens over a six-month period to users who deposit or borrow in the ETH and USDC markets on Optimism.
The rewards mechanism was designed around a recursive, continuous-time distribution model, intended to optimize token allocation in real time based on protocol usage.
Unlike traditional models based on fixed emission schedules or static functions, this system accounts for rewards every block and enables users to claim accrued incentives at any time.
To ensure the reliability and transparency of this system, Coinspect audited the smart contracts governing the Rewards Controller prior to deployment.
This program marked a critical step in onboarding users to the Optimism deployment of Exactly Protocol, and aligned with our broader objective of improving capital efficiency while maintaining accessibility and protocol integrity.
Exactly Protocol Master Plan
Exactly Protocol has seen significant engagement since launching on the OP Mainnet, with over 40,000 users — primarily Whales and dedicated DeFi enthusiasts — completing over 250,000 transactions. In light of this success, our focus has shifted towards the ‘Exactly Master Plan’ update, which aims to broaden our reach to the end user.
Despite the challenges faced in 2023, the team behind Exactly Protocol has remained fully committed to its original mission: democratizing access to financial services in a decentralized, non-custodial, and autonomous way.
The foundation of this vision is the Exactly Master Plan, conceived at the protocol’s inception and structured in three phases:
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Low Volume, High Transaction Value — Establish the protocol’s core fixed and variable interest rate infrastructure, focused on capital efficiency and product-market fit.
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Mid Volume, Mid Transaction Value — Decentralized governance by launching the EXA token and transitioning toward DAO-based decision-making.
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High Volume, Low Transaction Value — Extend the protocol’s reach to the end-user through mobile-native apps, debit-to-credit integrations.
Through initiatives like turning debit cards into credit cards via protocol integration, launching the Exa App Exactly is taking deliberate steps to bring DeFi to real-world users at scale.
The Master Plan remains the north star, and its execution continues.
Introducing the Exa App
In line with the third phase of the Exactly Master Plan, expanding to high-volume, low-transaction-value use cases, we’ve introduced the Exa App: a mobile-native, self-custodial application designed to bring the core infrastructure of Exactly Protocol directly to end users.
Built on Optimism, Exa is an onchain banking app that lets you use your crypto daily. Earn yield, spend globally, and borrow easily—all in one seamless experience.
After surpassing 1,000 tester users in March 2024, more than 1M $ spent onchain, and undergoing audits by leading industry firms, the Exa App is now live on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Its flagship feature, the Exa Card, operates in over 160 countries and supports two payments mode: Pay now, or Installments Plant. the app borrows from Exactly Protocol’s fixed-rate markets to fund user purchases, enabling purchases up to 6 fixed installments with predictable repayment schedules.
By default, user deposits are allocated to Exactly Protocol’s variable-rate markets and begin earning yield immediately, even while waiting to be spent. Every transaction deepens liquidity and loan activity within the protocol, activating a circular incentive model that reinforces protocol utility and EXA token demand.
This integration illustrates a tangible example of DeFi moving toward real-world usability, not just as infrastructure, but as a direct service for individuals.
The Exa App is built on Optimism, powered by Exactly Protocol, and aligned with the mission to democratize access to financial tools, simply, securely, and globally.
Passkeys and modular accounts
One of the main challenges to DeFi adoption remains its complexity for everyday users. In line with our mission to make decentralized finance simple and accessible, the Exa App introduces a seamless onboarding experience through passkeys, removing the need for passwords or seed phrases, while preserving full self-custody.
Powered by the Webauthn Owner Plugin, developed in collaboration with Circle and Alchemy and audited by Quantstamp, the Exa App supports biometric authentication and device-based security using the P256 signature scheme. Private keys are stored in secure environments like Apple’s Secure Enclave and can be safely synced across devices via cloud services.
Thanks to the Fjord network upgrade on Optimism, the Exa App leverages the new RIP-7212 precompile, enabling 20x cheaper P256 passkey signature verification. This optimization significantly reduces gas costs and makes passkey-based authentication practical for everyday use.
The Webauthn Owner Plugin is fully ERC-6900-compliant, enabling a modular smart account architecture. This allows the Exa App to offer advanced features such as multi-owner access, plugin-based authentication, and secure EIP-712 signing — all without exposing private keys or requiring manual validation of every onchain action.
By combining these advancements, the Exa App delivers:
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A self-custodial wallet with maximum security
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A passwordless onboarding experience with biometric login
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Low-cost interactions on OP Mainnet thanks to RIP-7212
These enhancements represent a critical step in making the benefits of the Exactly Protocol — and by extension, Optimism, accessible to a wider user base through a truly user-friendly and secure mobile interface.
Looking ahead: expanding access, one user at a time.
We’ve spent the last two years building infrastructure with patience, precision, and purpose. From launching a novel fixed-rate market to withstanding adversity, to delivering a fully self-custodial mobile experience, our journey has been shaped by one guiding principle: DeFi only matters if people can use it.
With the Exa App, we are now ready to scale that vision. Our mission is to bring onchain finance to millions of new users, not through speculation, but through real-world utility. We want to onboard people who have never touched crypto, who have never heard of AMMs or gas fees, but who simply want financial tools that are simple, fair, and work anywhere.
Powered by Exactly Protocol. Running on Optimism. Driven by a belief that finance should be open, accessible, and user-owned.