Tldr; Across has expanded to Lisk, one of the latest entrants to Optimism’s Superchain ecosystem. This move will benefit Lisk users and make the network more connected with the broader Layer 2 ecosystem.
Key takeaways:
Lisk is the latest Layer 2 chain to welcome Across. Cross-chain explorers will be able to use Across to access the nascent Superchain as soon as it launches.
Across is becoming widely recognized as interop’s fastest and cheapest bridge thanks to its intents-based design and this launch offers Lisk users a way to benefit from it.
Across has expanded to many Layer 2 chains and the deployment on Lisk marks another step towards building an interoperable cross-chain ecosystem.
2024 has been the Layer 2 ecosystem’s biggest year yet. While talented teams have been laying the foundations for Ethereum’s scaling plans for many years, the ecosystem hit escape velocity this year. Many new chains have emerged and built out their own ecosystems. Scaling improvements have helped Layer 2 thrive and Across has offered its users seamless cross-chain experiences powered by intents.
Optimism has been one of the biggest contributors to Layer 2’s growth. Optimism’s OP Stack framework has helped many promising projects launch on Layer 2 and its Superchain collective now accounts for about ⅓ of Layer 2’s market share. Founded in 2016, the early Web3 project Lisk committed to the Superchain vision of a unified, scalable ecosystem when it announced its migration to Ethereum late last year.
Across is bringing true interoperability to the Layer 2 ecosystem and this includes the fast-growing Superchain network. With this in mind, we are pleased to announce that Across has launched on Lisk. This deployment follows similar launches on other Superchains like Linea and Mode. It’s a sign of Across’ support for Lisk and the Superchain vision of an accessible Web3 for billions.
This move gives cross-chain users a way to move to and from Lisk at an extremely high speed and low cost. It also means the network’s applications can leverage the Across system to offer their users better cross-chain experiences. We explain more below.
Introducing Lisk
Lisk is a Layer 2 Optimistic Rollup chain built using the OP Stack. But unlike most other Layer 2s, it started out as a Layer 1, launching an ICO in 2016. Lisk initially set out on a mission to host decentralized applications on its own base chain to onboard the next wave of crypto users. In December 2023, the team announced a migration to the Ethereum ecosystem in partnership with Optimism.
Powered by the OP Stack and built on Gelato’s Rollup-as-a-Service platform, Lisk is one of the latest additions to Optimism’s Superchain collective. This ecosystem is committed to making decentralized blockspace open to scale Ethereum in a unified manner.
Though Lisk has been building for several years, its mainnet launch is only due to happen later this year. Ahead of this milestone, the project launched a developer mainnet in May, allowing key infrastructure projects to deploy on the network before its full rollout. Across participated in the launch alongside a host of other partners.
Lisk has also launched other updates such as DAO voting and $LSK staking this year, but its full launch is the big one community members are waiting for. Across’ early deployment ensures cross-chain users will easily be able to move onto Lisk from day one with interop’s fastest and cheapest bridge.
Across and the Lisk ecosystem
Lisk’s goal is to grow the onchain economy by onboarding the world onto Layer 2. Similar to other Superchains, it has a few specific focus areas, including DeFi, Real-World Assets, and DePIN.
With Across’ support, Lisk can offer its users intents-powered interoperability. That means they can expect extremely fast and cheap transfers when they move on and off the network. The system also makes gas optimizations that ensure users save on costs.
Across’ expansion to Lisk makes the chain more accessible but it also gives its native DeFi applications greater flexibility. This year, Across launched V3, which significantly expanded the protocol’s surface area. V3 introduced hooks with Across+, allowing applications to offer cross-chain actions through a single interface. Another core V3 feature is Across Settlement, which lets projects leverage the system to settle users’ intents.
With V3, Across is no longer just a cheap and fast bridge. It’s a fully-fledged interoperability protocol that creates new possibilities for applications and users. This is good news for Lisk and applications that want to offer their users cross-chain activities with a Web2-like experience.
With Across, a Lisk DeFi app could execute a user’s request for a cross-chain transfer and swap, and all the user would have to do is signal their intent with one signature. Across has proven that this process is extremely fast and cost-effective.
Layer 2 and the interoperable future
Layer 2 is expanding at a rapid speed as new chains like Lisk emerge. While the abundance of new chains has created new UX hurdles, Across is proving that intents are the solution to Ethereum’s interoperability problem.
As the Superchain ecosystem grows, it’s becoming a core part of Ethereum’s story. Superchains are also becoming more active and interconnected, and with Lisk’s help, users should soon have access to verticals like RWAs and DePIN.
Lisk is on the path to becoming one of the Superchain ecosystem’s pillars and Across is proud to support it. Over the past two years, Across has proven that our thesis on intents powering the future of interop was correct. With this deployment, Lisk users will be able to enjoy the superb cross-chain experiences Across users are accustomed to from day one.
To learn more about Lisk, visit the project’s website. To find out how to use Across to power your application on Lisk, visit our website. To start exploring Lisk with Across, keep an eye on the Lisk blog for more information on the mainnet launch dropping later this year.
Words by @dreamsofdefi
