Zilliqa is among the most promising blockchains today, with numerous innovations being rolled out on a regular basis. In fact, there may be too many of them for one to keep track of easily.
This article explores the most important of the recent updates in Zilliqa.
To learn more about Zilliqa, please read our article Introduction to Zilliqa: A Blockchain Platform Designed to Scale in Transaction Rates.
Key Milestones in the Past Year
The Zilliqa team recently announced the introduction of EVM compatibility to the Zilliqa testnet—the first step in bringing the scalable, low-fee, and efficient Zilliqa protocol to a broader ecosystem of blockchain users and developers building EVM-compatible smart contracts.
By taking a multi-chain approach to developer support and opening the Zilliqa protocol to a more significant number of builders and projects, they can make Zilliqa more accessible for and interoperable with exciting DeFi projects, dApps, and more. The EVM compatibility testnet on Zilliqa is designed for developers to test deploying smart contracts on the blockchain and implementing EVM.
As more people try the EVM applications on Zilliqa and test their performance, Zilliqa will engage in an iterative development process to improve reliability and efficiency as they prepare to deploy EVM compatibility to the mainnet. There may be some bugs, and some smart contracts may not deploy properly as this is a testnet deployment. The Zilliqa team will test and resolve any issues that may arise during the testnet phase to improve the EVM implementation and ensure the mainnet deployment of EVM compatibility is stable, secure, and reliable to build on.
One of EVM compatibility's most significant immediate benefits is using EVM wallets and tools with Zilliqa, including MetaMask. MetaMask is a popular browser-based wallet for Ethereum and EVM-compatible blockchains that makes it easy to store and use tokens across several networks. With EVM compatibility, users can send and receive ZIL directly from MetaMask and use the wallet to start using and building Solidity contracts on Zilliqa.
EVM compatibility breaks new ground as connecting MetaMask directly to the Zilliqa mainnet will give new DeFi and dApp integration opportunities across major blockchain networks. Users can now connect MetaMask to the Zilliqa testnet and try deploying EVM contracts on the Zilliqa network. Smart contract developers can now build dApps on Zilliqa using familiar EVM programming languages like Solidity and tools like Truffle and Hardhat.
One more significant and community-expected milestone was the launch of the Torch smart wallet, which brought new features such as a reputation system for stakers, NFT displaying, and even instant unstaking.
NFTverse
Zilliqa onboarded tons of artists to work with them on generating high-quality, secure, and value-driven NFTs, including:
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The Soulless Citadel;
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Dr. Death Cult Club; and
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DopeCrew Friends.
The Soulless Citadel NFT marketplace went live in September.
Zilliqa's team also published a tech update for ZRC7—a Metadata standard for Zilliqa’s NFTs and creator economy. This will give users an A-Z view into any NFT’s functionality — critical to a whole suite of emerging Web3 applications in the pipeline like Rialto and Metapolis.
Zilliqa has partnered with the multi-chain NFT platform WEYU to provide users on both sides with easy access to a comprehensive and growing ecosystem of value-driven NFTs.
Zilliqa's ecosystem gains an NFT powerhouse with WEYU onboard. By creating an NFT generating tool—YU-launch—designed explicitly for the Zilliqa blockchain, WEYU will substantially increase the number of creators entering the platform and the blockchain space. Together, and through the merging of blockchain technology, any creator or builder will be empowered to construct any digital asset free of cost and within minutes.
Gaming on Zilliqa
Zilliqa announced its partnership with XBorg—a leading Esports 3.0 organization—to advance the development of our rapidly-expanding game ecosystem.
The XBorg and Zilliqa collaboration involves organizing competitions and tournaments for Zilliqa’s games to amplify exposure across crypto-gaming communities and jointly co-market games within the Zilliqa gaming ecosystem through this collaboration.
Zilliqa partnered with RRQ, which signals their growing expertise in the esports and gaming domain. Zilliqa also works with this Indonesian heavyweight to unlock global opportunities for fan engagement using the blockchain.
Regarding Zilliqa's ambitions to become a blockchain-of-choice for gaming, Zilliqa has officially joined the Blockchain Game Alliance (BGA). In the BGA, they will work alongside like-minded peers who want to bridge the gap between those who create great games and those who make great blockchains.
Zilliqa also launched an initiative to support sustainability-focused fashion innovators. Zilliqa put out a call for sustainability-minded fashion designers. They welcomed emerging brands, indie labels, established companies, or fashion creators who engage in ethical and sustainable processes to win grants. By promoting sustainable fashion practices, Zilliqa is helping to create a more conscious and responsible fashion industry that values transparency and ethical standards.
Zilliqa’s Future
These are some of the significant upgrades planned for the Zilliqa network this year, from EVM compatibility launching on the mainnet to the development of Zilliqa 2.0 by the end of the year.
Developing decentralized finance (DeFi) tools and applications is crucial for growing Zilliqa's ecosystem. DeFi is a rapidly growing sector within the blockchain industry, offering a range of financial services that are decentralized and accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Ionise, a money market protocol for short-term borrowing and lending, will be launched soon and become the first DeFi Solidity dApp deployed on the Zilliqa EVM.
Ionise is only the beginning of a more direct and concerted movement in the community to build out DeFi capabilities on the Zilliqa network. Many exciting DeFi-related products and tools are in the pipeline across the ecosystem. These upcoming tools include the groundwork for new DEXs, bridges, staking products, and cross-chain applications.
Regarding the attraction of building DeFi platforms, Zilliqa CEO Matt Dyer highlighted the potential for platforms and developers to harness a first-mover advantage in the ecosystem.
“If you are a developer building on another layer-one chain with many different products you're competing against, working on a chain that's maybe a bit more nascent in that specific vertical gives you the first-mover advantage.”
EVM is just the first step to enable robust and explosive DeFi growth for Zilliqa as the network becomes more accessible to DeFi developers by allowing them to launch new and existing Solidity dApps on Zilliqa.
Opening the blockchain to Solidity dApps unlocks the potential for DeFi to become a major part of the Zilliqa network, which will drive greater volume and adoption across all aspects of the Zilliqa ecosystem.
If you have any questions regarding staking ZIL, feel free to contact our ZIL Blockchain Manager on Twitter.
