Merlin Chain (MERL): A Bitcoin L2 With Cutting-Edge Architecture
Bitcoin has been the leading cryptocurrency for years due to its vast user base and reliable price. However, this older blockchain technology often struggles to provide users with cutting-edge services. Merlin Chain hopes to empower Bitcoin by adding key features. This Layer 2 network has the potential to make Bitcoin faster, more affordable and easier to use, and it's already attracted a lot of early investors. Keep reading to see how Merlin Chain works, and to learn more about its native crypto.
Key Takeaways:
Merlin Chain is a Bitcoin Layer 2 ecosystem that uses zero-knowledge proofs to scale Bitcoin. It also offers many helpful features, such as oracles and NFTs, that support blockchain technology.
Looking to trade Merlin Chain tokens? Bybit now offers the MERL/USDT Spot trading pair and MERLUSDT Perpetual contracts.
What Is Merlin Chain?
Merlin Chain is a Bitcoin Layer 2 ecosystem. This blockchain protocol uses zero-knowledge proof transactions to scale Bitcoin, and offers many helpful features that support blockchain technology, such as oracles and NFTs.
History of Merlin Chain
Merlin Chain was founded by a pseudonymous crypto enthusiast known only as Jeff whoâs been working in tech spaces since 2013, primarily focusing on metaverse technology. However, the creation of the BRC-420 protocol attracted Jeff to the crypto space as he realized the growing interest in new, on-chain assets for Bitcoin.Â
During his efforts to create an ecosystem in which people could design native assets linked to BTC, Jeff also started exploring Layer 2 technology and zero-knowledge proofs. Ultimately, all of these interests were combined in forming the Merlin Chain.Â
What Does Merlin Chain Aim to Achieve?
The primary goal of Merlin Chain is to enhance Bitcoin's ability to serve its community by adding additional features to the main chain, thus helping Bitcoin remain competitive in the modern blockchain industry. Some of the many ways that Merlin Chain aims to improve Bitcoin include:
Increasing the speed of transactions
Reducing high transaction fees during times when the network is congested
Making it easier for developers to build on-chain decentralized applications (DApps)
Creating an EVM-compatible chain for Bitcoin
Designing a system in which the full potential of Bitcoin Ordinals can be explored
Supporting the creation of native, on-chain asset storage
How Does Merlin Chain Work?
The underlying architecture of Merlin Chain is built on the concept of the zero-knowledge proof. This cryptographic algorithm allows a blockchain to verify that a transaction is correct without needing to explain how it knows. It cuts back on the amount of data that needs to be transferred between chains, greatly speeding up transaction times and reducing processing needs.
Merlin Chain runs nodes to process and approve transactions on its independent blockchain. It then uses Polygon zero-knowledge proofs and Lumoz rollup technology to bundle these transactions into compact blocks that can be published quickly on the main Bitcoin blockchain. The result is a system that efficiently handles data off-chain before storing it on the main chain.
Features of Merlin Chain
Following are the key features users can access through Merlin Chain.
ZK-Rollup
This service is a helpful way of increasing scalability within the crypto space. DApps that require fast, affordable transactions can use Merlin Chain's ZK-rollups to quickly and easily handle large amounts of transactions.
Decentralized Oracle Network
Merlin Chain's decentralized network of oracles is used to move information on- and off-chain. People can use this service to collect Bitcoin information for their own applications, and to make sure their application data is placed back on Bitcoin.Â
On-Chain Fraudproofs
In the future, Merlin Chain hopes to increase its security by adding on-chain fraudproof mechanisms. Nodes from its oracle network will stake BTC to verify transactions. Other nodes will then be able to challenge a node's veracity and prove whether or not the transaction was conducted correctly. Anyone who can prove another node has been inconsistent will earn a reward as an incentive.
EVM Compatibility
A big perk of Merlin Chain is that it's compatible with the Ethereum virtual machine. This allows users to easily work with the countless projects hosted on Ethereum, and developers can easily incorporate other services, such as Ethereum-based wallets, into their own Bitcoin projects.
