ZetaChain (ZETA) is a Layer 1 blockchain and interoperational platform built on the Cosmos SDK, designed to provide scalable and secure solutions for various decentralized applications (DApps) and cross-chain interactions. Founded in 2021 by Ankur Nandwani, a former member of Coinbase and the creator of the Basic Attention Token (BAT), ZetaChain launched its testnet operations in 2022, gaining notable attention from investors. In 2023, the project secured $27 million in venture capital funding.
ZetaChain enables DApps to utilize smart contracts that read and write data across different chains. This capability allows DApps to harness the features of multiple blockchains seamlessly, whether they are smart platforms like Ethereum or non–smart contract chains such as Bitcoin or Dogecoin. ZetaChain's interoperability extends to major blockchains like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon, and BNB Chain.
The platform's mainnet, launched on Feb 1, 2024, showcases ZetaChain's capacity to connect any chains. ZETA aims to offer high throughput, low latency, robust security, and chain-agnostic interoperability, to support a wide range of use cases.
ZetaChain's unique messaging capabilities enable developers to seamlessly send data and native value between any chains without wrapping assets.
The native token of the Zetachain platform, ZETA, serves as the primary means of value transfer for gas and transaction fees, as a cross-chain intermediary asset via messaging, and for voting in governance proposals, allowing token holders to participate in key decision-making processes and vote on policy upgrades or changes.
