Automated Filing Trigger

This trigger activates when a transaction or a series of related transactions exceed a specific monetary or volume limit set by regulation. It is fundamental to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF) compliance.

• Example: Automatically filing a Currency Transaction Report (CTR) when a cash deposit exceeds $10,000.
• Mechanism: The system continuously monitors transaction feeds and compares amounts against configurable thresholds.

This trigger is activated by the detection of potentially illicit patterns, regardless of transaction size. It relies on behavioral analytics and transaction monitoring systems to flag anomalies.

• Example: Filing a Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) after detecting rapid, round-figure transfers between newly created accounts.
• Key Components: Rules engines analyze for red flags like structuring, unusual geographic patterns, or transactions with high-risk jurisdictions.

This trigger executes based on a calendar schedule, mandating reports at fixed intervals. It ensures regular disclosure of financial positions or activities.

• Example: Automated quarterly call reports for banks or annual fincen reports for certain businesses.
• Implementation: Uses cron jobs or scheduler services within the compliance platform to generate and submit reports on the due date.

Specific to blockchain and DeFi, this trigger fires upon the occurrence of a verifiable on-chain state change or event log. It enables regulatory reporting for decentralized activities.

• Example: Automatically reporting a large stablecoin transfer to a sanctioned address identified by an oracle.
• Technology: Relies on smart contracts or off-chain listeners monitoring for specific event signatures or function calls on a blockchain.

This trigger initiates a filing when core customer or transaction data is updated, ensuring reports reflect the most current information as required by Know Your Customer (KYC) and Customer Due Diligence (CDD) rules.

• Example: Submitting an updated report after a customer's beneficial ownership information changes.
• Process: Integrated with CRM or identity systems to detect changes in sanctioned lists, occupation codes, or corporate structures.

A meta-trigger that activates reporting or re-filing requirements when a change in the regulatory rulebook is detected. It ensures ongoing compliance with evolving laws.

• Example: Automatically adjusting reportable threshold amounts or adding new data fields to filings after a regulatory update.
• System Requirement: Depends on a rules engine that ingests and interprets regulatory updates, then propagates changes to trigger logic.

In optimistic rollups, an Automated Filing Trigger monitors state commitments. If a sequencer posts an invalid state root, the trigger automatically submits a fraud proof to the L1, initiating a dispute period. This is critical for ensuring the security and finality of off-chain transactions.

• Example: A watchtower service's trigger detects a mismatch between a proposed block and its Merkle root.
• Key Mechanism: Uses pre-signed transactions or a keeper network to guarantee timely submission within the challenge window.

For validity rollups or other systems relying on external data availability (DA), triggers automatically file data availability proofs or blob dispersal confirmations. This proves that transaction data was published and is retrievable, allowing the L2 to safely finalize state.

• Example: After posting data to Celestia or Ethereum blobs, a trigger submits a proof of publication to the settlement layer.
• Purpose: Enables safe execution while minimizing on-chain data footprint.

In decentralized insurance protocols, Automated Filing Triggers execute claims payouts without manual approval. They monitor oracle feeds for verifiable real-world events (e.g., flight delays, weather data) and automatically release funds to policyholders upon confirmation.

• Example: A parametric flight delay insurance dApp triggers a payout when a Chainlink oracle confirms a delay exceeds 2 hours.
• Benefit: Eliminates claims adjudication overhead, enabling trustless and instantaneous settlements.

Triggers secure cross-chain bridges by automating the submission of Merkle proofs or light client verification. When an asset is locked on the source chain, the trigger automatically files the requisite proof on the destination chain to mint the wrapped asset, ensuring atomicity.

• Example: A relayer service uses a trigger to submit a proof from Ethereum to Avalanche via a light client bridge.
• Security Role: Reduces the window for malicious activity by automating the verification step.

In decentralized data marketplaces or oracle systems, triggers automate the process of attesting to the completion and accuracy of data work. Upon meeting service-level agreements (SLAs), the trigger files a proof, releasing payment and updating a data credential.

• Example: A decentralized compute network triggers a proof of correct execution upon job completion, settling payment.
• Result: Creates a closed-loop system for verifiable compute and data services.

