On-chain research & angel collective. Making institutional-grade research a public good. Accelerating disruptive innovation through investment & advisory.
Avalanche, a multi-billion $$$ ecosystem, is about to undergo a major transformation.
ACP-77 will be a big step towards an ecosystem of interoperable, fully customizable & sovereign L1s.
Wait, modular L1s on
@avax
?
Research-๐งต full of โโโโโโ alpha on a major catalyst.
Hey
@LayerZero_Labs
, quick question:
Why is your Axelar DVN controlled by an Externally Owned Account, that has the ability to censor traffic and transmit fraudulent transactions?
After the recent X beef between
@axelarnetwork
and
@LayerZero_Labs
, we got curious about
With $600m in TVL & >$175m in funding,
@OptimismFND
is the 2nd largest rollup!
Soon the Superchain will merge OP chains into one interoperable L2 ecosystem!
We
@RedactedRes
have done 100s of hours of research & compiled a 100+ page report of alpha!
Entirely for FREE! ๐
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
โ
Since 2020, over $4 billion has been siphoned from DeFi, losses that could have been prevented for a fraction of the cost. How?
โ
By integrating an incident response protocol that will act as soon as a malicious actor tries to
๐๐ Investigating Taiko ๐๐
โ
@taikoxyz
recently launched at $2.5B FDV and received mixed feedback from the community.
โ
With $32M in funding and $40M in TVL, what are the opportunities on the chain?
โ
Let's explore their current ecosystem, growth strategy, and future plans.
โจ๐ด The Rise of the Superchain ๐ดโจ
Optimism is more than OP Mainnet.
Optimism is more than Optimistic Rollups.
So what is Optimism? Find out in the most comprehensive research report on the Superchain ๐งต๐
๐๐ Investigating Taiko ๐๐
โ
The
@taikoxyz
airdrop is live & $TAIKO is sitting at a mere $2.2B FDV, only a fraction of competitors like
@Starknet
($13.5B).
โ
Additionally,
@taikoxyz
has paid >$1M in fees since mainnet launch, which is almost 10x more than
@zksync
's total cost,
The $ZK airdrop checker is coming today & pre-market $ZK is valued at $15B, likely making it one of the biggest airdrops ever.
๐ After over 1 year of mainnet, what's the state of the
@zksync
Era ecosystem?
๐ Should you sell your $ZK?
Data-driven ๐งต full of redacted alpha.
The Truth about L2 Trust Assumptions
โ
Imagine you are a DeFi user on a rollup. Your favourite app gets hacked and you are down five figures.
โ
Would you want the chain to be stopped to retrieve the funds?
โ
Imagine you hold six figures on a L2 with billions in TVL.
โ
Would you
The Redacted Research Hub is live! ๐ง โจ
Today marks a huge milestone for
@RedactedRes
on our mission to make institutional-grade research freely accessible to all the degens out there.
Don't fade anon (Link below!) ๐งต
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
In this series we've previously covered what
@eigenlayer
can do for the interoperability space, but what if it can help Optimistic rollups be more secure? Or DePIN chains be verifiably more decentralized? Now, let's dive into how
Thank you
@PrimordialAA
We had another look and some questions remain:
The contract you are referring to in your comment was created just a few days ago and was created by the same EOA (1) that we point out in our original post.
The "test" contract was even linked in the
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
For the modular infrastructure space,
@eigenlayer
is a game-changer. It generalizes Ethereum's trust network and economic stake to secure decentralized networks that go beyond the capabilities of the base layer.
One example of
The
@CelestiaOrg
mainnet launch is near and will enable new network and application designs!
One narrative you'll hear about a lot as we head into the next cycle are "sovereign rollups".
We have a complete breakdown of this novel type of network desing ready for you! ๐๏ธ
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
Taking rollup security to the next level and providing a versatile proving infrastructure for a trustlessly composable Web3 ecosystem powered by ZK.
Meet
@AutomataNetwork
, a Multi-Prover implemented as an Actively Validated
Why does
@OptimismFND
let anyone build on the OP Stack permissionlessly?
