Scroll, a layer 2 to Ethereum, confirmed Tuesday that its main network had gone live, joining the competition among “scaling solutions” aiming to bring about cheaper and faster transactions on the largest smart-contracts blockchain.

The blockchain makes use of zero-knowledge technology, and is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), thus making it easier for developers to move their applications from Ethereum onto the new "zkEVM" network. The Polygon and Matter Labs blockchain-development teams have their own zkEVM offerings, while other layer 2 networks Arbitrum and OP Labs’ OP Mainnet use a different technology known as “optimistic rollups.”

“We can expect Scroll to scale Ethereum by an order of magnitude,” said Sandy Peng, the co-founder of Scroll, to CoinDesk TV.

Last week, blockchain data showed that Scroll’s smart contract was deployed on Oct. 8, but the team held off making its official announcement until this week.

After more than two years of building, we are thrilled to announce the launch of Scroll Mainnet.

As we open the doors to Mainnet, we want to take a moment to reflect on our journey thus far 💛 pic.twitter.com/WKfkjyIkB0
— Scroll 📜 (@Scroll_ZKP) October 17, 2023

The launch of the network comes nearly seven months after competitors Polygon and Matter Labs released their own zkEVMs.

“I often compare it to a train, and the cost of which depends on how many passengers are on the same train,” Peng added.

Scroll Scroll zkevm layer 2 Zero knowledge Zero-Knowledge Proofs rollup Rollups Mainnet

Margaux Nijkerk

Margaux Nijkerk reports on the Ethereum protocol and L2s. A graduate of Johns Hopkins and Emory universities, she has a masters in International Affairs & Economics. She holds a small amount of ETH and other altcoins.