A Layer-2 Scalability Solution for Ethereum
ZKsync has announced ambitious goals to achieve more than 10,000 transactions per second (TPS) and reduce transaction fees to as low as $0.0001 by 2025. This is a significant milestone for the layer-2 scalability solution that uses zero-knowledge proofs (ZK-proofs) to improve the scalability, security, and privacy of the Ethereum mainnet.
Improving Usability with ZKsync
In an effort to improve usability, ZKsync aims to boost its performance to over 10,000 TPS and reduce its transaction fees to $0.0001, according to a 2025 roadmap shared in a Dec. 12 blog post. This is a critical step towards making decentralized finance (DeFi) more accessible to mainstream users.
Refining the Elastic Network and ZK Stack
The roadmap outlines plans to refine ZKsync’s Elastic Network and ZK Stack, positioning them as preferred tools for blockchain builders. Achieving over 10,000 TPS with $0.0001 median transaction fees for Ethereum-native ERC-20 tokens by the end of next year would make ZKsync’s technology more appealing to builders.
Advancing Personal Freedom in Crypto
Advancing the personal freedom of investors and accelerating mass crypto adoption is at the heart of the protocol, wrote ZKsync in a Dec. 12 Xpost. The post highlights the need for an elastic, cloud-like development environment that allows builders to create decentralized applications (dApps) without sacrificing usability or security.
The Limitations of Current Web3 Solutions
Today, Web2 builders are forced to make tradeoffs between Web3’s values and usability, often opting for centralized developer platforms. ZKsync’s answer is to create an elastic, cloud-like development environment that doesn’t force builders to choose between UX, performance, and security.
The Role of Privacy-Preserving Technologies in Mainstream Crypto Adoption
Most mainstream institutions are deterred from joining the DeFi space because of a general lack of private states in Web3. Confidential computing-based technologies could bolster institutional participation and increase liquidity in crypto, according to Remi Gai, the founder of Inco.
The Importance of Privacy in Institutional Adoption
Institutions are still having a hard time entering the space because everything is transparent. If you enable an experience similar to what they’re comfortable with in Web2, suddenly, this could bring more liquidity, use cases, bigger participants and money to enter the space, Gai told Cointelegraph during the FHE Summit 2024.
Unlocking New Possibilities for Financial Institutions
Confidential computing technologies bring significant possibilities to financial institutions. For example, fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) solutions enable computations to be performed on encrypted data without decrypting it. Confidential computing could unlock the next $1 trillion worth of capital for the crypto space with continued technological development.
The Growing Interest in Privacy-Preserving Technologies
Privacy-preserving technologies like ZK-proofs have received increasing interest in 2024, partly due to the latest regulatory decisions related to privacy-oriented protocols, such as the crypto mixing protocol Tornado Cash. On Nov. 23, Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev’s pre-trial detention was prolonged while he awaited legal proceedings.
A Significant Legal Victory for Tornado Cash
However, in a significant legal victory on Nov. 26, a Fifth Circuit Appeals Court’s three-judge panel said the Office of Foreign Assets Control exceeded its authority in sanctioning Tornado Cash’s immutable smart contracts – reversing a lower court’s decision and granting the platform’s users a partial summary judgment.
The Future of DeFi and Confidential Computing
As ZKsync continues to push the boundaries of layer-2 scalability, confidential computing technologies are poised to unlock new possibilities for financial institutions. With continued technological development, we can expect to see significant growth in mainstream adoption and increased liquidity in crypto.
