Raiden Network
The Raiden Network is an off-chain scaling solution, enabling near-instant, low-fee and scalable payments. It’s complementary to the Ethereum blockchain and works with any ERC20 compatible token. The Raiden project is work in progress. Its goal is to research state channel technology, define protocols and develop reference implementations. The Raiden Network is an infrastructure layer on top of the Ethereum blockchain. While the basic idea is simple, the underlying protocol is quite complex and the implementation non-trivial. Nonetheless the technicalities can be abstracted away, such that developers can interface with a rather simple API to build scalable decentralized applications based on the Raiden Network. The basic idea of the Raiden Network is to avoid the blockchain consensus bottleneck. This is done by leveraging a network of payment channels which allow to securely transfer value off-chain, i.e without involving the blockchain for every transfer.
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zkLend
zkLend is an L2 money-market protocol built on StarkNet, combining zk-rollup scalability, superior transaction speed, and cost savings with Ethereum's security. The protocol offers a dual solution, a permissioned and compliance-focused solution for institutional clients, and a permissionless service for DeFi users, all without sacrificing decentralization. zkLend believes that truly decentralized finance must be built on chains that are not only cheap, fast, and scalable but also secure and decentralized. zkLend is built with the conviction that Ethereum is the only decentralized solution and zk is the only technology that can scale without compromising on the properties that make Ethereum so unique. zkLend is an L2 money-market protocol built on StarkNet, combining zk-rollup scalability, superior transaction speed, and cost savings with Ethereum’s security. Users will be able to deposit their assets into a reserve pool, thereby providing liquidity to each money market.
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Loopring
Loopring is an open protocol for building scalable non-custodial exchanges on Ethereum. Leveraging zero-knowledge proofs (zkRollup), it allows for high performance trading (high throughput, low settlement cost), without sacrificing Ethereum-level security guarantees. Users always maintain 100% control of their assets throughout the trade lifecycle. You can trade on Loopring to test it out. Loopring is an open-sourced, audited, and non-custodial exchange protocol, which means nobody in the Loopring ecosystem needs to trust others. Cryptoassets are always under users' own control, with 100% Ethereum-level security guarantees. Loopring powers highly scalable decentralized exchanges by batch-processing thousands of requests off-chain, with verifiably correct execution via ZKPs. The performance of underlying blockchains is no longer the bottleneck. Loopring performs most operations, including order-matching and trade settlement, off the Ethereum blockchain.
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Hemi
Hemi is a breakthrough modular Layer-2 blockchain protocol that seamlessly merges Bitcoin’s rock-solid security with Ethereum’s versatile programmability by embedding a full Bitcoin node into an Ethereum-compatible EVM, known as the Hemi Virtual Machine (hVM). This architecture allows developers to write Solidity smart contracts that natively access Bitcoin data without relying on bridges or synthetic assets. Using its proprietary Proof-of-Proof (PoP) consensus, Hemi achieves “superfinality,” anchoring transactions in Bitcoin blocks for high integrity and resistance to reorgs, all while maintaining fast finality. Its Hemi Bitcoin Kit (hBK) gives developers the tools to build truly Bitcoin-powered DeFi applications, such as lending, staking, automated market makers, MEV systems, and multi-chain DAOs, using real BTC as collateral or yield sources.
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