Lucas Manuel is a software engineer specializing in smart contract development and decentralized finance (DeFi) systems. He is recognized as a co-founder of Spark and has played a role in the architecture and security of various blockchain protocols.

Education

Manuel graduated from Queen’s University in 2018, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering with a focus on Civil Engineering ^[1].

Career

Lucas Manuel began his professional career in Toronto, working as a swim instructor and lifeguard from 2012 to 2014. In 2015, he gained experience in the construction sector as a summer assistant on a high-rise residential project, where his responsibilities included managing technical documentation, material logistics, and conducting inspections. The following year, he interned at the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. During this internship, he developed a web application for visualizing strategy performance and backtested an automated trading algorithm that incorporated machine learning techniques ^[2].

In 2017, Manuel participated in RBC’s Amplify program, serving as a developer. In this role, he contributed to the creation of a QR-enabled e-transfer prototype integrated into the bank’s mobile application. Concurrently, he co-founded the Queen's Blockchain Innovation Community, an initiative through which he organized events and lectures focused on blockchain technology. During the same year, he managed the design and construction of a large wooden structure for a university event, overseeing budgeting, logistics, and on-site assembly ^[2].

By 2018, Manuel served as a data science advisor for Imusify, where he proposed a music recommendation system based on blockchain technology. He then spent two years at EY, focusing on the development of blockchain applications. His work at EY involved building smart contracts, APIs, and microservices for clients, deploying private Ethereum blockchains, and implementing full-stack solutions ^[2].

In 2020, Manuel joined MakerDAO as a smart contracts engineer. His contributions included the development and governance mechanisms for the Multi-Collateral DAI system, specifically working on collateral onboarding, liquidation mechanisms, and autonomous payment contracts. Later that year, he transitioned to Maple, where he became the technical lead for smart contracts. In this role, he oversaw multiple mainnet deployments of DeFi lending infrastructure, including protocol upgrades, token implementations, and contract migrations. His work at Maple facilitated billions in originations without any reported smart contract vulnerabilities ^[2].

Since May 2023, Lucas Manuel has been a co-founder at Phoenix Labs, a company based in Toronto. He also contributes to the design and security architecture of Spark ^[2].

Interviews

Spark

On the Stable Pod podcast, hosts Juan Isl and Gustav Arinoft interviewed Manuel about his journey and the evolution of Spark, which initially started as a lending platform, into a comprehensive liquidity layer in decentralized finance (DeFi). He recounted his background, including his time at MakerDAO and Maple Finance, before co-founding Phoenix Labs. He discussed Spark's development, its governance model, liquidity strategies, and the competitive landscape of DeFi, emphasizing the shift towards subDAO structures to enhance capital allocation and governance efficiency. The conversation highlighted the importance of aligning incentives among various subDAOs, ongoing risk management strategies, and innovative approaches that Spark was implementing to optimize capital deployment across different protocols. The hosts expressed their enthusiasm for the potential growth and future developments of Spark within the DeFi ecosystem. ^[11]

Presentations

MakerDAO Endgame

In a presentation at the Toronto Ethereum Developers Meetup, Manuel discussed MakerDAO's "Endgame," which aimed to overhaul the existing system to enhance efficiency, resilience, and participation in governance. He outlined the challenges faced by MakerDAO, including complexities in governance, voter apathy, and slow growth, particularly related to onboarding real-world assets. To address these issues, he introduced the concept of "sub-dows," which would operate under MakerDAO with their own governance structures and community, allowing for greater specialization and competition. Manuel also highlighted the integration of artificial intelligence to improve governance accessibility and discussed a new allocation system to manage the distribution of the stablecoin DAI, intended to streamline operations. He emphasized the importance of reducing governance complexity and increasing system resilience through new mechanisms to protect against insolvency. Overall, the presentation showcased a forward-looking vision aimed at enhancing MakerDAO's structure and functionality in the decentralized finance space. ^[10]