Quick Take

• Virgil Griffith is released from prison.

• Across integrates ZKsync’s ZK Stack.

• Biconomy Network goes live on mainnet.

• Rath introduces its DeFi yield protocol.

Virgil Griffith Released From Prison

Virgil Griffith, an Ethereum researcher who was sentenced for violating U.S. sanctions after giving a presentation in North Korea, has been released from prison after serving 56 months. He is currently residing in a halfway house as he completes the final stages of his parole. A photo shared by Brantly Millegan shows Griffith standing with his parents just outside the prison. Griffith traveled to North Korea in April 2019 to attend and speak at the Pyongyang Blockchain Conference. Despite his presentation being based on publicly available information, he was arrested by the U.S. Department of Justice in November 2019 for providing technical knowledge to the regime. In April 2022, he was fined $100,000 and sentenced to 63 months in prison.

Across Integrates ZK Stack

Across Protocol, a cross-chain bridge built on an intents-based architecture, integrated support for ZKsync’s ZK Stack, enabling easy deployments and integrations for ZK Stack-based chains. The first to go live is Lens Chain, a SocialFi-focused Validium chain built on ZKsync. The ZK Stack is a modular framework designed for launching custom ZK-powered Layer 2 networks. It offers native account abstraction, data compression, EVM compatibility, and hyperscalability through shared provers and fractal scaling. The infrastructure allows ZK Stack chains to share liquidity and user bases seamlessly. Across now supports all major L2 tech stacks, including OP Stack and Arbitrum Orbit.

Biconomy Network Goes Live

Biconomy Network, a permissionless cross-chain execution protocol, is now live on mainnet. The network enables developers to build fully composable, multi-chain applications without needing to write or deploy smart contracts. Using a single API, SDK, and user signature, developers can trigger complex, cross-chain transactions through a unified interface. At the core of the protocol is the Modular Execution Environment (MEE), which abstracts execution away from individual blockchains. The Biconomy Network introduces Supertransactions, a bundled set of instructions across multiple chains, signed once by the user and executed by a decentralized network of nodes.

Rath DeFi Yield Protocol

Rath Finance introduced its DeFi-as-a-service protocol that enables apps, wallets, and fintech platforms to access DeFi yields through a unified backend infrastructure. Rath allows frontends to tap into yield sources across multiple protocols and chains. Rath uses an auctioned liquidity model, where DeFi protocols bid for user capital. Rath will support yield from staking, lending, and structured DeFi products from protocols like Aave, Fluid, Ethena, Resolv, Morpho, Lido, Rocket Pool, and Curve.

Other News

• Arbitrum DAO turns 2

• Ethdotorg is accepting stories

• Etherscan transaction highlights

• Pectra upgrade guide

• The Road to Self-Sovereignty

• Beefy introduces Escrowed Sonic

• Magic Eden acquires Slingshot

• Eigen S2 stake drop deadline

• Trump announces 90-day tariff pause

• Lighthouse outlines Holesky incident

• AMA on EIP-7251 MaxEB 

• Synthetix sUSD depeg

See disclosures