Axelar & The Future of Interchain Network

Axelar's Mission to Transform the Interchain Network

At REDeFiNE TOMORROW 2024, Sergey Gorbunov, CEO of Interop Labs & Co-founder of Axelar Protocol, joined a fireside chat session with William Nuelle, General Partner, Ventures of Galaxy Digital on the future of the Interchain network and Axelar's role in enabling seamless cross-chain interoperability.

Introducing Axelar 

AXL or Axelar, is a platform developed by Algorand’s founders to be a tool that helps dApp (Decentralized Application) developers connect their applications with other blockchains for cross-chain functionality. It utilizes GMP (General Message Passing) technology, which allows blockchains to communicate across networks at the smart contract level.

Axelar is a decentralized network platform that utilizes Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanisms. Node Validators are responsible for verifying transactions and various activities on the platform while AXL is the native token of the network.

Axelar’s Mission to Create Seamless Network

Axelar's goal is to allow users to interact with any assets on any blockchains with a single click. As the blockchain ecosystem grows, it's essential to have a robust interoperable protocol that can support the increasing number of networks and applications.

• Axelar connects over 65 heterogeneous blockchains which ensures that any connection to the network automatically becomes interoperable with all other connected chains, minimizing maintenance and security risks compared to pairwise connections.
  
  
• Axelar's hub-and-spoke model allows connections to the network to automatically interoperate with all other connected networks. This reduces maintenance and security risks compared to pairwise connections.
  
  
• Axelar offers token transfers and general message passing, allowing developers to link applications and wallets across chains, enabling composable smart contracts and applications across different blockchains.
  
  
• The newly launched Axelar Interchain Token Service (ITS) allows developers to easily deploy their tokens on multiple blockchains through a user-friendly UI. Tokens deployed through this service will be automatically interoperable.
  
  
• Axelar leverages Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs), which verify claims without revealing sensitive information while acting as validity proofs from different blockchains to automatically connect to various stacks. This makes the protocol more programmable and open, particularly beneficial for Layer 2 solutions.

• Axelar is collaborating with partners to create Chain Abstraction, which aims to minimize the complexity for users when interacting with different blockchains. This is achieved by simplifying complex systems such as paying gas fees and switching between wallets.

Practical Applicability and Regulatory Compliance

Axelar has partnered with large enterprises like Apollo, JP Morgan, and Deutsche Bank to enable the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) for transactions across multiple blockchains. This strategic partnership prioritizes private and regulated assets, utilizing the functionalities of both public and authorized blockchains. A key benefit of this approach is streamlined portfolio rebalancing, resulting in significant cost savings for involved parties.

Sergey Gorbunov stated that collaborating with financial institutions has accelerated research and development efforts, leading to focused product teams with clear objectives centered on cost reduction. This demonstrates a growing interest in adopting blockchain technology within the financial sector.

Many popular DeFi platforms like dYdX, Frax and Aave are focusing on cross-chain interoperability. Axelar aims to be a convenient on and off-ramp for DeFi apps on all connected blockchains.

Axelar is developing a self-service blockchain network connection system!

• Axelar is developing a "Self-service model" that will enable developers to easily connect their projects to the Axelar network, making it easier to build on the Axelar platform.
  
  
• The development of this Self-service model is expected to significantly increase the number of Blockchain networks connected to Axelar, resulting in a more seamlessly interconnected ecosystem.

In summary, Axelar is committed to developing robust, efficient and accessible blockchain network connectivity solutions to support communication and asset transfer across a wide range of blockchain networks.

Watch this on Youtube:  https://youtu.be/7LOE8z2OaKs?si=Q87iM2mldC1lMShz