[RFP]:How to Solve the 7 Day Consensus Problem: SORA (Polkadot) to BASE (Ethereum Layer 2) with Instant Consensus

[porkchop315]

Proposal Due Date

11/01/2024

Proposal Overview

How does it benefit the SORA ecosystem?
Liquidity Boost: The instant consensus mechanism allows faster asset transfers between SORA and BASE, enabling quicker access to liquidity across ecosystems. This will attract liquidity providers and DeFi participants, bolstering the SORA ecosystem's growth.

Western Users: By establishing a faster bridge to BASE, a highly popular Ethereum Layer 2, SORA can attract Western users who are more familiar with Ethereum based networks, thus increasing SORA's user base in the West.

Coinbase Listing: By solving this interoperability issue, SORA could gain more credibility within the DeFi space. This would increase its chances of being listed on larger exchanges like Coinbase, driving more liquidity and adoption.

Grants for Support: Cross chain solutions are a hot area for blockchain grants. Ethereum's Layer 2 ecosystems provide grants to foster innovations like cross chain consensus solutions, offering potential funding opportunities for SORA.

How is it different from what's already available?
Instant Consensus: Current systems using Optimistic Rollups require a 7 day withdrawal period for finality. This proposal introduces instant or near instant finality by leveraging liquidity networks and relayer networks combined with ZK-proofs or optimistic finality mechanisms or Polkadot's GRANDPA finality, making it faster than existing options like Wormhole.

Deeper Cross Ecosystem Integration: Unlike simple bridges, this solution aims for native interoperability between Polkadot’s XCM (Cross Consensus Messaging) and BASE’s Layer 2 solutions, making it more seamless and secure.

How would this work and integrate into the SORA ecosystem?
The integration will require deploying cross chain messaging protocols like LayerZero or Wormhole,(altered) allowing SORA assets to interact with BASE. Liquidity providers or relayers would be used to bridge assets instantly, removing the need for a 7 day delay.
This solution will become a part of SORA’s DeFi tools by offering faster cross chain swaps and liquidity provision, connecting Polkadot native assets with Ethereum’s Layer 2 ecosystem.

Proposal Goals

The goal of the proposal is to solve the 7 day withdrawal delay faced by Optimistic Rollups, specifically when bridging assets from SORA (Polkadot) to BASE (Ethereum Layer 2). This delay occurs because Optimistic Rollups require a fraud proof challenge period to secure transactions.

The proposal aims to implement instant or near instant consensus mechanisms, such as liquidity pools, ZK proofs, and relayer networks, to speed up asset transfers between SORA and BASE. By doing so, it eliminates the need for users to wait 7 days to withdraw their funds, improving cross chain liquidity and user experience.

Problem it Solves:
Cross Chain Delays: It reduces the 7 day wait period for cross-chain asset transfers, allowing for faster transactions and improved user experience.
Enhanced Liquidity: With faster withdrawal times, more users will engage with the platform, enhancing liquidity across the ecosystem.
Broader Ecosystem Integration: It allows seamless interaction between Polkadot and Ethereum Layer 2 networks.

Scope of Work

1. Implementing Optimistic Rollups (OR) on SORA
   Optimistic Rollups (OR) allow SORA to bundle transactions and process them off chain, significantly reducing transaction times and costs. The transactions are verified off chain but published on chain, and a challenge period (usually 7 days) is used for fraud detection.

Key Tasks:

Smart Contract Development: Develop rollup specific smart contracts for SORA to interact with Ethereum based Layer 2 solutions such as BASE.

Fraud Proof Mechanism: Implement fraud detection mechanisms to ensure transaction validity during the 7 day challenge period.
OR Integration: Use Ethereum based OR infrastructure (such as Optimism or Arbitrum) to handle cross chain bundling and off chain execution.
Workload:

Rollup contract development and integration into SORA’s governance and consensus protocols.
Close collaboration with BASE and Layer 2 networks for asset bundling.
2. Liquidity Pools and Relayer Networks
Liquidity Pools are essential for allowing near-instant withdrawals. Liquidity providers lock assets on SORA, enabling cross-chain users to access their funds without waiting for the challenge period to finish. Relayer networks manage the communication between these liquidity pools, ensuring smooth transfers.

Key Tasks:

Set up Liquidity Providers (LPs): Attract liquidity providers who can stake assets on SORA, providing liquidity for near-instant withdrawals.
Build Relayer Networks: Implement a relayer network to manage fast transactions and prevent fraud, reducing the need for extended challenge periods.
Workload:

Establishing incentives and contracts for LPs.
Building or integrating existing relayer networks (e.g., LayerZero or Celer Network).
3. Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) for Instant Finality
ZKPs allow for the instant validation of transactions by providing cryptographic proof that a transaction is valid without revealing sensitive details. This can completely bypass the 7 day challenge period required by Optimistic Rollups.

