CoinDesk Report:
Author: Kazu Umemoto, Bankless; Translation: Deng Tong
One of the biggest trends in DeFi last year was the steady rise of Coinbase’s Base network. But after the total locked value (TVL) soared to its peak on L2, Base now has a very clear goal.
Kraken is ready to join the battle.
The centralized exchange will release a new aggregation called “Ink” based on the OP Stack. Following the grand promotion of Unichain, Kraken is now stepping into the rapidly developing Superchain ecosystem.
Let’s take a deeper look at what Kraken is building with Ink, why they chose Superchain, and how Ink plans to stand out in the increasingly crowded Rollup ecosystem.
I. Vision of ‘Ink’
Like Coinbase, Kraken offers a set of DeFi tools, including staking and spot trading, as well as self-custody wallets. The natural next step for both companies is to encourage users to move to the chain.
This is where Ink comes in. Kraken’s goal is to expand its own L2 and leverage the trust they have built with their existing customer base. Just as Coinbase cleverly attracts users to its on-chain trading products through close integration with Base, Ink could become the preferred venue for Kraken traders.
The direction of Ink will depend on whether Kraken succeeds in attracting the best developers in this emerging L2 field. Ink plans to launch its testnet at Devcon in Bangkok later this year. The mainnet is currently scheduled to launch in early Q1.
II. Will there be token airdrops?
Well, the first thing you might be wondering now is whether there will be an Ink airdrop opportunity. Currently, like Base, the answer is no.
Ink founder Andrew Koller stated that there are currently no plans for Ink tokens.
Given the regulatory environment, this is not surprising. Kraken avoids issuing tokens that may be challenged by regulatory agencies. While investors still hope that their on-chain activities on Base will one day earn them token distributions, similar to Ink, the official statement from the company is that there are currently no token plans.
III. Are Coinbase and Kraken competitors?
On the surface, Kraken and Coinbase seem aligned in their shared goal of bringing as many users as possible onto the chain. However, they are still direct competitors, and Kraken’s foray into the L2 space can easily be seen as a strategic response to the breakthrough success of Coinbase Base.
Kraken started developing its own chain about a year ago, around the same time Base was launched, indicating their understanding of the opportunity and urgency.
Nevertheless, these two blockchains still benefit from each other. Ben Jones, co-founder of Optimism, pointed out that the goal of Superchain is to facilitate growth and positive economic impact for all participants by allowing liquidity to flow freely between blockchains, similar to the interstate highway system in the United States. What benefits Base also benefits Ink, and vice versa.
Initially, the Ink team will act as the sole on-chain sequencer for the network, but they plan to gradually decentralize the operation of the network. Meanwhile, more than a year after its launch, Coinbase has officially announced that optimistic rollups will go live on Base later this month. This marks an important step forward, but also indicates that achieving full decentralization is a gradual process.
IV. Has Superchain won?
With Kraken joining Superchain, optimism about the ecosystem is soaring.
Superchain currently processes about 7 million transactions per day, almost half of all L2 activity. With the upcoming launch of Unichain and the continued development of the ecosystem, this number is expected to rise.
Another key reason for optimism about the Superchain ecosystem is the seamless Superchain ERC20 token standard.
Although it may seem small at first glance, this new standard solves significant issues when trying to transfer liquidity between L2 chains.
With the Superchain ERC20 token standard, users can now easily transfer liquidity between chains within the Superchain ecosystem without the need for back-and-forth bridging. This solution significantly reduces gas costs and eliminates security issues associated with traditional bridges, making cross-chain liquidity transfers more efficient and secure.
Kraken has committed to sharing a portion of the network revenue from Ink with Optimism Collective and supporting the core development of OP Stack. The participation of major players like Kraken and Coinbase is a huge victory for Superchain, further solidifying its position as the preferred infrastructure for DeFi users.
V. The value of Ink
L2 is becoming increasingly crowded; there is no dispute about that.
For those concerned that Rollup-centric scaling is weakening Ethereum’s advantage, another launch of L2 could be seen as another data point supporting their skepticism. But for those who believe we are still in the early stages of bringing the world onto the chain, a trusted exchange with massive distribution and a significant public bet on decentralized finance is huge.
With more blockchains joining, Superchain is becoming a one-stop-shop for DeFi, and with Kraken’s existing 10 million customers, Ink presents a massive opportunity for our space.