Donโt they create competition for their own OP Mainnet? Is it accruing value to Optimism & its main product?
It's complicated. But let us walk you through some of our redacted thoughts!๐๏ธ๐
To understand
The Optimism RPGF results are in! ๐ด โจ
30M OP tokens were granted to contributors of the
@Optimism
ecosystem! ๐คฏ
We are excited to announce that Redacted Research received 24.6K OP. Thanks again to everyone who voted for us! ๐
Now, it's time to look at RPGF stats! ๐๐
The memecoin mania that happened over the past few weeks have eclipsed the Dencun upgrade.
However this is one of the biggest upgrade for Ethereum.
What is exactly EIP-4844, it's impact and more importantly, what are its drawbacks?
A research driven thread ๐งต
We are not paid or externally incentivized to do this, no. Redacted Research has never done sponsored content.
We want transparency around trust assumptions for users in Web3 and that is not exclusive to a specific protocol or type of technology.
Let us give you an example:
@RedactedRes
Did you actually read the audit? You cannot forge anything, you cannot ever touch existing pathways, and you can DoS because Axelar has no on-chain quoting (which is laughable in the first place). There are entire portions of the audit dedicated to what you're claiming here
Can
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
โ
Smart contracts, while excellent in enabling on-chain programmability, have inherent limitations due to their inability to access real-world data.
โ
In other words, blockchains lack awareness of external events and cannot access
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
@eigenlayer
initiated a new paradigm by separating the execution from the security layer. The result? Middleware such as bridges, oracles and DA-layer secured by Ethereum.
What if it was possible to secure L1s as well? Introducing
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
โ
We've explored the modular intricacies of blockchains, from interoperability to execution layers. Now, imagine a game-changer that redefines how dApps, users, and computing power interact that isn't really being talked about.
After multiple months of farming and $1.65B in TVL, $BLAST has just launched at $2.3B FDV.
The current market has been extremely challenging for recent launches ($ZRO, $ZK). Will Blast be different?
Everything you need to know about Blast, the Fullstack Chain and its launch ๐
โจ๐๏ธ Redacted Research - EigenLayer Series ๐๏ธโจ
Unlock the power of Multi-Signature wallets for secure crypto control.
@silencelabs_sl
elevates "not your keys, not your crypto" with Two-Party Multi-Computation (MPC) tech, keeping your assets safe in any scenario.
๐ง Why Silent
The ecosystem of chains building on the OP stack that could become part of the Superchain is growing exponentially .
Let us introduce you to 27 projects you must know:
๐น
@OPLabsPBC
- First OP stack based chain built by the
@Optimism
team and boasting a TVL of $7.2B.
๐น
@base
Amazing overview
@therollupco
! ๐ซก
Great to see the modular ecosystem mature!
A Redacted Primer on Modularity ๐
Modularity separates the core functions of a blockchain into distinct, interchangeable layers. ๐งฑโจ
In these functional areas, specialized players emerge that build
Alright anon, seems like it's time to get back to this bread.
โ Short-Form Insights
โ In-Depth Research Reports
โ โโโ โโโโโโโ
Ready? ๐
What does it mean to 'Make Ethereum Great Again' ?
โฆ > 100k Transactions per second
โฆ < 1ms Block time & latency
โฆ < 0.01$ Transaction fees
Meet โโโโโโโ a parallel EVM L2 backed by
@VitalikButerin
that recently raised a $20M seed round.
Redacted Mega-๐งต full of alpha
5/ There are >40 active subnets on mainnet or testnet, which includes a broad spectrum ranging from DeFi app chains to gaming chains or modular infra layers such as shared sequencers like
@movementlabsxyz
M1 or
@nodekitorg
.
However, the focus today lies on the impact of ACP-77.
With the rapidly evolving space of modular execution layer designs, it is important to ensure a coherent, shared terminology.
At
@RedactedRes
, we propose a layered terminology based on different levels:
L0: Rollup-based Scaling Solutions
Scaling solutions that put computation
@toghrulmaharram
@0xDinoEggs
We agree that Optimiums/Validiums are different from rollups wrt mechanics (DA) / trust assumptions.