Key Tasks:

ZKP Integration: Implement ZKPs into the cross-chain transaction verification process.
zkRollup Compatibility: Ensure that zkRollup solutions are integrated to verify transactions faster than traditional fraud-proof mechanisms.
Workload:

Research and implement ZKP libraries compatible with SORA’s Polkadot-based framework.

4. Bypassing the Need for a Dedicated Bridge
   By using ZKPs and Relayer Networks, SORA can bypass the need to build a dedicated bridge. This solution leverages existing cross chain communication protocols and Ethereum Layer 2 rollups to handle cross-chain transactions between SORA and BASE without requiring direct bridges.

Key Tasks:
Leverage Cross Chain Tools: Utilize protocols like LayerZero, which offer cross chain communication without dedicated bridges, allowing SORA and BASE to interact seamlessly.
Adapt SORA's Consensus for Rollups: Ensure that SORA’s consensus protocols (e.g., Polkadot’s GRANDPA finality gadget) are compatible with Ethereum rollup mechanisms.
Integration into the SORA Ecosystem

Total Workload Breakdown
3–4 months of development and integration time.

Resource allocation for smart contract development, ZKP research, and liquidity provider onboarding.

Current Roadblocks and Barriers to Success

What's the catch in this ideal plan?

Complexity of Integration: Integrating Optimistic Rollups, Liquidity Pools, and Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) into the SORA ecosystem while interacting with BASE (Ethereum Layer 2) requires significant development and expertise. The technical challenges of ensuring seamless cross chain interoperability could introduce delays and increased costs.

Liquidity Provider Incentives: For liquidity pools to work effectively, it is crucial to ensure enough incentives for liquidity providers. If the rewards are not high enough to justify the risk and capital lockup during the fraud challenge period, the system could face liquidity shortages, affecting the user experience.

Security Risks: Rollups, while a scaling solutions, introduce new risks such as fraud challenges and the potential for collusion in liquidity relayers. Implementing ZKPs can mitigate some of these risks but adds complexity, increasing the scope for potential bugs or exploits if not implemented correctly.

What should we pay special attention to when implementing this proposal?

Thorough Testing: The smart contracts and rollup architecture need extensive testing to ensure fraud proofs, ZKPs, and liquidity mechanisms function securely.

User Adoption: Adoption rates depend on ease of use and user education around new withdrawal mechanisms, so a strong UX/UI focus and educational resources are key to success.

Evaluation Metrics and Criteria

SORA, implementing Optimistic Rollups, Liquidity Pools, and ZKPs. Successful integration of smart contracts, seamless cross chain asset transfer, and validated security measures.

This proposal should be prioritized. The longevity of SORA depends on the platform’s ability to scale and attract liquidity. By solving the 7 day withdrawal issue and improving cross chain interoperability, SORA would not only attract more DeFi users but also open the door to greater liquidity from Western users, potentially leading to exchange listings like on Coinbase.

The flowchart above illustrates how Optimistic Rollups, Liquidity Pools (Relayer Networks), and Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) would work in the SORA ecosystem.

1. User Request Transaction: Users submit transactions on the SORA Network.

2. Optimistic Rollup Contracts: The transactions are bundled and processed off-chain via Optimistic Rollup contracts, reducing congestion and improving scalability.

3. Liquidity Pools: Liquidity providers offer instant liquidity by locking assets, allowing users to access their funds without waiting for the rollup challenge period.

4. Relayer Network: Relayers manage the communication between SORA and BASE (Ethereum L2), ensuring secure cross-chain transfers.

5. Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs): ZKPs provide cryptographic verification, allowing near instant transaction finality without revealing sensitive transaction data.

BASE (Ethereum L2): Transactions are settled on BASE (Ethereum Layer 2), benefiting from Ethereum’s security.
Instant Finality: With ZKPs and liquidity pools, the system achieves fast finality, allowing users to finalize transactions immediately.

Submission Requirements

Successful implementation of Optimistic Rollups and Liquidity Pools.
Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) ensure instant finality and security.
Seamless asset transfer between SORA and BASE, with measurable improvements in transaction time and cost.
Positive liquidity growth and user adoption post implementation.

Submission Method

Blockchain: Polkadot parachain

Project Due Date

12/31`/2024

Budget Amount

This is subjected to the team but i do ask that my wallet address to be encoded to get a small fee from all transactions plz i support and serve the sora team :)