Hello to the community!
In September, Secret Network became the first ever layer 1, privacy-enabled blockchain on mainnet, featuring “secret” smart contracts with encrypted inputs, outputs, and state. Since then we’ve had incredible organic growth for our network, with 48 active mainnet validators out of a possible 50 maximum. Now we have turned our focus to global usage. To achieve this, we’re providing privacy to other blockchain ecosystems, including Ethereum, one of the most vibrant decentralized ecosystems of all.
Today we are excited to announce new details about the Secret Ethereum Bridge, including a proposed mainnet launch date, our bridge operating partners, bridge mining opportunities for ETH and ERC-20 holders, and next steps. We are also nearing the launch of the first front-running resistant, cross-chain AMM that will launch on Secret Network and support Ethereum, ERC-20s, stablecoins, Tendermint chains, and other ecosystems and assets!
The Secret Ethereum Bridge is a massive milestone, bringing cheaper and more usable privacy to Ethereum and Ethereum-based assets. It allows users to create synthetic (wrapped) ETH and ERC-20 tokens on Secret Network that can be used with full privacy, at lower cost. This is not only a huge improvement for privacy-conscious users of Ethereum and DeFi applications; it’s a critical step along our path to building a more secure, more accessible, and more usable global open financial ecosystem.
TL;DR takeaways:
- The bridge is proposed to launch on December 14th, 2020.
- Holders of ETH and select ERC-20s will be able to lock their assets, create “secret” versions of them, and transact with them privately on Secret Network.
- This allows holders of these ETH assets to participate in bridge mining, where you can receive SCRT-based rewards just for locking your assets and receiving Secret Tokens. These rewards will begin soon after the bridge is launched, giving users some initial time to get familiar with the bridge.
- Users can then utilize any Secret Token (including secretETH, secretSCRT, and many more) to provide liquidity to the Secret AMM or participate in front-running resistant DEX swaps. The Secret AMM will be launching soon after bridge rewards are live.
- Our bridge operating partners include Figment, Staked, and B-Harvest – all of whom are extremely experienced node operators (each supporting dozens of networks) and key contributors to the Secret ecosystem.
Read on to learn about next steps as a holder of SCRT, ETH, or ERC-20 tokens!
Are you a holder of an ERC-20 token (or an ERC-20 project team) and would like to see a technical integration that will provide privacy to your assets? Please get in touch by filling this form. We’ll have more announcements on supported ERC-20 assets soon…
How Does the Secret Ethereum Bridge Work?
We recently wrote a full overview of the Secret Ethereum Bridge from a technical perspective, describing how it can bring privacy to Ethereum assets at a fraction of the cost of Tornado Cash.
https://scrt.network/blog/secret-ethereum-bridge-privacy/
The Ethereum bridge transfers between assets on the Ethereum network (ETH/ERC-20) and Secret Tokens, which are specified by the SNIP-20 spec. Secret Tokens combine the programmability of ERC-20s with the privacy of coins like Zcash or Monero. The bridge is bidirectional, so Secret Tokens can then be redeemed for their Ethereum-based equivalent.
Bridge operators are responsible for watching the chain for new events. Once a new event is found, one of the bridge operators proposes a transaction, which is then confirmed by other operators. This triggers an on-chain event to mint secretETH on Secret Network or to unlock burned secretETH from the lock/deposit contact on Ethereum.
Here are some helpful links for learning more about the Secret Ethereum Bridge:
- Github repo
- Multisig deposit / unlock contracts on Ropsten for secretETH
- Multisig contract minting / burning contract on Secret Network Testnet (Holodeck)
Next Steps to Launch
In addition to finalizing testing efforts with bridge operators, we are also working on a simple bridge UI. When launched, the Secret Ethereum Bridge will have a GUI for users to interact with Metamask (for Ethereum assets) and Keplr Wallet (for SCRT and Secret Tokens). While moving from:
- Ethereum to Secret Network: Alice will be required to sign a Metamask TX and provide a Secret Network address she will generate using Keplr.
- Secret Network to Ethereum: Alice will sign a transaction with Keplr to burn Secret Tokens and provide an arbitrary ETH address where she will get her assets back.
Bridge Operating Partners
As mentioned above, the leader-signer architecture requires participation from bridge operating partners. We’re excited to announce that the bridge will be initially secured by deeply experienced validators in the Secret ecosystem alongside the Enigma development team. These validators include:
Figment: Based in Canada, serving token holders worldwide and venture-funded, Figment is the country’s largest blockchain infrastructure and staking provider. Figment is trusted by over 300 customers and partners worldwide with more than 35 million tokens under management across 10 PoS networks.
Staked: Staked provides a reliable and secure infrastructure for earning staking rewards. We run nodes on over 20 proof-of-stake blockchains, offer a 100% uptime SLA, and provide comprehensive reporting for tax and fund administration. Staked is the trusted partner for the best investors in crypto.
B-Harvest: B-Harvest provides validation service for Tendermint / Cosmos SDK networks and as well as blockchain and infrastructure development for networks such as Chainlink, Polkadot, and Band Protocol.
“We can’t wait to see the new privacy apps people will build with the upcoming Secret and Ethereum bridge. Figment is excited to help securely operate the bridge and bring privacy to DeFi.”
