A breakdown of the 7 mainstream Layer2 solutions: what’s the progress and prospects?

L2 is the biggest narrative for the next bull market, with the potential to achieve hundredfold growth.
Written by: MooMs, Finish
Compiled by: Peng SUN, Foresight News
In the past six months, Arbitrum issued coins, the zkSync Era mainnet was launched, Optimism completed the Bedrock upgrade, Polygon zkEVM and Polygon 2.0 were launched, and the Base testnet was launched. Layer 2 still supports the main narrative of this year’s encryption market. Crypto has not yet been adopted on a large scale, and each L2 ecology still has huge room for development. They are the biggest highlight of the next bull market and may achieve a hundredfold growth.
Optimism
In October 2022, Optimism launched the open source development stack OP Stack, which supports the assembly and construction of custom chains "op-chains" to suit any use case. In the future, the boundaries between "op-chains" will disappear, forming a single logical chain Superchain , thus opening up collective resources to many different “op-chains” plugged into the “Superchain”.
The OP Stack consists of various software components (i.e. code libraries) that together form Optimism’s L2 Rollup and can be used to create highly customizable L2 blockchains. Essentially, OP Stack is all about simplifying the creation of L2 blockchains.
Optimism conducted a Bedrock upgrade on June 6, 2023. This is the first official version of OP Stack. Its key improvements include: reduced fees, shortened deposit time by 70%, improved proof modularity, and improved node performance.
After completing Bedrock, Optimism will upgrade to Superchain, whose first "op-chains" member is the L2 Rollup chain. Coinbase's upcoming Base L2 will be the second, and the mainnet is expected to be released this year. Worldcoin has pledged to continue development on OP Stack after completing a $240 million financing, and BNB Chain has also announced an EVM-compatible L2 chain opBNB testnet based on OP Stack.
The ultimate goal of Optimism is to build a Superchain consisting of a Rollup network built on OP Stack. This interoperable blockchain ecosystem will share sequencing, verification and cross-chain infrastructure to facilitate seamless communication between networks.
Optimism currently ranks third in Layer 2 TVL, but with the addition of partners based on OP Stack, Superchain’s vision will also be realized, and Optimism TVL is likely to rank first in the next few years.
Many people are bullish on Arbitrum, but overlook Optimism. But in fact, the user base of Coinbase and Binance is very large, and I believe this is just the beginning.
Decision
Arbitrum was launched in August 2021. It is an optimistic Rollup network that ranks first in Layer2 TVL.
The Arbitrum ecosystem includes:
Arbitrum One: A core part of the ecosystem
Arbitrum Nova: Second Rollup for projects with high volume expectations
Arbitrum Nitro: The software stack that powers Arbitrum L2
Arbitrum Nova is a sidechain with 90% lower gas fees compared to Arbitrum One. Although less secure, Arbitrum Nova is ideal for gaming, social and other high-bandwidth applications. OpenSea and TreasureDAO recently launched marketplace platforms on Nova.
So, what is Arbitrum’s vision? In March 2023, like Optimism, Arbitrum launched "Arbitrum Orbit", an open source framework available to everyone, allowing the creation and deployment of L3 without licensing or formal approval.
The easiest way to understand L3 is to think of it as adding another layer of Rollup on top of L2. L3 is not L1, but L2. They are significantly more scalable and are an ideal solution for high-throughput applications.
The difference between OP Stack and Arbitrum Orbit is that L3 will be built on Arbitrum One, while the OP chain (L2) will be an independent network sharing security with each other.
Layer3 could be a good narrative in the future. We’ve already seen this with dYdX, the first protocol to build app chains. However, I think OP Stack has more room to grow as it reaches a wider audience through institutional entities.
The main technical difference between Arbitrum and Optimism is that Optimism uses a single round of fraud proofs, while Arbitrum uses multiple rounds of fraud proofs. In layman's terms, this means that Optimism is faster, but may have higher gas charges due to executing on L1. Arbitrum takes longer to process transactions, but costs less in gas fees.
