The first complete release of Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility is set to go live on the Zilliqa mainnet on April 25th, 2023, at 08:00 UTC. This milestone follows the successful implementation of EVM compatibility on the Zilliqa testnet in December 2022, allowing for the deployment of smart contracts written in Solidity directly onto the Zilliqa blockchain. The launch aims to expand the Zilliqa ecosystem and streamline user experience.
EVM is the software platform used for building applications on Ethereum and other protocols with EVM compatibility. By bringing EVM to Zilliqa, the ecosystem opens up to a wider blockchain developer community, enabling users to utilize popular wallets such as MetaMask. The EVM implementation on Zilliqa’s mainnet will allow users to transfer native ZILs using wallets like MetaMask and deploy Solidity smart contracts using popular developer tools such as Truffle and Hardhat.
Zilliqa’s implementation of EVM compatibility is superior to many layer-2 protocols due to the ability to transfer tokens natively without complex and extraneous conversion processes. Valeriy Zamaraiev, Zilliqa Head of Distributed System Engineering, explains that this is a full, complete implementation of EVM compatibility with all the APIs, and most dApps will not require any adaptation at all.
The native implementation means that people can use wallets like MetaMask in the same way they do on other blockchains without worrying about address space differences or converting ZIL tokens. Once the EVM compatibility goes live on the mainnet, users will be able to exchange native ZILs using MetaMask and deploy dApps using the same tools as in any other EVM environment, such as Truffle and Hardhat.
The next step after the mainnet launch will be to implement full interoperability between Scilla and Solidity smart contract standards, including ERC-20 and ZRC-2 for fungible tokens and ERC-721 and ZRC-6 for NFTs. This interoperability will make it as easy to natively transfer NFTs and fungible tokens between EVM and Scilla interfaces as it is to transfer native ZIL tokens.
Zamaraiev highlights the benefits of EVM compatibility for Scilla developers, stating that with EVM compatibility and the upcoming interoperability with Solidity, developers can make the choice to use Scilla without losing connection with the world of EVM-compatible chains. This creates an opportunity that few other blockchains can offer, allowing developers to use the right tool for the right job.
With the first full implementation of EVM compatibility, Zilliqa users will be able to use MetaMask natively and deploy Solidity smart contracts directly to the mainnet. While the testnet remains the best place to explore potential use cases for EVM compatibility, the mainnet launch marks a significant milestone in Zilliqa’s ecosystem growth.
The launch of EVM compatibility on the Zilliqa mainnet is expected to position Zilliqa as a much bigger player in the DeFi world and remove the fragmentation of user experience that hinders the usability of the network. As Zilliqa continues to grow with the development of Zilliqa 2.0, user experience remains a top priority in improving adoption and scalability.