Bridging
Merlin Bridge makes it easy to transfer assets back and forth between Merlin Chain and Bitcoin. Users can connect their wallets to the bridge to swap assets between the two chains.Â
Merlin Chain Ecosystem
One of the fascinating things about Merlin Chain is that it provides more than just basic scalability services. This Layer 2 protocol includes a wide variety of blockchain tools, as follows.
MerlinSwap
MerlinSwap is a decentralized exchange (DEX) that runs on the Merlin Chain, supporting both Merlin and Bitcoin tokens. In addition to assisting with transactions, MerlinSwap also provides the crypto community with liquidity mining services.
Merlin Starter
Merlin Starter is the Merlin Chainâs launchpad. It incubates new projects, and helps developers build DApps on the Chain. Merlin Starter also provides asset support for various digital assets, including BRC-20, BRC-420 and ERC-20.
Merlin Chain Road Map
Throughout 2023, Merlin Chain has been focusing primarily on designing its system's framework. Once everything was up and running, it launched its mainnet in 2024. The project's plans for the near future focus on releasing its staking system so that users will be able to stake tokens to generate interest through the system.Â
Once this system is fully underway, Merlin Chain plans to enhance its projects by finalizing the public release for Merlin Bridge and other features. The team still hasn't announced a defined road map of exciting developments for 2025, but Merlin Chainâs social media indicates it will be trying to expand its ecosystem and get more DApps running on its Layer 2 protocol.
MERL Tokenomics
MERL is the native token for Merlin Chain. It provides a variety of different services in the crypto community, including functioning as a governance token and as a method of paying network fees. MERL is also used to manage staking rewards and provide liquidity for the network. Its supply of 2.1 billion tokens is slowly being released over four years (current circulating supply is around 225 million), and will be distributed according to the following plan:
Merlin Chain ecosystem: 40%
Merlin's Seal early investors: 20%
Merlin Chain community: 16.57%
Private sale: 15.23%
Merlin Chain team: 4.2%
Advisors: 3%
Public sale: 1%
MERL Price Prediction
MERL debuted in mid-April 2024 at a price of $1.31. Since then, the coin has been on a gradual decline. As of late April, MERL crypto prices had more than halved in value. Though there were some brief price spikes, the coin's value has been under $1 for quite some time. Its price was $0.532 as of May 6, 2024.Â
Despite this lackluster beginning, some crypto experts believe the MERL cryptoâs price will recover. So far, its pricing has been closely tracking that of BTC, so it's likely that MERLâs price will start to rise again when BTCâs does. CoinCodex data suggests that MERL prices will start to increase in May, reach $2.55 by 2025 and hit $3.41 by 2029. This positive sentiment is supported by DigitalCoinPrice data, whose analysts suggest that MERLâs price will reach $1.39 by 2025 and hit $2.98 by 2029.
Where to Buy MERL
Looking to trade Merlin Chain tokens? Bybit now offers the MERL/USDT Spot trading pair and MERLUSDT Perpetual contracts. To get started, youâll first need to create a Bybit account, fund it with cryptocurrency and navigate to the MERL/USDT Spot trading page or the MERLUSDT Perpetual contracts trading page.
Is MERL a Good Investment?
Though the Merlin Chain coin doesn't seem like the next big thing on crypto exchanges, it still might be a decent choice for a discerning investor. Those who like to take the risk of purchasing overlooked coins and profiting from small fluctuations in price might enjoy MERL. Keep in mind that MERL is likely to be a volatile token, so investors need to exercise caution when purchasing it. Never put money into MERL or any other altcoin that you canât afford to lose, and make sure you keep your portfolio as diverse as possible.
Closing Thoughts
Merlin Chain hopes to provide valuable features that will be useful to the entire blockchain industry. The protocol has had some exciting developments and created helpful features for DApps. This crypto project is worth watching, but investors need to do their research before purchasing MERL.
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