Ladder Finance Academy : What is zkSync?

Overview :

Why zk(zero-knowledge)Sync?

Existing blockchain-based cryptocurrency networks have limitations, challenging scalability, and privacy. As a result, various scaling solutions are being researched to solve scalability and privacy issues. There are many security protocols, but we are going to explore zkSync with zk-ROLLUP.

As a Layer-2 that improves congestion by layering additional scaling on top of the Ethereum network, zkSync uses Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) where transactions are validated. This means that it doesn’t store the details of the actual transaction within the chain, only the result — when ‘A’ goes to ‘B’, it doesn’t explicitly specify the transaction bytes in the transaction, it just records the result by skipping the middle. While this has benefits for anonymity, it also has huge security benefits.

The actual transaction history is not recorded on the rolling chain but may be recorded on the original chain (ETH). Layer-2 scaling is typically done by bundling many transactions together and running them on the original chain (ETH) and validating them for integrity. This can obviously compromise the security of the zkSync chain, but since a lot of things are hard to trace, starting with block numbers, it’s possible to get security while proving integrity.

The fact that the details of the transaction are not registered with the rollup chain(zkSync) means that a lot is simplified when processing functions in a single block, which can have a high TPS. This is also an advantage that most Layer-2s have, and why they have an advantage over sidechains.

Also, zk-rollups can be clearly faster to process. However, if the ETH network is significantly congested, or if there is an artificial rise in Gwei, the strength of Layer-2 chains, including zkSync, may be lost. However, the ZKP method is still in place, so the more congested the network, the more secure the zkSync Era becomes.