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For a protocol to be trustless, decentralization must be hardcoded into the protocol on-chain. Otherwise, users must trust a set of centralized actors to decentralize on their schedule. You must therefore trust that someone will make a protocol trustless - an obvious contradiction. This practice that is surprisingly common in defi.

TCP introduces three concepts that ensure that TCP is a truly decentralized protocol:

1) Hardcoded Decentralization Schedule

Once normal operation of TCP has started, the protocol will decentralize according to logic hardcoded into the smart contracts. After 6-9 months, contract upgrades will be disabled. This can't be stopped. After 12-15 months, parameter changes, except for a select few, will be disabled. This can't be stopped. The community can decide to delay each deadline up to three months, but no longer.

2) Strictly Limited Admin Functionality

The Foundation will have limited power over the protocol that is strictly time-boxed on-chain. The Foundation can fully manage the protocol during genesis, end genesis and start normal operation of the protocol and cancel community proposals for 6-9 months. The Foundation has no additional power. No one can extend guardian power.

3) Decentralized User Interfaces

TCP provides an incentive for users to host user interfaces. The Foundation will not host a UI for TCP but will provide an open-source UI that anyone can fork, modify, and deploy. No centralized actor, including governments, can censor TCP.

Read more about using Decentralized User Interfaces

4) On-chain Distribution Schedules

All logic for distributing TCP tokens is fully on-chain and publicly verifiable.

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Censorship Resistant

Trustless Mechanisms