Cronos has announced an upgrade to its zkEVM testnet to the latest major release known as Tethys. Its introduction brings the zero-knowledge (ZK) layer-2 blockchain secured by Ethereum a major step closer to its mainnet launch, planned for this summer
The Tethys upgrade is based on zkSync’s v24 release, which paved the way for zkSync Era to evolve from a standalone blockchain to one of many ZK Chains within the zkSync ecosystem. The same technology is now being utilized to accelerate Cronos zkEVM’s goal of developing a highly scalable network that will support mainstream adoption.
Built using ZK Stack, Tethys has been launched in a partnership between Cronos Labs, and engineering teams from Matter Labs, Crypto.com, VVS Finance, Fulcrom Finance, and Veno Finance. Tethys adds a number of new features including an enhanced bridge between Ethereum’s Sepolia Testnet and Cronos zkEVM Testnet that connects all ZK Chains. It also enables cheaper transaction fees by storing transaction data in validium configuration.
Ken Timsit, Head of Cronos Labs, said: “Tethys brings us closer to the full release of the Cronos zkEVM and showcases the qualities that make zero-knowledge networks so versatile. Features such as reduced transaction fees, better developer tooling, and easier upgradability demonstrate that the Cronos ecosystem remains at the forefront of blockchain innovation.”
Daniel Lumi, Senior Product Manager of ZK Stack at Matter Labs said: “Cronos has an impressive track record of building a diverse ecosystem along with impressive on-chain financial value and user acquisition. They will inevitably become one of the great use cases for ZK Chains, so we’re excited to see Cronos zkEVM complete this final milestone before mainnet. With Tethys testnet, users can experience the speed, throughput, and low fee environment that will make the Cronos zkEVM capable of supporting a diverse range of use cases and applications.”
To accelerate testnet adoption, Cronos will soon announce a series of quests that are open to the community. Users who complete simple tasks on the Tethys testnet can provide valuable feedback and will have an opportunity to join the upcoming Cronos zkEVM user reward program. Forthcoming upgrades to Tethys will also add features such as an optimized gas price adjuster and the ability to bridge crypto assets from Ethereum to Cronos zkEVM without holding any CRO on Ethereum.
More information available at: https://docs-zkevm.cronos.org
About Cronos
Cronos (cronos.org) is a leading blockchain ecosystem that has partnered with Crypto.com and more than 500 application developers and contributors representing an addressable user base of more than a hundred million people around the world. Cronos’ mission is to make it easy and safe for the next billion crypto users to adopt self-custody in Web3, with a focus on Decentralized Finance and Gaming.
The Cronos universe encompasses 3 chains: Cronos EVM, the leading Ethereum-compatible blockchain built on the Cosmos SDK; Cronos POS, a leading Cosmos chain for payments and NFTs; and Cronos zkEVM, a new high performance layer 2 network secured by Ethereum.
Cronos ranks among the top 15 blockchain ecosystems, encompassing more than 6 billion dollars of user assets. Since inception, it has securely settled more than 100 million transactions.
Cronos is supported by Cronos Labs, a Web3 start-up accelerator focused on DeFi, GameFi, and the development of the Cronos ecosystem.
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