We aimed to differentiate by separating "pure" rollups from Optimiums/Validiums to keep the visualization simple.
As the concepts of off-chain tx processing & tx aggregation
4/ Independent blockchains?
Yes anon.
@avax
is more than the primary network.
It's an ecosystem of sovereign and interoperable L1 blockchains that can be fully customized and run app- or vertical-specific execution logic on what is essentially a modular blockchain SDK.
29/ With
@SuzakuNetwork
, a restaking protocol for sovereign blockchains,
@ash_avax
will also bring restaked security to the subnet stack.
Suzaku allows devs to build any kind of subnet-based AVS secured by assets like $AVAX, $ETH or even $BTC.
Gauthier described Suzaku, a system that orchestrates restaking for sovereign networks. It is integrated with external restaking ecosystems, such as ETH, and uses Avalanche subnets for its operation.
#codebase
One and a half months ago, we published the most comprehensive research article on
@optimismFND
, spanning over 100 pages to present the complete L2 solution.
While the foundation has made impressive technological advancements, we were surprised by the disruption in terms of
30/
@avax
already has a strong footing in the gaming sector as well, which is another growth driving sector with a huge addressable market.
Will definitely be an ecosystem to watch as modularity continues to blur the lines between L1s, L2s & other network configurations.
1/ Avalanche is one of the most established ecosystems and strongest brands in the entire crypto space.
The
@avax
C-Chain (Contract Chain) is one of the largest networks in terms of TVL, stablecoin supplies and on-chain activity (which has all suffered in the past months tho).
That's a wrap! We hope you've found this thread helpful! ๐ซก
Make sure to follow
@RedactedRes
stay ahead of the curve on all things modular infra.
Like/Repost of the below post is also highly appreciated! ๐๐
Avalanche, a multi-billion $$$ ecosystem, is about to undergo a major transformation.
ACP-77 will be a big step towards an ecosystem of interoperable, fully customizable & sovereign L1s.
Wait, modular L1s on
@avax
?
Research-๐งต full of โโโโโโ alpha on a major catalyst.
We have done hundreds of hours of in-depth research to craft this 103 pages report๐
Bear with us as we break down the Optimism ecosystem, exploring the underlying technology and the Superchain vision, its unique features, & how it sets itself apart from other L2 solutions!
/1
22/ Ethereum's rollup-centric roadmap and
@Solana
's global shared state machine represent different scaling approaches.
What
@Cosmos
,
@avax
and Ethereum do agree on though, is that dedicated execution environments and optimized stacks are key to addressing performance issues.
7/ ๐ What's Changing?
โฆ Subnet Validators only need to sync the P-Chain, reducing hardware requirements
โฆ The need to stake 2000 $AVAX is removed & replaced by a lower, continuous fee mechanism.
โฆ Better builder experience & interop powered by Avalanche Warp Messaging.
3/ In the context of ACP-77, the P-Chain, which coordinates validators and manages subnets, is the most relevant one.
It is responsible for network-wide operations, including the creation and management of subnets (independent blockchains) and the validator management.
2/ However,
@avax
is much more than C-Chain or a singular (EVM-compatible) execution layer.
It consists of three primary chains:
โฆ Contract Chain (C-Chain)
โฆ Platform Chain (P-Chain)
โฆ Exchange Chain (X-Chain)
26/ Nontheless, as applications mature and seek more customizability and token utility, dedicated & sovereign blockchains will be crucial.
In this context,
@blockworksres
sees
@avax
well positioned to become a leading platform to build interoperable, high-performance L1 chains.
27/ With ACP-77 removing the last existing barriers on that front and institutional Blockchain-as-a-Service providers like
@AvaCloud
potentially serving as the final abstraction layer on top of the subnet stack, a subnet season (fueled by institutions) could be imminent.
19/ ๐ค So, why does all of this matter?
Global shared state machines a.k.a. general purpose L1s like Ethereum and
@Solana
may not satisfy global scale or offer the best developer experience or value capture.
