What is Across Protocol (ACX)?

Deep Dive

1. Purpose & Value Proposition

Across Protocol addresses inefficiencies in cross-chain transfers by prioritizing speed and cost-effectiveness. Its intent-based model lets users specify desired outcomes (e.g., transferring ETH to Arbitrum), while relayers compete to fulfill these requests optimally. This design reduces wait times to under 1 minute and minimizes fees to ~0.05%, addressing pain points like slippage and delays common in traditional bridges.

2. Technology & Architecture

The protocol uses a single liquidity pool on Ethereum mainnet, dynamically rebalancing funds across chains to maximize capital efficiency. Transactions are secured by UMA’s optimistic oracle, which assumes validity unless disputed within a challenge window. Recent upgrades like V4 integrate zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) to verify Ethereum state changes on non-EVM chains (e.g., Solana), expanding interoperability without relying on centralized validators (Across V4).

3. Tokenomics & Governance

ACX has a fixed supply of 1 billion tokens. As of December 2024, ~33% (334M ACX) was circulating, with the rest allocated to:
- DAO treasury (250M): Funds protocol development.
- Risk Labs (195M): Supports core team and ecosystem growth, subject to vesting.
- Investors (110.6M): Locked tokens for early backers.
Token holders govern critical parameters, including fee switches and relay incentives, ensuring decentralized control.

Conclusion

Across Protocol combines speed, low costs, and Ethereum-centric security to streamline cross-chain transfers, with ACX enabling community-led governance. As the protocol expands to non-EVM chains, how will its ZKP integration balance scalability with decentralization?