Mantle Network is Layer-2 scaling solution compatible with Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). It employs Optimistic rollups to enable swift and cost-effective transactions. By processing transactions off-chain and settling them on-chain, Mantle Network ensures efficiency while utilizing Ethereum's capabilities. ^[1]

Overview

Mantle Network is founded by Anon. Mantle Network focuses on developing a scaling solution compatible with Ethereum's ecosystem, ensuring seamless interoperability for existing contracts and tools with minimal adjustments. Leveraging its modular architecture, Mantle Network integrates an optimistic rollup mechanism with innovative data availability solutions, enhancing accessibility and affordability while maintaining Ethereum's security standards. ^[1]

The protocol design emphasizes enhancing user experience by reducing costs and improving usability, simplifying developer development processes, and providing a robust infrastructure for the emerging generation of decentralized applications (dApps). By adopting a rollup structure, Mantle Network harnesses Ethereum's validators and consensus protocols to significantly diminish gas fees, decrease transaction latency, and augment throughput. Users have the flexibility to tailor transaction confirmation requirements, enabling near real-time confirmation with optimized security parameters. ^[1]

Mantle Network's modular architecture segregates transaction execution, consensus, settlement, and storage functions into distinct modules within the chain. This includes an EVM-compatible execution layer for transaction processing, a consensus and settlement layer executed on Ethereum's platform, and an external data availability component, currently Mantle DA powered by EigenDA technology. ^[1]

History

The Mantle Network, initiated in July 2023, was the first Layer-2 solution launched by a DAO. Originating from BitDAO, known for its substantial treasury in the crypto realm, the network underwent consolidation with Mantle following a community vote in May 2023. This merger led to the rebranding of BitDAO under Mantle, with all BIT tokens available for conversion to MNT tokens at a 1:1 ration from June 2023 onwards. ^[2]

Features

Modular Blockchain Rollups

Mantle Network implements a layered approach to its execution, consensus, settlement, and data availability functions, allowing different network actors to manage specialized layers. This architectural design enables Mantle Network to achieve notable reductions in gas costs and overall performance enhancements. ^[3]

Employing a Modular Rollup model, Mantle Network optimizes fundamental blockchain operations, addressing a significant challenge in the blockchain community: the Scalability, Security, and Decentralization trilemma. ^[3]

The segregation of resources enhances network efficiency by allocating specific tasks to each layer, ensuring that all users benefit from improved security, unlike the reliance solely on full node validators in Layer-1 (L1). Operating on separate layers alleviates the execution and validation burden on nodes, as technologies like fraud proofs and ZK proofs no longer require them to execute all transactions for validity checks. ^[3]

Data Availability

Mantle Network addresses security concerns inherent in rollup architecture by leveraging EigenLayer, a re-staking protocol. EigenLayer utilizes Ethereum's trusted network to ensure data availability for Layer-2 solutions while maintaining security levels akin to the Ethereum Mainnet. Through EigenLayer's data availability solution, known as EigenDA, Mantle Network enables nodes to furnish data availability services. Validators engage in Mantle Network's economic model by staking $MNT tokens, unlocking additional yield prospects. This participation enhances block data completeness and accuracy within Mantle Network's execution layer. ^[3]

EigenDA separates the data availability from the consensus layer and implements a unicast channel for efficient data storage and transmission among network participants. It also maintains an erasure rate, facilitating complete block data reconstruction through data pieces from both Layer-2 and Layer-1 sources. This solution enhances the utility of $MNT beyond governance functions, while furnishing the requisite high throughput for next-generation Web3 applications. ^[3]

Fraud Proofs

In the optimistic model embraced by rollups, trust in network participants' good behavior is assumed, necessitating robust fraud proofs implementation to fortify network integrity. However, implementing fraud proofs poses challenges. ^[3]

Currently, the on-chain verifier can only execute instructions in a lower-level virtual machine, requiring fraud proofs to be translated into this language by EVM clients. Consequently, the content of fraud proofs is often not directly obtained from compliant EVM clients, and there are no means of verifying their source, as the on-chain verifier lacks visibility of the fraud proof producer. This hampers trust minimization embedded in Ethereum clients. ^[3]

Mantle Network tackles this issue by adopting an approach that directly compiles and verifies fraud proofs using EVM instructions. This allows all Ethereum clients to openly interact with a shared proof system, reducing trust assumptions among verifiers, compilers, and clients. ^[3]

Transaction Lifecycle

Transactions within Mantle Network begin when initiated by a wallet user, dApp, or script. Tools like Mantle SDK facilitate request creation, signing, and submission for Sequencer processing. Upon verification, transactions are added to pending blocks, leveraging batch processing to distribute fixed costs and minimize transaction fees. ^[3]

Subsequently, Threshold Signature Scheme nodes verify block data before transmission to the Ethereum network through Sequencer. Rollup verifiers synchronize data within the Mantle Network for accessibility by users and dApps, while Ethereum records transmitted data on-chain via its consensus mechanism. Moreover, Data Availability nodes synchronize and ensure data access within the Mantle Network, earning $MNT tokens as rewards. ^[3]

$MNT Token

The $MNT tokens fulfill dual roles within the Mantle Ecosystem, serving as governance and utility tokens. In governance, each $MNT token carries an equal weight in voting rights, allowing token holders to engage in DAO decision-making processes. As a utility token, $MNT is utilized to cover gas fees on the Mantle Network and can also serve as collateral for Mantle Network nodes. Operating as a native token, $MNT shares comparable functionality with other Layer-2 blockchain tokens. ^[3]

