-Introduction

zkLink addresses the above challenges of blockchain interoperability and standardization by building a multi-chain rollup infra protocol to simplify multi-chain dApp deployment, and resolve liquidity fragmentation. It leverages zero-knowledge proof technology to provide a high throughput, low-cost App Rollup deployment solution. By harnessing the potential of zero-knowledge proof technology, the zkLink protocol features key functionalities such as: • Multi-chain liquidity aggregation across L1 blockchains and L2 rollups. • Quick multi-chain product deployment with SDK and APIs. • A trading-specific-zkVM, empowering high-throughput, low-cost

App Rollup solution for high performance financial applications such as Order Book DEX.

-Native Asset Aggregation

Applications using zkLink rollup infra solution will be able to access and list the native tokens across the connected L1s and L2s, including FTs and NFTs, allowing users to trade multi-chain assets on a unified user interface. Cross-chain asset bridges are not needed in the process, thus avoiding crosschain asset bridging risks and bridging fees. At the same time, multi-chain token portfolios can be managed with a single wallet. For instance, Alice deposits 2 UNI from her Metamask wallet to zkLink on Ethereum, and then deposits 3 BNB from BNB Chain to zkLink from the same wallet address — as a result, Alice will receive 2 UNI + 3 BNB under the same wallet address on the zkLink rollup network. This hypothetical example applies the same to tokens from Polygon, Starknet, zkSync, Linea, Arbitrum, Optimism, Scroll, and Solana, etc. Therefore, users can easily manage their multi-chain token portfolios using a single wallet with a simplified user experience.

-Liquidity Aggregation and Unification

Tokens issued on different L1 chains and L2 rollups by the same entity, for instance, USDT ERC20, USDT BEP20, USDT ARB, etc — will be merged into a single USDT token in the zkLink App Rollups and zkLink L3 network. The same applies for ETH. As ETH is the native asset for Ethereum and all the Ethereum layer 2 networks, ETH from Ethereum, zkSync, and Starknet, etc., will be merged into a single ETH token, thus eliminating chain disparities. In summary, tokens of the same kind but issued on various chains will be merged into one single token, fostering unified and aggregated liquidity.

-Tokenomics

ZKL serves as the native utility token and governance token for zkLink protocol. Utilities wise, ZKL helps developers unlock the access to the zkLink rollup infra service including the proof market. It is also the governance token of zkLink DAO, which governs the development of the protocol. ZKL will be a standard ERC20 token issued on the Ethereum Mainnet. The total supply of ZKL is capped at 1 billion and is non-inflationary. ZKL will also be made available on the connected chains. The following diagram illustrates the utilities and economic flow of ZKL.

Conclusion

This article presents the conceptual design and system structure of zkLink protocol, a decentralized multi-chain rollup infrastructure protocol based on zero knowledge technology. zkLink addresses the problems of liquidity fragmentation, lack of interoperability, high trading cost, and complexity of multi-chain deployment via a novel multi-chain rollup framework using zk-SNARKs. The fast App Rollup deployment solution based on SDK and APIs enables developers to build products with aggregation of native assets and liquidity across L1s and Ethereum L2s, delivering a seamless multi-chain user experience. And the TS-zkVM provides high-efficiency execution environment specifically designed for high performance and low-cost financial products such as CLOB DEX, NFT trading etc., contributing to the mass adoption of self-custodial, user-friendly DeFi products. To sum up, zkLink protocol is committed to empowering the next generation of DeFi applications and onboarding the next billion users on-chain via its innovative multi-chain ZK-Rollup infra solution.