NIFTSY NFT Digest vol. 35 (May)

May 8, 2024

NIFTSY NFT Digest vol. 35 (May)

Union and Stargaze bring Ethereum blue-chip NFTs to Cosmos

Union, a modular interoperability platform, is partnering with decentralized NFT marketplace Stargaze to facilitate the transfer of Ethereum NFT blue chips to the Cosmos ecosystem via the zkIBC bridge.

Union’s zkIBC bridge will enable the transfer of high-value NFT collections such as CryptoPunks, Bored Ape Yacht Club and Pudgy Penguins from Ethereum to Cosmos.

This integration will also allow Stargaze NFTs to be listed on trading platforms such as OpenSea, while ERC-721 NFTs will be available in Stargaze.

The collaboration involves using Union’s zkIBC bridge to facilitate NFT transfer between Ethereum and Cosmos. The process includes creating an IBC channel between their test networks to ensure that NFT data is properly mapped and encoded. Union’s upcoming integration with AggLayer will also enable NFT transfers between Polygon and Stargaze.

Shane Vitarana, co-founder of Stargaze, said: “We are very excited to partner with Union to bring Ethereum’s best NFTs to IBC for the first time. It’s not just about moving assets, it’s about connecting communities and simplifying the blockchain experience. We are setting a new standard for interoperability and creating a more integrated NFT marketplace.”

Cor Pruijs, co-founder and CTO of Union Labs, also noted, “Trusted interoperability between Stargaze and Ethereum NFT is revolutionary. With Union’s zkIBC connection to Ethereum, we support shared messaging, allowing us to securely provide proof of merkle enablement to NFT. This efficient trading environment will revolutionize the NFT experience.”

This integration aims to increase the liquidity and availability of NFTs on Ethereum and Cosmos and is expected to attract more creators and collectors to both platforms.

NFT News & Updates

Artists can now take ownership and monetize their likeness through Training AI on NFTs with TITLES.
NFT creator suite Zora just acquired leading NFT discovery hub Mint Fun, a move that will allow the platform to immediately tap into more collectors and collector-centric UX.
Open social network Lens will launch a validium, and later a volition, on zkSync’s tech stack to support scaling its app ecosystem. Lens will support advanced privacy techniques for the Lens Network, using ZK proofs, opening up the possibilities for developers building privacy-preserving social use cases. Users can choose to settle financial transactions more securely with Ethereum DA, while opting to secure social transactions on Validium with a separate DA provider. Separate instances of Lens Protocol can be deployed on other EVM and non-EVM networks. Users and developers will see major UX upgrades. These include gasless, signless transactions using Account Abstraction, embedded wallet support, network bridging and near instant transaction finality.
Farcaster Decentralizes. Previously, channels — like subreddits on Reddit — were only available in-app on Warpcast, the most popular Farcaster client. Today, Farcaster creator Dan Romero confirmed that channels will be brought in-protocol by the end of this summer. This means like accounts, channels will soon be onchain and sovereign on Farcaster. Communities built in these channels will be owned by their creators, free from the control of any one platform and with considerable flexibility over ownership and economics.

Development