In addition, Optimism uses EVM, while Arbitrum has its own Arbitrum Virtual Machine (AVM). This means that Optimism's programming language is limited to Solidity, while Arbitrum supports all EVM programming languages.
Polygon
Polygon aims to improve Ethereum scalability by using different solutions. Polygon’s core product is the Polygon PoS sidechain, which currently handles 2 to 3 million transactions per day from 30 to 400,000 addresses.
Polygon is also involved in the application chain field, and its Supernets are designed to help developers build customizable application chains.
In addition, Polygon zkEVM, its EVM equivalent ZK-Rollup solution, was first launched on the mainnet in late March and has more than 177,000 unique addresses and a daily transaction volume of 20,000 to 50,000.
Polygon 2.0 is its latest suite of L2 products designed to unify these platforms and create a seamless user experience.
Polygon 2.0 is an L2 chain consortium powered by ZK technology, leveraging a unique cross-chain coordination protocol to achieve seamless interoperability between Polygon zkEVM, PoS and Supernets.
Polygon 2.0 consists of four protocol layers, each of which implements an important process within the network:
pledge layer
interoperability layer
Execution layer
Authentication layer
The staking layer is a PoS-based protocol that uses Polygon’s native token to provide users with heavy staking capabilities.
The interoperability layer facilitates cross-chain messaging within the ecosystem, making the entire Polygon network feel like a single chain through the following features:
Shared access to native Ethereum assets
Seamless composability
The execution layer enables any Polygon chain to produce batches of ordered transactions, known as blocks.
The proof layer is a high-performance, flexible proof protocol that proves all transactions on every Polygon chain.
I consider Polygon to be Optimism's main competitor for mass adoption, having established large partnerships with many Web2 companies and attracting millions of users. However, Optimism is also working with Coinbase and other entities with large institutional networks.
Base
"Base is a secure, low-cost, developer-friendly Ethereum L2 designed to bring the next billion users to Web3." The chain is built on OP Stack and incubated within Coinbase, with plans to gradually decentralize over the next few years.
The network will feature Coinbase integration, easy fiat deposits, and access to over 110 million users and over $80 billion in assets in the Coinbase ecosystem. Base has released the testnet on February 23. If the following standards are met, the team expects to launch the mainnet this year:
Successfully completed the Regolith hard fork in the testnet ✅
Successful infrastructure review with OP Labs team ✅
Optimism successfully upgraded Bedrock ✅
Internal and external audits were successfully conducted and no serious issues were identified
Demonstrating the stability of the testnet
During the deep bear period, Coinbase had 8.3 million monthly trading users (December 22). On the other hand, according to TokenTerminal data, as of July 7, the average handling fees of MATIC, OP and ARB were US$3.04 million, the average revenue was US$1.23 million, and the average number of daily active users was 207,600.
During the deep bear period, Coinbase had 8.3 million monthly trading users (December 22). On the other hand, according to TokenTerminal data, as of July 7, the average handling fees of MATIC, OP and ARB were US$3.04 million, the average revenue was US$1.23 million, and the average number of daily active users was 207,600.
Coinbase would have to convert 2.50% of its 8.3 million Bear users to reach the average daily active users of its three rivals. This means Base will likely become one of the major L2s in the DeFi space, if not the largest.
Mantle
Mantle is a novel L2 solution designed to take Ethereum’s scalability to the next level while maintaining a high degree of decentralization and strong security.
Launched in 2023, this is a modular design network that separates the three key layers of the blockchain (consensus layer, execution layer, and data availability layer) to enable independent optimization.
main feature:
Consensus layer: The working principle is similar to that of L1, focusing mainly on ordering transactions and blocks
Execution layer: It is isolated from the other two layers and is dedicated to executing transactions and smart contracts.
