After Hermez, Polygon Acquires ZK-Proof Startup Mir Protocol For $400 Mn To Expand Ethereum Capacity

Ethereum scaling and infrastructure development platform Polygon (formerly Matic Network), has acquired Ethereum scaling startup Mir Protocol for $400 Mn. This is Polygon’s second play in the zero-knowledge rollup (ZK rollup) space after it acquired Hermez Network in August 2021.

Founded in 2019, US-based Mir Protocol (also known as Predicate Labs) is an Ethereum scaling startup that utilises ZK-proof technology. The ZK tool provides a transactions ledger but doesn’t require all data to be posted on Ethereum. This helps reduce space blocking and thus, gas fee, over Ethereum, in turn enabling an Ethereum-based platform to scale.

Founders Brendan Farmer and Daniel Lubarov and the team at Mir will join Polygon, leading the rebranded vertical ‘Polygon Zero’. According to reports, Polygon and Mir closed the deal in November-end, involving 190 Mn $MATIC tokens, $100 Mn worth of USDC stablecoins — totalling around $400 Mn, as of November 26.

The deal has a current valuation of $500 Mn.

Founded in 2017 by Anurag Arjun, Jaynti Kanani, Mihailo Bjelic and Sandeep Nailwal, Mumbai-based Polygon (formerly Matic Network) is a blockchain scalability platform. Its core component is Polygon SDK—a framework that supports building and connecting Secured Chains like Optimistic Rollups, zkRollups, Validium, etc, and Standalone Chains like Polygon POS, designed for flexibility and independence.

Polygon’s solutions are almost synonymous with Ethereum, which have seen widespread adoption with 500+ DApps, over 567 Mn transactions with 6 Mn+ daily transactions.

While the Ethereum blockchain is one of the most widely used in the world, capacity issues result in hefty fees for consumers. Thus, as a part of a broader strategy to help expand Ethereum’s capacity and pave the way for broader adoption, in early-2021, Polygon announced its plans to work on ZK proofs.

It thereby committed $1 Bn to ZK-related efforts — acquiring and partnering with ZK projects and teams, designing and developing ZK based solutions, hiring talent, adoption of ZK solutions, and research funding.

As part of ZK projects and minds acquisition, Polygon previously bought ZK-rollup Hermez Network and renamed it as Polygon Hermez. The deal was worth 250 Mn $MATIC tokens, or roughly $250 Mn based on the price at the time of reaching the agreement (August 4, 2021).

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