The core of any trigger is its conditional logic, defined by if-then statements. Common conditions include:

• Price thresholds: e.g., "if ETH price drops below $3,000, then sell."
• Time-based schedules: e.g., "every Friday at 12:00 UTC, then execute."
• On-chain state changes: e.g., "if governance proposal #123 passes, then transfer funds." This logic is immutably encoded in the smart contract.

For triggers dependent on external data (like asset prices), oracles are essential. They are trusted data feeds that provide off-chain information to the on-chain contract.

• Decentralized Oracle Networks (DONs): Use multiple nodes (e.g., Chainlink) for tamper-proof data.
• Data Feed Types: Price feeds, weather data, sports scores, or API call results. The trigger listens for oracle updates and executes only when the reported data satisfies its condition.

Executing the triggered transaction requires gas fees. Key mechanisms include:

• Relayer Networks: Third-party services (e.g., Gelato, Keep3r) that monitor conditions and submit transactions, often being reimbursed for gas plus a fee.
• Meta-Transactions: Users can sign messages authorizing an action, which a relayer then packages and pays for.
• Gasless for Users: A core design goal is to allow users to set triggers without holding the native blockchain token for gas.

The trigger operates as a finite state machine, transitioning between defined states:

1. Idle: Monitoring for conditions.
2. Condition Met: Event detected, execution pending.
3. Executing: Transaction being processed on-chain.
4. Completed/Success: Action finalized.
5. Failed/Reverted: Execution failed (e.g., insufficient gas, slippage). This model ensures predictable, auditable behavior.

Critical design considerations to prevent exploits and ensure reliability:

• Permissioned Execution: Defining who can initiate the trigger (user, relayer, anyone).
• Condition Finality: Ensuring the triggering condition (e.g., an oracle price) is final and cannot be reorged.
• Fail-safes & Circuit Breakers: Including mechanisms to pause triggers during extreme volatility or network congestion.
• Auditability: All conditions and executions are permanently recorded on-chain.

Automated triggers enable a wide range of decentralized applications:

• DeFi: Limit orders, stop-losses, auto-compounding yields, and loan liquidations.
• DAO Governance: Automatically execute passed proposals or treasury management rules.
• NFTs: Auto-bidding, royalty distribution, and time-based reveals.
• Cross-Chain: Trigger actions on one chain based on events from another (requires cross-chain messaging).

A robust trigger system must plan for partial failures and have clear circuit breakers and manual overrides.

• Fallback Mechanisms: Design should include heartbeat monitoring and a fail-safe manual trigger operated by a decentralized governance process.
• Grace Periods: Critical triggers may include a time-delayed execution window, allowing governance to intervene if the automatic trigger is deemed incorrect.
• State Recovery: Systems should be designed to handle partial fills or reverted transactions without requiring complex manual state reconciliation.

A self-executing program stored on a blockchain that automatically enforces the terms of an agreement. An Automated Filing Trigger is a specific function or logic embedded within a smart contract that initiates a transaction when predefined conditions are met.

• Core Component: The trigger logic is written into the contract's code.
• Execution: Once deployed, it operates without further human intervention.

A specific type of Automated Filing Trigger commonly used in decentralized exchanges (DEXs). It is a trade order that only executes if the market price reaches a predefined level (e.g., a limit order or stop-loss order).

• On-Chain Logic: Unlike a CEX order book, this is enforced by smart contract code.
• Example: "Sell 1 ETH if the price falls to $2,800" is a conditional order triggered by an oracle price feed.

An off-chain program or service that monitors a blockchain for specific events emitted by smart contracts. While not an on-chain trigger itself, it is a critical piece of infrastructure for initiating automated workflows based on on-chain activity.

• Monitoring: Listens for emit statements from contracts.
• Bridge to Automation: Upon detecting an event, it can call another contract function or trigger an off-chain process, creating a hybrid automation system.

The practice of minimizing the computational cost (gas) of executing transactions on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) blockchains. Efficient design of Automated Filing Triggers is a key concern for gas optimization.

• Critical for Keepers: High-gas triggers may not be profitable for keeper networks to execute.
• Techniques: Involves writing efficient conditional checks and minimizing storage operations within the trigger logic to reduce costs.