The Arbitrum page of Bitcoin Layers is under development.
Bitcoin Layers' focuses its efforts on reviewing protocols that claim to be a bitcoin layer and BTC wrappers that live on alternative chains. Alternative network provide a snapshot into the network architecture, but largely focus on review related to BTC wrappers on the network. If the network is an Ethereum L2, we recommend heading to L2Beat for a deeper dive into the architecture.
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Arbitrum
Overview
Status
Mainnet
Type
Alt. Rollup
Fee Token
ETH
BTC Supply
₿0
Arbitrum is an Ethereum rollup that supports a variety of wrapped BTC tokens.
CUSTODY
DATA AVAILABILITY
OPERATORS
FINALITY ASSURANCE
Trust Assumption Review
BTC Custody
High
🚨
Threshold tBTC
BTC backing this asset is secured by a federation
tBTC's peg with bitcoin is managed by the Threshold Network, a distributed but permissioned two-way peg. tBTC is minted on Ethereum and then bridged to the network via a custom bridge implementation.
This bridge is managed by a 9 member federation. Bitcoin users trust that 6 of the 9 members of this federation do not collude and steal user funds.
This bridge is managed by a 9 member federation. Bitcoin users trust that 6 of the 9 members of this federation do not collude and steal user funds.
Data Availability
Medium
⚠️
Data is stored and made available by Ethereum full nodes
The data for network's state is made available by Ethereum full nodes. Anyone can run an Ethereum node and verify the state of the network.
Network Operators
Medium
⚠️
Arbitrum blocks are produced and proposed by a centralized operator, but users can become their own block producer in the event of censorship or liveness failures
The network's sequencer is managed by one entity. The sequencer can censor transactions and can also cause liveness failures if it goes down. Users can bypass the sequencer and send their transactions directly to its parent chain. Users can also self-propose their own state transition, and exit the network to its parent chain.
Finality Guarantees
Medium
⚠️
Arbitrum state transitions finalize on Ethereum. Validators who stake 3600 ETH can contest invalid state transitions
The network's state is updated offchain. State transitions are ultimately considered finalized on its parent chain.
If a proposer were to publish a malicious state update, they could be challenged via fault proofs. Anyone with sufficient capital resources can submit a fault proof.
We are reviewing how to score finality guarantees for alternative rollups. Learn more on our thoughts here.
,The stake required to become a validator is 3600 ETH.
If a proposer were to publish a malicious state update, they could be challenged via fault proofs. Anyone with sufficient capital resources can submit a fault proof.
We are reviewing how to score finality guarantees for alternative rollups. Learn more on our thoughts here.
,The stake required to become a validator is 3600 ETH.
Additional Considerations
⚠️ A federation can immediately upgrade relevant contracts. This affects some two-way peg implementations
The contracts related to this project are immediately upgradeable by a centralized party. These contracts affect the project's chain and may affect specific two-way peg implementations.
In case of an malicious upgrade, there is no exit delay and users are unable to leave the chain.
In case of an malicious upgrade, there is no exit delay and users are unable to leave the chain.
Bitcoin Security
Arbitrum does not inherit any security from Bitcoin
In its current state, the network does not inherit security from Bitcoin.
ETH token used to pay fees
Fees to network operators are paid in an alternative token.
No MEV introduced to Bitcoin
The network does not introduce any MEV on the Bitcoin L1. Users trust the sequencer to not reorder their transactions to extract MEV.
Arbitrum does not contribute to the security budget
The network does not currently contribute to the Bitcoin security budget.
Technology
EVM-Compatible
The network uses an EVM-compatible virtual machine. The Ethereum Virtual Machine is software responsible for smart contract execution for a number of blockchains, namely the Ethereum Network. It uses Solidity/Vyper as its code and is the dominant environment for smart contract execution in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Fault Proofs (a.k.a Fraud Proofs)
A cryptographic proof that enables challengers to contest a proposed state transition that contains invalid or fraudulent transactions. Networks that use fault proofs (e.g., optimistic rollups) initially assume that new blocks are valid, then rely on users or watchtowers to challenge blocks if they include invalid state transitions, which are then resolved onchain or a parent blockchain.
Use Cases
Onchain applications
Onchain applications are supported. Onchain applications including borrowing and lending protocols, onchain exchanges (commonly referred to as decentralized exchanges), and more. These applications are supported with more expressive smart contract environments.
Knowledge Bits
This network is a layer 2 for Ethereum. For a view into the technology from an Ethereum perspective, head to L2Beat for their review.