Data availability layer: Based on innovative Data Availability Sampling (DAS) technology, it ensures that data is always available without being concealed, improving network security.
Mantle’s modular design network could be a game changer in the L2 space. By optimizing three key layers independently, it makes the network more flexible and scalable without compromising security or decentralization.
Mantle is also in the spotlight for its strategic partnership with BitDAO. This strategic partnership has the potential to provide significant value to the Mantle network and strengthen its position in the blockchain ecosystem.
Mantle focuses on improving user experience, especially in the gaming and GameFi fields. As Mantle becomes more scalable, has lower transaction costs, and faster transactions, it could revolutionize the GameFi landscape.
Although Mantle is a new Layer 2 solution, it has shown great potential. Its innovative technology, focus on user experience, and commitment to decentralization make it a strong competitor in the increasingly fierce L2 competition.
Binance opBNB
In June 2023, Binance announced the launch of the opBNB testnet. opBNB is powered by OP Stack and maintains compatibility with BNB Chain, which provides significant advantages to BNB Chain developers and users.
Similar to Base, opBNB will also leverage Binance’s user base to provide a seamless, cost-effective solution for millions of Binance users. This shows that opBNB has great potential to achieve rapid adoption and growth in the DeFi ecosystem.
opBNB integrates the advantages of OP Stack: scalable solution, lower fees, shorter deposit time. Furthermore, opBNB aims to provide a secure, flexible and interoperable platform.
It is worth noting that the success of opBNB is closely related to BNB. If opBNB becomes widely used, it could have a positive impact on the value of BNB, causing ripple effects throughout the Binance ecosystem.
The ability to switch data availability schemes based on security and performance needs is another standout feature of opBNB, which provides adaptability that Layer2 solutions rarely have and is a future-proof platform.
In opBNB’s roadmap, testnet and mainnet will be launched in 2023. Currently, the testnet has been launched, and the mainnet launch will be an important milestone that will demonstrate the performance of Binance’s L2 solution in the real world, bringing huge opportunities for high-frequency trading, gaming, and social networks.
zkSync
zkSync is a Layer2 scaling solution developed by Matter Labs. It uses zkRollup technology and is designed to provide Ethereum-level security with the scalability of CEX. It is one of the key projects driving the L2 revolution.
zkSync uses zero-knowledge proofs to bundle multiple operations into a single proof, improving scalability by doing most of the computational work off-chain while ensuring a high degree of security through the Ethereum mainnet.
The significant advantage of zkSync is that it allows users to pay transaction fees in the token being transferred, without having to pay gas fees in ETH. This greatly improves the user experience and brings Ethereum closer to mainstream adoption.
The smart contract function of zkSync is also important. It uses Zinc (a new zk-friendly programming language). Developers can write and deploy smart contracts on zkSync, thus opening a new world of L2 DApp.
Matter Labs is also working to make zkSync upgradeable without a hard fork. This modular design ensures that it can be incorporated into future Ethereum improvements and scale as the Ethereum ecosystem continues to grow.
By using the PoS consensus mechanism for block verification, zkSync adheres to decentralization and is in line with the core values ​​of Ethereum. zkSync plans to switch to Ethereum's verification mechanism after sharding is implemented in Ethereum 2.0.
Another major goal of zkSync is to be completely permissionless, allowing any project to build and deploy smart contracts on its L2. This will further promote Ethereum’s scalability and support for diverse DApps.
The vision of zkSync is not just a scaling solution, it is a stepping stone towards a more scalable, secure and user-friendly Ethereum network. With Layer2 solutions like zkSync, there are endless possibilities for Ethereum to revolutionize all walks of life.
Following projects like zkSync is critical to understanding the future of Ethereum and DeFi. As Ethereum continues to evolve, solutions like zkSync will undoubtedly facilitate Ethereum’s growth and adoption. It is not only a competitor in the L2 space, but also sets the standard for Layer 2 security, scalability, and efficiency.