Proxy Contracts

Proxy contracts act on behalf of one or more users, allowing controlled execution of transactions or actions under specific conditions. Instead of a user calling contracts directly, they can delegate that responsibility to a proxy, which then executes the desired operations, either automatically or with certain restrictions.

In the CosmWasm and XION ecosystem, proxy contracts are commonly used for:

• Delegating transaction execution

• Granting limited permissions to third parties or apps

• Enabling programmable account logic

• Simulating multisig-like behavior without full governance

Proxy Contracts

The CW1 standard defines a generic proxy interface for executing messages on behalf of others. Two primary CW1-based contracts demonstrate its flexibility.

Contract	Access Control	Allowance Tracking	Use Case
cw1-whitelist	Whitelisted addresses	No	Admin execution, limited delegation
cw1-subkeys	Per-address allowances	Yes	Spend limits, delegated token control

1. cw1-whitelist

A minimal, reference implementation of a CW1 proxy contract where only whitelisted addresses can execute messages through the proxy. Features:

• Owner controls the list of allowed executors

• Whitelisted users can call Execute on the proxy, forwarding messages

• Simple access control pattern for demonstration or lightweight usage

Ideal for: Use cases where only trusted addresses (like admins or bots) should trigger transactions on behalf of the contract 📦 Repo: cw1-whitelist

2. cw1-subkeys

A practical CW1 proxy that allows setting spending allowances (especially for native tokens) per address. Features:

• Assigns per-address allowances for native tokens

• Tracks balance usage and enforces limits

• Enables more granular control without modifying the bank module

• Allows users to delegate spend permissions without sharing private keys

Ideal for: Gasless UX, spend limits, delegated spending by apps or services (e.g. subscription models, wallets) 📦 Repo: cw1-subkeys