14/ So, how does it work on
@avax
?
Post ACP-77, the monthly cost of operating a Subnet will vary based on $AVAX prices, as the continuous cost paid to the P-Chain is priced in nAVAX/s.
20/ Ethereum mainnet places heavy costs on users during high demand periods, while
@Solana
's congestion issues render it near-useless during peak times.
Dedicated L1 blockchains and specialized VMs can offer better performance & predictability.
6/ ๐ก Motivation
Previously, validators needed to stake 2000 $AVAX (~$70k) and sync the entire Primary Network, making it costly and resource-intensive.
Also, regulated entities couldn't launch subnets due to mandatory Primary Network validation posing a regulatory barrier.
Stay tuned as we will follow up with a deep dive into the
@zksync
Hyperchain vision, the ZK Stack, the tokenomics & more!
Drop
@RedactedRes
a follow & turn on notifications.
ZK summer is about to get hot.
Like & RT of the below post also appreciated! ๐๐
9/ Post EIP-4844, rollup costs to post data to Ethereum mainnet have reduced by ~99%.
Overall, based on
@blockworksres
data, OP Stack chains are currently the cheapest stack, at ~$2/MB of processed txs on average, compared to
@Arbitrum
at ~$15/MB and
@ZKSync
at ~$150/MB.
18/ Additionally,
@avax
subnets also have the added benefit of native interop & hardware redundancy to reduce liveness risks.
Thanks to Avalanche Warp Messaging (AWM), subnets are interoperable among each other and they can leverage all the infra & tooling available on C-Chain.
21/ Global shared state machines generally limit builders' ability to customize products.
Appchains, like those in the
@Cosmos
ecosystem or the ones built on
@avax
subnets, offer more design space and control, enabling better end-user experiences.
31/ The
@avax
tech stack could become a core piece of infra as we're heading into a multichain future with app- and vertical-specific blockchains, customized at every level of the technology stack are on the rise.
๐ง DYOR anon.
16/ In their analysis,
@blockworksres
quantified the historical daily onchain costs of operating
@dexalot
, a DEX currently an
@avax
subnet, in multiple configurations:
โฆ PAYG Subnet (ACP-77)
โฆ Ethereum-based OP rollup
โฆ Celestia-based OP rollup
โฆ Cosmos consumer chain
17/ As the above chart shows,
@blockworksres
found that post ACP-77, subnet validation in this case would be more cost-effective than an Ethereum-based rollup and easily cost-competitive with a Celestia-based rollup configuration.
14/ But back to
@zksync
Era. What are people doing onchain?
Activity peaked between Dec 2023 and Feb 2024 when airdrop farmers flooded the chain in the hope of a juicy $ZK allocation.
On Dec 25th 2023, the chain reached ATH activity with >557K daily active addresses.
The
@cometbft
mempool is poorly designed.
Cosmos teams need to build an alternative system asap.
Happy to help or if someone wants to give me a grant,
@iqlusioninc
can hire a team and build one.
11/ The cost per tx on all these different L2 execution layers overall strongly varies tho.
Pls note the below visual only includes Ethereum rollups, uses a different metric (cost/tx) than the blockworks report (cost/MB) and that the data is sorted based on TVL, not cost.
15/ This fee changes based on a target utilization of total subnet validators registered on P-Chain, not based on the amount of economic activity on the subnet itself.
10/ EIP-4844 & specialized, modular DA layers like
@CelestiaOrg
,
@AvailProject
or
@eigen_da
solve the DA problem.
Rollups that publish data to
@CelestiaOrg
are the evidence, being even cheaper than EIP4844 rollups and reducing data cost by >92%, with some paying only ~$0.20/MB.
13/ The most extreme example is
@starknet
though with 70% of the assets on the network is just $STRK, which is currently sitting at a huge FDV with a relatively low float.
The composition of the value secured on the network is worrying.
