Original source: Filecoin Network
Axelar is Filecoin’s primary interoperability network, providing decentralized storage on any blockchain in Web3 through the Filecoin Virtual Machine.
With the launch of the Filecoin Virtual Machine (FVM) on the mainnet, Axelar and Filecoin have established infrastructure so that developers can build applications that access verifiable storage across Web3. This will ensure that both users and developers in the blockchain ecosystem can cost-effectively and easily access Filecoin.
To support secure inter-chain communication for Filecoin users, developers, and storage provider systems, Filecoin selected Axelar as the primary interoperability network after extensive due diligence.
Summary
Filecoin selected Axelar after a comprehensive due diligence process that included the capabilities and security approaches of various interoperability networks.
Axelar will bring liquidity to DEXs and AMMs on FVM: Axelar-wrapped assets will become the poster child for these bridge assets in the Filecoin ecosystem.
Axelar Generic Messaging (GMP) will enable smart contracts on any chain to call Filecoin functions to connect with users on the chain to store, fund and verify data and process fees.
For developers building with FVM, connecting verifiable data to tokens, users, and applications on any chain will be an essential component of this critical infrastructure on the decentralized web.
Read below to learn how Axelar meets the two main requirements for cross-chain interoperability with the Filecoin VM, or start building now:
Build smart contracts on any connected chain that can fund, verify, and execute data storage on Filecoin: Axelar Universal Messaging Document .
Integrate Squid to allow dApps to purchase $FIL without permission and use it as payment on the Filecoin VM: Squid docs .
How Axelar provides cross-chain liquidity for the Filecoin virtual machine ecosystem
Axelar is already able to support 9 assets on the FVM network, including USDC, USDT, ETH, and WBTC.
To increase liquidity, Squid , a liquidity router built using Axelar Generic Messaging (GMP) , will provide local-to-local cross-chain swaps . Squid uses secure cross-chain function calls to simplify things for end users and developers. This means that local-to-local cross-chain swaps require only a single click — all running on decentralized infrastructure, including fast transfer options.
In other words, FVM users will be able to easily take advantage of the most liquid DEXs in Web3, such as Uniswap on Ethereum or Osmosis on Cosmos. For example, FVM users can swap from ETH to FIL with one click: Squid will automatically complete the following process: ① Swap ETH to USDC on Uniswap (Ethereum), ② Bridge USDC to FVM, ③ Exchange ETH for local FIL on FVM.
This liquidity will enable dApps to provide their end users with a one-click user experience, allowing them to seamlessly onboard 43 FVM-enabled supporting chains (see: https://axelarscan.io/).
If there are assets that do not exist on FVM or have thin liquidity, users can initiate a single transaction to transfer assets from FVM to Osmosis (https://osmosis.zone/), a decentralized exchange in the Cosmos ecosystem, exchange the assets they want using the liquidity on Osmosis, and then transfer them back to FVM. This is handled with a single user interaction and multiple steps are automatically performed on the backend using Axelar GMP.
This will provide FVM users with more options and access to deeper liquidity, improving the overall user experience of the FVM application.
How Axelar provides secure inter-chain communication for DataDAO built with FVM
In short, DataDAO is a decentralized autonomous organization built on FVM that establishes permissionless governance for data resources stored on Filecoin.
There are many responsibilities and challenges for participants in building and running a DAO, and managing their connection to Filecoin should be the least of their worries. However, securely reading and writing data storage on another chain is a complex challenge - perhaps even more complex than "bridging" assets using wrapped tokens.
Axelar GMP is designed to address these challenges by enabling different blockchain participants to securely send any payload across chains. Any payload means that cross-chain packets can include data, cryptographic hashes, and function calls.
With Axelar backend support, DataDAOs on any chain can read and write to Filecoin's decentralized storage network. DAO developers will be able to build on the blockchain that best suits their use case and user base. These DAO users do not need to create new on-chain identities or acquire new Gas tokens. This enables applications such as Polygon, BSC, Ethereum, Cosmos, etc. to fund, store, and verify data from their native chains on Filecoin in a trustless manner.
For more information on potential use cases for DataDAO, read here .
Axelar Security Methods
At the core of Axelar security is a permissionless set of validators running Axelar’s security protocol based on Proof-of-Stake consensus. Collectively, Axelar validators confirm state changes on one connected chain and authorize appropriate actions on another connected chain.
Uniswap recently validated the Axelar security approach in a detailed evaluation conducted by the leading decentralized exchange (DEX) to assess interoperability networks capable of providing cross-chain governance for its multi-chain deployment.
Validator security policies such as mandatory key rotation are in place to prevent persistent attackers from compromising multiple nodes, and quadratic voting is implemented to prevent voting power from being concentrated in the hands of a small number of validators.
Should a breach occur, network functions can mitigate its impact by pausing traffic to the malicious interconnect, with contracts limiting the amount of traffic that can be transmitted during a specific time period.
You can read the audit report on Axelar’s GitHub and learn more about the bug bounty program in the Axelar documentation .
For a comprehensive overview of Axelar’s approach to security, read co-founder Sergey Gorbunov’s article “Security at Axelar Core” here.
in conclusion
Like Filecoin, Axelar’s mission is to build infrastructure for a global, verifiable internet of information.
The Filecoin virtual machine combines smart contracts with verifiable storage to achieve decentralized governance of global data resources. Connecting any chain to any chain is an important part of this important infrastructure.
After extensive research, Filecoin selected Axelar as the primary interoperability provider for the Filecoin VM because Axelar can provide these connections over the most decentralized, comprehensive, and programmable network.
This connection will bring liquidity to the FVM, providing a representative representation of bridged assets for a more unified user experience. It will also allow DataDAO to call cross-chain functions from any chain, store and retrieve data for Web3 users, and handle fees.
Axelar and Filecoin together provide globally verifiable storage for dApps and users across Web3.
Are you ready to start building?
Build smart contracts on any connected chain that can fund, verify, and execute data storage on Filecoin: Axelar Universal Messaging Document .
Integrate Squid to allow dApps to purchase $FIL without permission and use it as payment on the Filecoin VM: Squid docs .
