If cross-chain bridges like Orbiter are satisfied with the current "business model," they may ultimately face the risk of being eliminated by the market.
Written by: Haotian
Recently, Tiger Research released an in-depth research report on the cross-chain bridge @Orbiter_Finance, highlighting its extremely high market share data in mainstream layer2 asset cross-chain transactions and mentioning that Orbiter is strategically transforming from a cross-chain bridge to a Vizing layer2 chain. The question arises: since the "business model" of cross-chain bridges is doing well, why ambitiously pursue a layer2 chain? Let me try to interpret this:
1) Since Ethereum established a rollup-centric layer2 expansion strategy, "cross-chain bridges" have become a key component for connecting communication and asset interoperability between various layer2s.
However, the original cross-chain path defined by Ethereum is essentially L2 -> L1 -> L2. Coupled with the 7-day challenge period for OP-Rollup, if an A layer2 chain wants to transfer an asset to a B layer2 chain, it must bear the cross-chain gas fees for two large transactions between the mainnet and layer2, along with a long capital lock-up time cost.
This situation has led to most asset cross-chain transactions between layer2s relying either on centralized CEX withdrawal solutions or on third-party on-chain cross-chain bridge protocols like Orbiter, Hop Protocol, and Wormhole.
This is precisely why the report states that Orbiter Finance can maintain a leading position in this round of layer2 expansion. According to the disclosed data, its market share is approximately 40%, and it has created a unique Maker mechanism, almost monopolizing 70% of the profits in the cross-chain bridge market. These figures indirectly confirm Orbiter's success in the cross-chain bridge sector.
2) However, after the Cancun upgrade, the layer2 market experienced a flourishing situation, with two major camps led by OP-Rollup and ZK-Rollup continuously expanding vertically, pushing their technology stacks and ecosystems forward. For instance, OP Stack has developed dozens of new layer2s, including Base, as part of its Superchain grand strategy.
Nevertheless, both OP Stack and ZK Stack are focused on developing their respective closed ecosystems. Although they are gradually maturing, they increasingly exhibit a fragmented development pattern, leading to further dispersion of layer2 liquidity and a consistently fractured user experience.
In this context, @VitalikButerin has repeatedly called for improved interoperability among layer2s and introduced the Helios light client to accelerate the decentralization and interoperability between layer2s. Additionally, various chain abstraction and ZK technology service providers, including @ParticleNtwrk and @ProjectZKM, are also intervening through third-party interoperability layers to help unify liquidity in the Ethereum layer2 ecosystem.
This means that the endgame of the Ethereum layer2 ecosystem will inevitably build a consistent interoperability layer. In other words, if cross-chain bridges like Orbiter are satisfied with the current "business model," they may ultimately face the risk of being eliminated by the market.
3) Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why Orbiter wants to shift from a passive to an active role by launching the Vizing layer2 expansion plan, specifically designed for seamless, secure, and low-cost asset interactions between multiple layer2 chains.
As mentioned earlier, other layer2s are developing under a fragmented strategy, while Vizing may only have the "united front" strategy to pursue. To this end, the Vizing chain has primarily established three core features:
Vizing Account Abstraction (VAA): Allows users to manage multiple Layer2 networks with a single account, significantly simplifying the user experience, similar to the unified account abstraction services provided by chain abstraction services;
Vizing Environment Layer (VEL): Provides developers with a unified cross-chain development environment, lowering the barriers to ecosystem construction, essentially serving as a unified cross-chain communication standard, first standardizing the protocols before advancing ecosystem development;
Cross-chain information communication between Rollups: Reduces reliance on Ethereum L1, adapting to various layer2 Rollup chains, and facilitating information exchange through standardized interfaces, thereby providing conditions for efficient and decentralized asset interoperability between layer2s.
In summary, under the inevitable trend towards unified cross-chain interoperability in layer2, Orbiter has chosen to actively "revolutionize" itself, advancing a more ambitious and imaginative strategy for a layer2 interoperability shared layer.
Moreover, with the subsequent roadmap for Ethereum's ecosystem, including the anticipated ZK-SNARKs implementation and the upcoming Beam Chain network upgrade plan, all point towards a unified layer2 interoperability ecosystem. Before this happens, whoever can truly contribute value to the Omni cross-chain interoperability of layer2 will directly influence their ecological position within the Ethereum ecosystem.
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