๐ Starknet is getting worse every day, lol
โธTVL on Starknet is $1B, but $700M of that is $STRK (70%)
โธThe amount of stablecoins on a network is a clear indicator of its opportunities. If there's barely any stablecoin circulation, it means people don't see a reason to move
28/ Similar to RaaS in the Ethereum and
@CelestiaOrg
world, L1-as-a-Service where you can deploy fully customized L1s through a web UI could be a huge catalyst for ecosystem growth.
13/ But back to the comparison of these different stacks.
@Cosmos
Hub consumer chains have bespoke revenue-sharing agreements where the Hub takes a % of economic activity.
However, this model seems flawed as Stride & Neutron pay different amounts for equal economic security.
24/
@blockworksres
also points out that while rollups lack native interop standards (for now),
@Cosmos
chains (that have IBC) have historically suffered the issue of "tech debt", which has hurt its flexibility.
The thing that has always bothered me about the SDK is how it forces you to do things โthe way the sdk does themโ, without allowing for flexibility.
Things like modular encoding, allowing spinning up secondary services and generally giving the developer more control around how
12/ It will then however be in a situation akin to
@MantaNetwork
where the total value secured on the chain is $777M, but 64% is $MANTA.
A large % of native token in total value secured hints at an ecosystem that struggles to attracts external assets.
L2Beat's new feature separates the total TVL count from the chain's own token, here are some metrics โฌ๏ธ
๐น
@MetisL2
's TVL of $629M is composed of 91% of $METIS ($587M) for a non-token TVL of $42M
๐น
@Starknet
's TVL of $1.13B is composed of 77% of $STRK ($824M) for a non-token
23/ However, L1 maxis might argue that sovereign L1 blockchains enable apps to capture value across multiple layers & create new demand drivers for native tokens, leveraging their architecture for token utility and MEV revenue.
6/
@zksync
Era currently has a market share of 1.8% and is the 8th largest rollup based on
@l2beat
data.
Note again that the $815M of TVB refer to the total value secured on the chain, not only the value locked in apps. It also includes borrowed assets & differs from
@DefiLlama
.
12/ However, the visual does show that the rollup cost composition has changed significantly post EIP-4844 for many.
Often, compute is now the key cost component. What that means in the example of
@taikoxyz
, I recently investigated with
@RedactedRes
.
๐๐ Investigating Taiko ๐๐
โ
The
@taikoxyz
airdrop is live & $TAIKO is sitting at a mere $2.2B FDV, only a fraction of competitors like
@Starknet
($13.5B).
โ
Additionally,
@taikoxyz
has paid >$1M in fees since mainnet launch, which is almost 10x more than
@zksync
's total cost,
11/ The OP stack is the leading (EVM) rollup framework and with network effects playing an important role (primarily due to interop benefits), the OP stack is in a very strong position to capture market share in what many refer to as the "Stack Wars".
We spent a lot of time crafting this article and would highly appreciate if you could support us with a Follow (
@redactedres
, Like, RT/QT or comment!
Thank you very much frens ๐
Tell us in the comments which infra project you would like us to cover in the next edition โฌ๏ธ
With $600m in TVL & >$175m in funding,
@OptimismFND
is the 2nd largest rollup!
Soon the Superchain will merge OP chains into one interoperable L2 ecosystem!
We
@RedactedRes
have done 100s of hours of research & compiled a 100+ page report of alpha!
Entirely for FREE! ๐
โจ๐ด Staying Optimistic on Fault Proofs ๐ดโจ
Currently, the OP stack doesn't have a live fault proving mechanism. This introduces significant trust assumptions.
Let us unpack what it means and why it matters in the context of the Superchain. ๐
The
@Optimism
Superchain will
2/ In our report we cover:
โฆ The OP Stack
โฆ Scaling Ethereum Values on L2
โฆ The Superchain Ecosystem
โฆ The Road Ahead
โฆ Conclusion
Stay with us for a brief TL;DR. ๐
7/ With a
@DefiLlama
TVL of $165.5M on the network,
@zksync
confirms its leading role among the general purpose validity rollups (zkEVMs for now) in the market.
This now only includes assets that are locked/deployed in applications on the chain.
