Research Summary
The report provides an in-depth analysis of four major blockchain bridges: LI.FI, Across, Socket, and Synapse. It highlights their performance, volume, user base, and unique features. The report also discusses the strategic importance of aggregator alignment for bridges and the role of relayers in fulfilling user transfer requests.
Key Takeaways
LI.FI’s Milestone and Distribution
- LI.FI’s Volume Achievement: LI.FI, a multi-chain trading API, has crossed the $4B volume milestone. It has serviced 2.46M unique wallets, facilitating 4.9M transactions.
- Strong Ecosystem Distribution: LI.FI has a strong distribution across the ecosystem with partners like MetaMask, Phantom, Hyperliquid, DeFi Saver, Gnosis Pay, and 200+ others.
Across’s Growth and Market Share
- Across’s Volume Surge: Across protocol, a cross-chain bridge, facilitated $770M in total monthly bridge volume in February, a 44% increase from January. It has a healthy 28% global market share.
- Competitive Fees: Across aims to provide the cheapest and fastest bridge infrastructure for EVM chains. Its fees as a percentage of bridge volume are nearly the lowest in the market at 0.12%.
Socket’s Increasing Usage
- Socket’s Bridged Assets: Socket, an interoperability protocol, has facilitated more than $4.6B worth of bridged assets since March 2023. It recorded an all-time high volume of $1.2B last month.
- Most Bridged Assets: The most bridged assets on Socket are USDC ($2B combined), ETH ($1.87B), and USDT ($0.72B).
Synapse’s User Base and Volume
- Synapse’s User Base: Synapse, a bridge transaction protocol, has crossed $45B+ in volume with over 2M users. The launch of its RFQ (request for quote) feature has decreased the average bridge time from 20+ minutes to 10 seconds.
- Volume Growth: Driven by the launch of RFQ and the general crypto market gaining momentum, Synapse’s bridge volumes have been growing 40% week over week.
Actionable Insights
- Monitor LI.FI’s Growth: Given LI.FI’s strong distribution and recent volume milestone, it may be beneficial to monitor its growth and partnerships.
- Assess Across’s Fee Structure: Across’s competitive fees and increasing volume suggest it could be a cost-effective solution for EVM chain bridging. Further assessment of its fee structure could be beneficial.
- Track Socket’s Usage: With Socket’s increasing usage and high volume of bridged assets, tracking its performance could provide insights into the interoperability protocol market.
- Examine Synapse’s RFQ Feature: Synapse’s RFQ feature has significantly reduced bridge time, enhancing user experience. Examining this feature could provide insights into improving transaction efficiency.
