Balancer launches on Ethereum L2 network Optimism

There are currently 38 projects deployed on the Ethereum layer-2 network. More are expected as attention shifts to scalability.

Automated market maker and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Balancer has officially deployed on Optimism, the highly touted Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution, in a move designed to enhance user functionality by increasing scalability and reducing fees. 

Balancer’s Optimism deployment was carried out in conjunction with Beethoven X, a decentralized investment platform on the Fantom Network that forked from Balancer v2. Together, both teams are said to have developed a decentralized exchange that is set to compete in the Optimism ecosystem.

Balancer Labs CEO Fernando Martinelli said his project’s Optimism deployment reflects the belief that layer-2 scaling solutions will be effective in reducing transaction fees and network congestion. 

Optimism is a layer-2 scaling solution designed to bring faster and lower-cost transactions to Ethereum. The network is said to support all decentralized applications on Ethereum via Optimistic Rollups, a scaling solution that operates in parallel with the main Ethereum chain.

Currently, Optimism has over $320 million in total value locked (TVL) on its chain from 38 projects, according to industry data. Its TVL peaked north of $510 million in late April. It currently ranks 19th in overall network value. 

Related: Ethereum scaling solution Optimism upgrades governance structure

The number of projects launching on Optimism has increased considerably in recent months, partly due to expectations that the network was preparing to airdrop new tokens. Optimism has reported a surge in demand from users wanting to position themselves for the OP governance token airdrop, which will occur in multiple phases. It has been reported that nearly 250,000 addresses are eligible to receive the airdrop.