Bridging Worlds: Empowering Cosmos with an Ethereum NFT Bridge

# Summary Ark Protocol requests **47,600 ATOM** (≈ $200 000, using a 30 d avg price of $4.20/ATOM) from the Community Pool to build an open-source, EVM-based NFT bridge compliant with ICS-721. ## Motivation Ether­eum hosts a $15 B+ NFT market, but Cosmos lacks a direct, audited EVM-compatible bridge for ICS-721 tokens. By funding Ark Protocol to build and operate this bridge, the Hub: * **Unlocks instant NFT liquidity** for ATOM holders * **Onboards EVM-native communities** into Cosmos * **Accrues sustainable revenue**, as all fees are held/swapped into ATOM ## Project Scope 1. **Solidity ICS-721 Bridge Contract** 2. **Front-end Toolkit** for seamless transfer flows 3. **12-month Operations**: node hosting, monitoring, DevOps 4. **Security Audit & Remediation** Ark has production experience deploying CW-based NFT modules on Injective, Juno, Neutron, Osmosis, Stargaze, Terra - and contributed heavily to the core [cw-ics721](https://github.com/public-awesome/cw-ics721/graphs/contributors) and [cw-nfts](https://github.com/public-awesome/cw-nfts/graphs/contributors) repos. ## Budget & Milestones (Total: $200 000 / 47 600 ATOM) | Phase | Amount (USD) | ATOM | Deliverable | | ------------------ | -----------: | -----: | :--------------------------------------------- | | **1) Development** | $ 90 000 | 21 429 | Architecture & Solidity ICS-721 implementation | | **2) Operations** | $ 60 000 | 14 286 | 12 mo support: hosting, monitoring, DevOps | | **3) Audit** | $ 50 000 | 11 905 | Third-party security audit + remediation | *Funds are released in three tranches upon Dev Start, Testnet Deployment, and Mainnet Launch.* ## Treasury & Oversight All funds will be managed by the **Ark Oversight DAO** Members & signers: * Sistla (OmniFlix + StreamSwap): cosmos1nqchg6qytz6mvq85r6adsuaghfwnczex9hs02m * Zerk (Mad Scientists): cosmos1pwha5a3hr55wmmur2d4fm0p8rf7q62wn2rvzw8 * Johnny Wyles (Osmosis): cosmos1dplx2zw3mjk5lam6fnv5q2yxldcshs3wh2rhh9 * David Goose (Osmosis): cosmos1ky9hyqhdxygkkyvjcdd76qceq7t9syy488rsjm * Tatsen (Ark Protocol): cosmos1trghmhd4d9qcf9d0lsyesxzj3aasqg9slykml5 * Mr T (Ark Protocol): cosmos1vtpt9kwjywm3xpake4v8sjmh2uxqq57h499qa5 > Full discussion: > [Bridging Worlds: Empowering Cosmos with an Ethereum NFT Bridge](https://forum.cosmos.network/t/bridging-worlds-empowering-cosmos-with-an-ethereum-nft-bridge/15691) ## Conclusion Approving this proposal will: * Bootstrap a robust, audited NFT bridge for CosmosEVM * Deepen on-chain NFT use-cases and liquidity for ATOM * Generate ongoing value and revenue accrual in ATOM We appreciate the community's support in uniting Cosmos and Ethereum's NFT ecosystems.