1/ If we assume 10% of the supply being dedicated to the first airdrop, $ZK is a $1.5B airdrop and would rank 7th in the below list right out of the gates.
With additional airdrops and a potentially rising valuation over the bull, $ZK could very well move up the list though.
27/ For a complete assessment of $ZK as an investment or to decide when to sell a potential airdrop, a lot more factors have to be taken into consideration.
Aside onchain activity and the Hyperchain vision this includes tokenomics, go to market plan, etc.
2/ 2024 is shaping up to become one of the hottest airdrop seasons we have seen to date.
The value of airdrops will likely be in the tens of billions, especially if like
@coingecko
, we look at ATH valuations throughout the cycle.
12/ In conclusion, we believe that the Optimism ecosystem is uniquely well positioned to remain a dominant stack for rollups built on Ethereum long-term.
The concept is based on the idea that a blockchain cannot reach all three core qualities that any blockchain network should strive to have all at once:
๐น Scalability
๐น Security
๐น Decentralization
/6
5/ A crucial architectural feature of the OP Stack is its modularity.
In our report, we explore the four key layers:
โฆ Sequencing
โฆ Execution
โฆ Settlement
โฆ Data Availability
Across any of these layers, OP chains can be customized & optimized for specific verticals.
5/
@zksync
Era was the first zkEVM to market.
Today it is the largest validity (a.k.a. ZK) rollup measured in terms of total value bridged ($815m).
This includes all assets on the network, regardless of whether they are held in wallets or sit in contracts (Total Value Bridged).
10/ The ecosystem of OP stack based rollups is constantly expanding and already counts over 35 chains.
A huge pool from which the Superchain can source additions to its overarching vision of a unified ecosystem that scales the values of Ethereum on L2.
3/ Please note that the data only includes airdrops until 2023 and has been updated for the last time in March 2023.
2024 airdrops like
@alt_layer
($100M),
@ether_fi
($210M) and
@MantaNetwork
with 30M $MANTA, are not on the list, but also much smaller than the leaders here.
1/ In the past months, we went deep down the Optimism rabbit hole to assess the state of the ecosystem.
This resulted in the most comprehensive guide to the OP stack, the Superchain vision and beyond in 2024!
Let's dive in!
1. Introduction
Aiming to solve Ethereumโs scalability problem, Optimismโs OP Mainnet was one of the first general purpose EVM rollups to go live on mainnet.
Since its launch, Optimism has consistently been at the forefront of L2 innovation.
/3
4/ For the $ZK airdrop, onchain data suggests that we are looking at hundreds of thousands if not millions of eligible wallets.
Is ZK summer finally here?
Get yourself a coffee and get comfortable anon. This will take some time.
8/ The Superchain aims to enhance scalability horizontally, allowing new chains to deploy seamlessly, sharing security, bridging, upgrades, governance, and communication.
All while remaining entirely open-source.
24/ Additionally, a lot of historical activity seems to have been driven by airdrop farmers, which is evidenced by the decline in activity over the past months.
However, the TVL injection of the $ZK launch could spur another growth phase for this still healthy ecosystem.
23/ Okay, so what is the conclusion here?
@zksync
Era is a leading L2 ecosystem and with the token launch, the hottest ZK-powered L2 in the market right now (most eyes on it).
Nonetheless, there is a considerable gap in activity and TVB/TVL compared to more mature ecosystems.
15/ With the $ZK airdrop approaching, a notable fall in on-chain activity has become evident.
Not only in terms of active addresses, but also in terms of transactions on the network.
Daily tx volume peaked on the 16th of Dec 2023 at roughly 5.4M.
11/ TVL & TVB numbers alone are not what matters though.
The $ZK airdrop will potentially inject over $1.5B into the ecosystem, pushing value bridged to / secured on the chain (TVB) beyond $2B.
This would catapult
@zksync
to 5th spot in
@l2beat
's TVB ranking.
10/
@Starknet
(probably
@zksync
's main competitor) also stands out here with 37%.
@nostrafinance
with over $260M is the clear leader in the ecosystem, with TVL up 24% on the month.