How Blockchain Bridges Connect the Crypto Ecosystem

And Why It’s All About Interoperability

Ask anyone on the street to list their favourite things about the internet and bets are you will hear words like easy and fast and convenient, each word most likely delivered with a smile and a confident nod of the head. Bets are, though, you probably won’t hear a word like interoperability, which is a shame; interoperability is the most important aspect of the internet. It’s also the most important feature of Blockchain Bridges, and one of the key goals in further developing the blockchain ecosystem. Here we’ll give you a brief and simple rundown on what these bridges are and how they work.

Okay, so what are Blockchain Bridges?

Simply put, a Blockchain Bridge is a protocol that connects two separate blockchains to enable interactions between them. In other words, what the Blockchain Bridge is doing is enabling interoperability. To better understand this process, let’s use the following example:

Imagine each blockchain as a small island, and surrounding that island are other small islands. On each of these islands lives a community of people. Each community has their own unique language and their own unique set of rules and regulations, goods and services.

Now, if each member of a community is happy to only interact with other members of their community then there is no issue; one of the key features of blockchains as isolated ecosystems is that they’re safe and beneficial for internal interaction. But what if a person on one island wants to visit another island and interact with members of that community? As humans, we’re a curious bunch, constantly looking for new and exciting opportunities to improve our lives. The problem with being an isolated ecosystem, though, is that it makes interaction with another isolated ecosystem difficult.

And this is why we need Blockchain Bridges?

Exactly. These bridges connect each blockchain to another blockchain. In the case of our example, this bridge is a physical bridge that allows people to move and interact between the different islands. If you live on Bitcoin Island you can now visit Ethereum Island and exchange data, make new investments, etc. But the benefits of these bridges doesn’t end with the connection alone.

Wait, these bridges do more than just connect?

Yes. This is because each island has their own currency. For example, you can’t walk over to Ethereum Island and expect to spend your bitcoin. Traditionally, you’d need to visit a currency exchange (or, in the case of blockchains, a crypto-broker) and convert your money into the local currency, which would incur fees. The beauty of a Blockchain Bridge is that it converts, say, your bitcoin into an equivalent amount of tokens, known as Wrapped Tokens, that you can use on the Ethereum blockchain, without paying extra fees and, importantly, without having to sell your bitcoins. Don’t worry, we will cover Wrapped Tokens in a future article. For now, all you need to know is that they exist and that they’re vital to the functionality of blockchain bridges.

You can see from the example above how a Blockchain Bridge works and why they are so important to the future of the blockchain ecosystem. The more we are able to move and interact freely between blockchains (like the people moving freely between the islands) the more the interoperability and scalability of the blockchain ecosystem as a whole will get stronger. Every aspect of society, from government, to healthcare, to private life, will benefit from this innovation.