Tokenomics

The initial distribution of Mantle (MNT) tokens was as follows: ^[4]

• 49.00% is allocated to Treasury
• 51.00% is allocated to Circulating

Citizens of Mantle

Citizens of Mantle is an inaugural native modular NFT collection created with visual artist Chen Man. This collection of avatars aims to reward active community members. It is designed to synchronize with the Mantle Journey program, offering additional incentives for engaging with the Mantle community. Users can join the whitelist by connecting their wallets to verify eligibility. ^[5]

Becoming a Citizen of Mantle provides individuals access to an immersive experience within the Mantle Ecosystem. A Citizen of Mantle NFT avatar is a faithful companion on a journey of building, connecting, playing, earning, and trading within the Mantle network. As users achieve milestones within the Mantle Ecosystem, their NFT avatars will evolve, gaining various traits. These avatars reflect the engagement and accomplishments within the Mantle Ecosystem, unlocking future benefits and opportunities as participants progress. ^[5]

mETH Protocol

mETH Protocol operates as a permissionless and non-custodial ETH liquid staking protocol deployed on Ethereum L1 and governed by Mantle. It features a simple and modern design coupled with robust risk management measures, drawing on Mantle Ecosystem resources to offer a rewarding experience and bolster Mantle's yield potential. Mantle Staked Ether ($mETH) functions as the value-accumulating receipt token within mETH Protocol facilitating the pooling of ETH deposits from stakers. Stakers receive $mETH tokens representing their claim to the staked principal and accrued rewards, which can be utilized in other applications. Upon unstaking, stakers receive their staked ETH and any rewards earned during the staking period, including issuance, priority fees, and maximal extractible value (MEV), distributed among stakers, LSP, and node operators. ^[6]

Partnerships

Nansen

On March 6th, 2024, Nansen, a blockchain analytics platform, integrated data from Mantle into its platform. This collaboration augmented users' capacity to access and analyze Mantle Network's on-chain data. ^[8]

Ethena

Announced on November 24th, 2023, Mantle Network has partnered with Ethena, a synthetic dollar protocol, to introduce USDe to the Mantle Ecosystem. This collaboration aims to provide a crypto-native dollar solution independent of traditional banking systems. USDe, a delta-neutral synthetic dollar backed by staked ETH collateral, seeks to minimize counterparty risk and enhance liquidity on both centralized and decentralized exchanges.

The Mantle Network will be the first Layer 2 to deploy USDe in a pre-launch, aiming to increase accessibility to blockchain innovations. This deployment will allow Mantle Staked Ether (mETH) to be used as collateral to mint USDe.^[16][17]

Ondo Finance

On November 7th, 2023, Mantle Network announced a collaboration with Ondo Finance to introduce USDY, a yield token backed by real-world assets, on the Ethereum Layer 2 Mantle Network. USDY, secured by short-term U.S. treasuries and bank deposits, aims to offer yield through token value appreciation. It is available on Mantle decentralized exchanges. Ondo Finance structured USDY as a tokenized bearer instrument, accessible through their mint and bridging mechanism. ^[15]

NEAR

On September 20th, 2023, NEAR’s Blockchain Operating System (BOS), a chain-agnostic solution for decentralizing frontends, integrated Mantle Network into its multi-chain ecosystem. This collaboration aimed to establish a new gateway to the Mantle Ecosystem, enabling builders to seamlessly develop using familiar tools and users to access an expanded array of decentralized applications (dApps). ^[9]

OKX

On September 7th, 2023, Mantle Ecosystem integrated OKX Wallet’s DEX aggregator, a multi-chain, cross-chain decentralized exchange aggregator encompassing 300+ DEXs and approximately 15 bridges, supporting over 200,000 tokens and over 20 blockchains. With this integration, Mantle Network became accessible on OKX DEX, enabling communities to access a broader selection of assets and transaction options across various chains. ^[11]

LayerZero

Announced on July 20th, 2023, Mantle Network has collaborated with LayerZero, an omnichain interoperability protocol, with the aim of enabling lightweight cross-chain messaging within the Mantle Ecosystem. LayerZero facilitates seamless connections to over 35 supported blockchains for applications on Mantle. The LayerZero Endpoint, deployed on Mantle, facilitates secure message transfer between chains through Oracles and Relayers, providing developers with cross-chain capabilities for their applications.^[1][19]

Biconomy

On April 18th, 2023, Biconomy, a Web3 developer and transaction infrastructure platform, partnered with Mantle to provide account abstraction to Mantle's builder community. This collaboration enabled creators to deliver seamless Web3 experiences to their end users while leveraging enhanced Ethereum-grade security through Mantle's decentralized data availability layer, facilitating significantly reduced fees. ^[14]

Eigenlayer

Mantle Network has teamed up with EigenLayer, a re-staking protocol on Ethereum, to bolster data availability for rollup-based Layer 2 solutions. EigenLayer introduces restaking as a new cryptoeconomic security primitive. MantleDA, powered by EigenDA technology, works to ensure data availability until EigenDA's mainnet launch. This partnership aims to enhance Mantle Network's data availability until the canonical solution is prepared for deployment.^[1][18]