Mintlayer and Salus Join Forces to Enhance Bitcoin with L3 ZK-Based Thunder Network
San Marino, Italy, May 17th, 2024, Chainwire
Mintlayer, a leading Layer-2 scaling solution for Bitcoin, has joined forces with Salus, a science-driven research and security company specializing in zero-knowledge (ZK). The strategic partnership will see the pair collaborate on building the Thunder Network, a groundbreaking Layer-3 ZK rollup-based solution built on Bitcoin and the Mintlayer Protocol.
Although Mintlayer already unlocks Bitcoin liquidity for use in decentralized finance (DeFi) through native BTC cross-chain swaps (Atomic Swaps), the Thunder Network aims to take scalability, privacy and EVM functionality to fresh heights.
In addition to greater scalability, privacy and faster speeds, the Layer-3 solution benefits from additional Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible features, enabling developers to leverage EVM functionalities to build on top of a secure and reliable infrastructure that is connected to Bitcoin. This means that EVM dApps will already be compatible, enabling developers to build on Bitcoin via Mintlayer protocol more easily.
“Partnering with Salus is a significant milestone in Mintlayer’s mission to revolutionize Bitcoin’s scalability and functionality. Through integrating ZK, Thunder Network will enhance transaction speed and privacy while providing developers with powerful EVM capabilities to build innovative applications on top of Bitcoin. We’re excited to work with Salus to unlock Bitcoin’s full potential and drive the future of DeFi.” – Enrico Rubboli, Mintlayer Founder
Mintlayer’s decision to partner with Salus was a consequence of the latter’s extensive track record of providing privacy-enhancing EVM ZK application layer solutions. Earlier this year, Salus authored a groundbreaking set of ZK solutions tailored specifically for the Ethereum ecosystem, which was the most viewed article on Ethereum Research in 2023. While pioneering innovative ZK solutions, Salus also tackles the toughest security challenges in the blockchain space.
The Thunder Network is designed to address any potential scaling issues the Mintlayer network might encounter while enabling additional EVM functionality that may be currently absent from Mintlayer.
“We’re thrilled to join forces with Mintlayer to build the Thunder Network, a cutting-edge Layer-3 solution that will redefine how developers and users interact with Bitcoin. The synergy between Salus’ privacy-enhancing ZK solutions and Mintlayer’s Bitcoin layer 2 scaling expertise will drive innovation and adoption in the Bitcoin space while maintaining security, privacy, and decentralization.” – Shawn Chong, Salus COO
The Mintlayer-Salus partnership represents a significant step forward in the ongoing evolution of Bitcoin and its integration with the wider blockchain world. By leveraging Layer-3 ZK rollups, the Thunder Network will provide a seamless and high-performance experience for users and maintain the security, privacy and decentralization Bitcoin is famous for.
Among other defining features, Mintlayer utilizes Bitcoin’s Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) model and integrates Non-Turing Complete Smart Contracts to reduce the prospect of bugs and exploitable weaknesses. Its team is composed of leading industry engineers, cryptographers, and blockchain researchers.
About Mintlayer
Mintlayer is a Bitcoin layer 2 sidechain that enables native Bitcoin cross-chain swaps and thus powers ways to trade value and participate in truly trustless finance. In the coming year via Atomic Swaps, Mintlayer hopes to unlock the use of native Bitcoin in DeFi applications. Financial use cases supported by Mintlayer include P2P trading using Atomic Swaps, Real World Asset tokenization, security tokens, and digital collectibles.
Learn more: https://www.mintlayer.org/