AMA Recap: DOKDO DAO x Axelar

5th June, 8PM (UTC+9)
A : Jenny, Axelar APAC Community
Q : DOKDO DAO

Axelar network provides a uniform solution to cross-chain communication that meets the needs of both platform developers — no integration work is required from them — and application builders, offering one simple protocol and API to access global liquidity and communicate with the entire ecosystem.

INTRODUCTION ABOUT Axelar

Q Please give us a brief introduction to Axelar

AAxelar is a standout Layer 1, providing innovative programmable interoperability solutions through its unique virtual machine and development platform. Developers can easily create and launch smart contracts using Axelar Network’s tools, promoting seamless interoperability across various blockchains. This fosters smoother exchange and sharing of digital assets and data between different blockchain networks. Axelar Network is intentionally designed to lead in cross-chain interoperability, driving progress in blockchain technology and its real-world uses.

Q What achievements has Axelar Network made recently?

AAxelar has played a crucial role in supporting major DeFi platforms like Lido Finance with third-party interoperability solutions. It has also assisted dYdX, a leading perpetual contract DEX platform, by enabling smooth cross-chain deposits, allowing assets to move freely across platforms like Uniswap, Lido, dYdX, and Frax. Axelar places a high priority on security, conducting monthly audits and being recognized as one of the top two secure protocols by the Uniswap Foundation. Notably, Axelar has formed partnerships with industry giants including Microsoft, JPM, Oracle, and Mastercard.

In the real world, Axelar has made significant progress in the RWA sector. For instance, its collaboration with JPMorgan’s Onyx and Apollo demonstrates smart contract-based management of large-scale client portfolios, streamlining transactions and automated portfolio management for RWAs.

Recently, Deutsche Bank joined forces with Interop Labs, Axelar Network’s initial development team, to contribute to Project Guardian, sponsored by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. This initiative aims to establish new standards for blockchain interoperability and asset tokenization.

PRE-COLLECTED QUESTIONS FROM USERS

QIt seems that the ecosystem is too difficult for beginners, but what would you say if you cut it down easily?

AYou can easily find the Axelar ecosystem diagram online, which showcases the development of this cross-chain application ecosystem by category. It includes creators in DeFi, gaming, infrastructure, NFTs, payments, and wallets. These projects leverage Axelar’s API for seamless cross-chain experiences for users and developers. So far, Axelar has connected 64 chains and completed 659 cross-chain contract deployments.

Now, let’s explore two projects.

First is Prime Protocol.
Prime Protocol is part of Axelar’s cross-chain ecosystem as a blockchain-agnostic primary broker, accepting any asset as collateral across different chains. This inter-chain collateralization allows users to deposit assets from any connected chain and use their total value as collateral for loans on other connected chains. Prime ensures assets remain on their native chain, making it easy to interact across multiple chains as if using a single blockchain. By leveraging Axelar’s General Message Passing (GMP) feature, Prime opens new possibilities for DeFi enthusiasts.

Next is Squid, simplifying cross-chain liquidity routing.
Squid is a powerful multi-chain cross-chain bridge and liquidity routing protocol on AXELAR. It recently completed a $4 million funding round led by Polychain. Squid offers a protocol that enables cross-chain liquidity routing and swaps through a single JavaScript SDK. Developers can securely and seamlessly call smart contracts across multiple chains using Axelar’s GMP feature. Squid’s multicall feature simplifies complex cross-chain operations into one-click transactions. Squid and Axelar prioritize security, ensuring Squid smart contracts only execute logic for routing liquidity and do not hold any liquidity themselves.

Q What is plan in the future ?

A More ecosystem partners are integrating with the Axelar virtual machine, including projects like Celestia, Centrifuge, Coinbase Base, MobileCoin, NEAR, StarkWare, zkSync, etc. The Axelar virtual machine expands beyond cross-chain functionality, offering a broader ecosystem and improved token economics. This upgrade introduces a better burning mechanism, making the AXL token more deflationary. Ecosystem partners can now add nodes themselves by holding AXL, reducing the circulating supply and boosting token value.

Axelar implemented a key proposal to reduce currency inflation. With an initial supply of 1 billion AXL, the project has introduced plans for staking, gas fee burning, and governance. Each transaction burns 0.2 AXL, further decreasing inflation. While this plan is still being rolled out, Axelar is also showing more practical applications of AXL and cross-chain uses. To foster innovation, Axelar has launched grant programs and ecosystem funding, creating a productive environment for large-scale adoption.

Q One of the most important things about a coin project is the VCs and partnerships that have trusted and invested in the Axelar team.Tell us about the VCs and partnerships that have trusted and invested in the Axelar team.

A The AXELAR Network team includes co-founders Benjamin Hodes, Roman Shishkin, and Ivan Ivanov. Axelar Network launched on the mainnet in early 2022, creating a secure bridge for cross-chain communication between the Cosmos and EVM ecosystems.

As of April 9, 2024, Axelar has completed five funding rounds. Investors include Binance, Polychain Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Dragonfly Capital, and Crypto.com Capital. Partners like Microsoft, Mastercard, and JPMorgan also support Axelar, making it a highly notable project.

Q LAYER ZERO, WORMHOLE, and AXELAR are the most popular cross-chain AMPs in the market right now, and I understand that AXELAR has a lot of advantages over the other two, but I’d like to know what you think are its disadvantages.

A In the cross-chain interoperability field, many secondary funds and research institutions see Axelar (AXL) as having a longer-term competitive edge over more prominent names like Wormhole and LayerZero. While the market’s expectations for Wormhole’s opening value range from $20 to $100 billion, Axelar’s current circulating market value is $1.07 billion, compared to Wormhole’s $2.8 billion. Despite Wormhole’s potential market value reaching $20 to $50 billion, Axelar remains undervalued due to less hype.

There’s no significant fund inflow into the cross-chain field yet, but major North American funds are paying attention. This sector has a development potential worth hundreds of billions of dollars. Axelar also benefits from its role in the Cosmos ecosystem, acting as a liquidity gateway between Cosmos and EVM chains, poised to gain from Cosmos’ growth.

Axelar’s advantages over Wormhole include superior security, technical innovation, scalability, ecosystem applications, and token value capture. Axelar uses multi-signature keys and network consensus layers to ensure secure cross-chain transactions. Technically, Axelar offers more innovative and forward-looking solutions. Its smart contract capabilities as a public chain make integration with other chains and DApps easier and faster, enhancing scalability.

For ecosystem applications, Axelar provides tools like Interchain Amplifier and Interchain Maestro to help developers build and deploy applications efficiently. Axelar’s token economic models and incentive mechanisms also allow for better value capture. These advantages position Axelar to excel in the cross-chain interoperability field.

[Axelar Official Links]
Website : https://www.axelar.network/
Twitter : https://x.com/axelarnetwork
Discord : https://discord.com/invite/axelar