The joint effort of the Ethereum community is commendable. The network has over one million validators working to secure it, and developers and researchers constantly propose upgrades to make the network better through standards like the ERCs (Ethereum Request for Comments).
To understand ERCs (and the ERC-7683), we need to start with EIPs (Ethereum Improvement Proposals). EIPs are proposals for providing and enhancing standards for the blockchain. ERCs, a subset of EIPs, focus on creating standards for applications, tokens, and interfaces.
Now that we understand ERCs, let’s explore ERC-7683, examining its purpose, benefits, and problems preventing adoption.
What exactly is the ERC-7683?
ERC-7683 is a framework providing a standard for specifying and executing intents across chains. It allows users to bypass the complexities and hassle of manually performing transactions on individual chains when making cross-chain transactions. Whether transferring tokens or staking assets, ERC-7683 enables users to have smooth transactions between networks. Also, in helping users have cross-chain interactions with ease, it acts as a bridge, helping to manage the isolation and fragmentation of chains.
What does ERC-7683 offer?
The ERC-7683 provides several benefits, including mitigating interoperability problems. These benefits improve the user experience of the blockchain. They include:
- Better cross-chain interoperability: As the Ethereum ecosystem keeps expanding, fragmentation remains a problem the network constantly battles with. For instance, projects and protocols have unique solutions for transacting across chains, impeding cross-chain interoperability because liquidity is trapped in individual blockchains. However, what ERC-7683 sets out to do is to provide a standard for cross-chain transactions that make it easier for liquidity to flow between networks.
- Shared infrastructure: A shared infrastructure is a common system, processing transactions for dapps and protocols. It is created by the ERC-7683. A shared infrastructure facilitates a more efficient system where orders are distributed and executed swiftly. It reduces transaction failures and fosters competition among fillers (transaction executors), which translates to lower costs and improved performance.
- Combination of multiple operations in DeFi: With ERC-7683, protocols can integrate cross-chain functionality, allowing them to combine different functions like swapping and lending into a single process. Users can access interconnected services that span multiple blockchains with ease—they enjoy a smoother, quicker, and easier experience with DeFi.
Issues stalling the adoption of ERC-7683
Despite being an impressive framework, underlying issues could prevent adoption unless addressed. These issues include
- Reluctance to abandon existing standards: Many projects have invested much time and money in developing and establishing individual cross-chain solutions. So, abandoning what they’ve built for a new standard might be difficult.
- Resource-intensive for developers: Integrating the ERC-7683 might require developers to do more than tweak their systems. It could mean rewriting crucial code, including how orders are created and shared. Also, owing to the standard’s flexibility, developers will have to manage cross-chain messaging systems as well—additional work that they might not be ready to sign up for.
Conclusion
ERC-7683 offers a promising solution for simplifying cross-chain transactions, enabling users to move assets across different chains without manual interaction. While it has great potential to streamline cross-chain interactions within and beyond the Ethereum ecosystem, there are still areas to refine, such as simplifying integration for developers and users and creating an advanced mechanism for selecting fillers. As the framework evolves, ERC-7683 could play a crucial role in making blockchain ecosystems more efficient and interconnected.
For more details about ERC-7683, refer to the original version of this article which was first here.