Andrew Cronk, Co-founder, Figment
“With DeFi’s explosion on Ethereum, we’ve seen huge demand for BTC to migrate to Ethereum using bridges. We are entering a new chapter of innovation using bridges, where the privacy and front-running resistance that Secret Network offers can be ported to assets on Ethereum. Staked is excited to support the Secret Network community in their interoperability efforts.”
Tim Ogilvie, Founder and CEO, Staked
What can I do when the bridge is on mainnet?
We’re excited for the future of privacy-first, front-running resistant DeFi that Secret Network enables – and you should be too! With the Secret Ethereum Bridge going live on mainnet, there are a few ways you can get more involved with our ecosystem, enable privacy for your Ethereum-based assets, and get rewarded in the process!
ETH Holders: you will be able to lock your ETH on Ethereum and obtain secretETH, a wrapped version of ETH with privacy. You can send secretETH privately on Secret Network or use it in Secret Apps, including our soon-to-launch front-running resistant AMM. The biggest short-term opportunity is bridge mining. There will be a pool of Secrets (SCRT) distributed over time to everyone who has locked their ETH and supported the pool. (More details to come soon.)
ERC-20 Holders: if your asset is initially supported by the bridge, you will be able to lock your ERC-20 token and receive secret[TOKEN]. For example, holders of OCEAN will be able to lock their OCEAN and receive secretOCEAN, which can be used much like secretETH. Again, there is a bridge mining opportunity as there will be a separate pool of Secrets (SCRT) distributed over time to certain ERC-20 pools. (More details to come soon.)
Note: both ETH and ERC-20 holders can burn their Secret Tokens to instantly redeem them on Ethereum at any time, to any address of their choosing. The process of moving assets from Ethereum to Secret Network and back costs only 400K gas, or ~⅓ of Tornado Cash cost!
Are you a holder of an ERC-20 token (or an ERC-20 project team) and would like to see a technical integration that will provide privacy to your assets? Please get in touch by filling this form. We’ll have more announcements on supported ERC-20 assets soon…
SCRT Holders: as you may be aware, you can already create your own Secret Token version of SCRT right now! secretSCRT is a programmable and privacy-preserving version of SCRT that can be easily minted or redeemed via Keplr or command line. Like other Secret Tokens, secretSCRT will also be usable in the Secret AMM and in other applications. Learn how you can get started with secretSCRT in minutes using this guide!
To interact with the bridge successfully, you’ll just need a few things:
Metamask: With over a million users worldwide, MetaMask provides a simple and secure way to connect to blockchain-based applications in the Ethereum ecosystem. It’s simple to set up and use!
Keplr Wallet: Keplr is one of the most popular web-based wallets in the Cosmos/Tendermint ecosystem, supporting Secret Network, Cosmos, Kava, Akash, and other chains. They also have full support for Secret Tokens (funded by a community spend proposal)! It’s also very simple to set up and use.
Secret (SCRT): “secret” smart contracts use SCRT as gas in computations (similar to Ethereum). To interact with Secret Tokens, you’ll need some SCRT. If you’re having trouble acquiring SCRT for gas, come join our main communities on Discord and Telegram for assistance!
What happens next?
As mentioned above, the bridge is expected to go live on mainnet on December 14th, 2020. At this time, anyone will be able to create Secret Token versions of their ETH or ERC-20 assets, transact with these tokens, and burn them to transfer back to Ethereum.
The next major milestone is the introduction of bridge mining. After users have had some time to familiarize themselves with the bridge, there will be an incentivized period where users can lock their ETH or ERC-20 assets on the bridge to receive a share of SCRT-based rewards, distributed on-chain to bridge users. For users who are already familiar with DeFi and liquidity mining, this is an attractive new way to get competitive yield on your Ethereum-based assets without impermanent loss while also gaining exposure to the groundbreaking world of Secret DeFi – a universe where applications are front-running resistant and private by design!
Another exciting upcoming application is a Secret-based AMM, providing liquidity for Secret Tokens. The Secret AMM is front-running resistant and lets users directly exchange their Secret Tokens. Substantial development on the AMM has already been completed, so stay tuned for further updates on opportunities!
There are a number of additional upcoming Secret Apps in development that feature privacy by design and utilize Secret Tokens. We’ve written about many of the possibilities before on the Secret Blog, including Secret NFTs for verifiable goods and experiences, Secret Vaults for programmable access control, and more! If you’re a developer or active user who’d like to join our community of Secret Agents in order to learn more about or contribute to these applications:
Join the Secret Discord (https://chat.scrt.network)
Join the community Telegram (https://t.me/scrtcommunity)
Follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/secretnetwork)
Secret Network is community-governed and directly supported by dozens of independent companies, node operators, and developers around the world. There are many ways to contribute to the growth of our network and ecosystem, including by becoming part of a Secret Committee (or starting your own!)
Thanks for reading to the end! We’re excited to finally bring our privacy solutions to the Ethereum ecosystem and help grow a more secure, more accessible, and more usable global open financial ecosystem. As we continue to bring the power of programmable privacy to more ecosystems and assets, we hope you will join us in our mission of empowering and protecting millions of users around the world.
Save the date: December 14th, 2020.
