IBC versus other interoperability solutions
IBC is a mature, battle-tested protocol that facilitates tens of billions of dollars in annual transfer value across chains. With a rich feature set for cross-chain interactions, a robust approach to security, no fees or in-protocol rent extraction, and a developer-first approach, IBC is a platform for flexible and scalable interoperability.
This overview explains the differences between IBC and example interoperability solutions.
Compare Blockchain Interoperability Solutions at a Glance
IBC | Externally-Verified Bridge Examples: Axelar, Wormhole, Across Protocol | Canonical Bridge Logos: Arbitrum Bridge, ZkSync Era Bridge | Locally Verified Protocol Logos: Hop, Connext |
|---|
| Verification Method | Light client verification and ability to add other models | Third-party vendor observes on-chain events | Verifies execution using fraud proofs or validity proofs | Liquidity providers verify using full nodes |
| Chains Supported | 115+ | Varies: Axelar, the largest of these examples, supports 69 | Two: Layer 1 and a single Layer 2 | Varies: Hop supports 9 |
| Support for Multiple Consensus Mechanisms | Standardized transport layer plugs into arbitrary verification logic | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Native Packet Receipts and Acknowledgements | ||||
| Fungible Token Transfers | ||||
| Cross-Chain Account Control | ||||
| Cross-Chain Queries | Mixed | Mixed | ||
| Multi-Hop Packet Routing | ||||
| Transfer Volume Rate Limits | ||||
| NFT Transfers |
| Protocol development backed by a regulated entity | ||||
| Protocol’s day-to-day operations and network liveness do not rely on any single entity (vendor, VC, etc.) | IBC’s day-to-day operations and network liveness does not rely on any single vendor | Vendor-controlled network | Mixed | Vendor-controlled network |
| No third-party controlled multi-signature wallet for asset or protocol management | ||||
| No reliance on third-party liquidity providers |
| Free to integrate a new chain to the network | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Never charges protocol or vendor fees | Mixed | Mixed | ||
Never charges transaction fees* *Other than chain gas fees | Mixed |
| Programming Language | Go, Rust, Solidity (in development) | Solidity, Go, Rust, Move | Solidity, Rust, Vyper | Solidity, Go, Rust |
| Open Source | ||||
| Additional feature and functionality customization available through middleware | x | x | x |
Externally-Verified Bridge Examples: Axelar, Wormhole, Across Protocol | Canonical Bridge Logos: Arbitrum Bridge, ZkSync Era Bridge | Locally Verified Protocol Logos: Hop, Connext |
|---|
| Verification Method | Light client verification and ability to add other models | Third-party vendor observes on-chain events | Verifies execution using fraud proofs or validity proofs | Liquidity providers verify using full nodes |
| Chains Supported | 115+ | Varies: Axelar, the largest of these examples, supports 69 | Two: Layer 1 and a single Layer 2 | Varies: Hop supports 9 |
| Support for Multiple Consensus Mechanisms | Standardized transport layer plugs into arbitrary verification logic | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Native Packet Receipts and Acknowledgements | ||||
| Fungible Token Transfers | ||||
| Cross-Chain Account Control | ||||
| Cross-Chain Queries | Mixed | Mixed | ||
| Multi-Hop Packet Routing | ||||
| Transfer Volume Rate Limits | ||||
| NFT Transfers |
| Protocol development backed by a regulated entity | ||||
| Protocol’s day-to-day operations and network liveness do not rely on any single entity (vendor, VC, etc.) | IBC’s day-to-day operations and network liveness does not rely on any single vendor | Vendor-controlled network | Mixed | Vendor-controlled network |
| No third-party controlled multi-signature wallet for asset or protocol management | ||||
| No reliance on third-party liquidity providers |
| Free to integrate a new chain to the network | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Never charges protocol or vendor fees | Mixed | Mixed | ||
Never charges transaction fees* *Other than chain gas fees | Mixed |
| Programming Language | Go, Rust, Solidity (in development) | Solidity, Go, Rust, Move | Solidity, Rust, Vyper | Solidity, Go, Rust |
| Open Source | ||||
| Additional feature and functionality customization available through middleware | x | x | x |
Join Leading Blockchain Companies Building with IBC
Testimonials
Composable Finance
"The IBC protocol has been pivotal in realizing our goal of developing a comprehensive communication solution that transcends various ecosystems, such as Polkadot, Kusama, Ethereum, NEAR, and Cosmos."
Crypto.com
Integrating the IBC solo machine client has been a game-changer for us. It effortlessly allowed us to mint pegged DOT and various other tokens, all without the hassle of setting up an entire blockchain.
