Polkadot be afraid, so do not go to MOONBEAM

Cross-Chain and Related Contracts

 Cross-chain

The idea of blockchains working together has been around for some time, so it’s important to understand what cross-chain means.

Multi-Chain

Multi-Chain refers to an application that exists in more than one blockchain, but each application deployment is an island: it does not interact with other blockchains, even if it is the same application. For example, a hypothetical application called SuperApp that exists on Ethereum has no connection to SuperApp on Moonbeam.

The “backend” of the app does not communicate. This lack of communication leads to fragmentation of resources and liquidity, which is negative for everyone because each blockchain requires its own TVL to support the protocol. This is not true interoperability, although it is a step in that direction.

Cross-Chain 

Cross-Chain is a new concept that typically refers to applications/smart contracts on multiple blockchains that can communicate and coordinate with each other.

Linked contracts refer to smart contracts that interact behind the scenes to give users access to assets from any blockchain for use in any other linked blockchain. Users access a single application built on Moonbeam, but can work with any of their assets from any blockchain using an interconnect.

Moonbeam is a pioneer when it comes to giving users unified access to users, assets and services through interconnected applications. 

(2) Linked contracts

Linked contracts refer to the interaction of smart contracts on “backend” DApps that users interact with on the blockchain. These contracts are linked across blockchains, so there is no need to pool assets in order to use assets in any application in any linked blockchain.

Applications built on Moonbeam using linked contracts can use the functionality of Ethereum, Cosmos, Avalanche and Polkadot with messages sent on the blockchain. As a parachain on Polkadot, Moonbeam initially supports XCM as a messaging transport. 

Moonbeam’s combination of technologies allows developers to:

• Offer new products that are not limited to locally available assets on a separate network (without having to move them across traditional bridges).
• Create single visibility from a single application about the state of multiple smart contracts across any blockchain.
• Distribute changes or decisions from one blockchain to other blockchains.
• Connect the Polkadot ecosystem to the outside world through a single connection with Moonbeam, allowing Polkadot assets such as DOT and GLMR to flow into other blockchains, and allowing external assets such as ETH and USDC to flow into Polkadot parachemes.

Moonbeam also supports cross-chain messaging systems such as Axelar, LayerZero and others. The built-in support for cross-blockchain messaging means that Moonbeam is especially good at supporting DApp developers who need to support multiple asset types and use cases across many blockchains.

Some of the blockchains available through each messaging protocol include:

• XCM: Polkadot parachemes such as Acala, Astar, Bifrost, Statemint and others (see all XCM-related announcements)
• Axelar: Avalanche, BNB Chain, Cosmos, Ethereum, Polygon, and others
• LayerZero: Avalanche, BNB Chain, Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum and Optimism.
• Wormhole: Avalanche, BNB Chain, Ethereum, Polygon, Solana and many EVM-style blockchains.
• Hyperlane: Avalanche, BNB Chain, Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum and Optimism.

By connecting to Moonbeam, projects can access Polkadot’s relay chain features, including its secure set of validators and interaction with other parachains. 

Developers using these linked smart contracts are not limited to locally available tokens and functions in a single blockchain, but can instead connect to resources in Polkadot (via XCM) and to external blockchains such as Avalanche and Ethereum (via the common messaging protocols listed above) without using traditional bridges.

(3) XC-20 Standard

Proprietary Substrate tokens are easy to use and can move around the Dotsama (Polkadot + Kusama) ecosystem. Moonbeam XC-20 technology allows the same Substrate tokens to be ported to Moonbeam and used with Ethereum applications as ERC-20. 

XC-20 is a token standard unique to Moonbeam that introduces cross-chain-ready ERC-20 tokens. This allows Substrate tokens (from other Polkadot projects) to interact as if they were ERC-20, and to benefit from Moonbeam’s cross-chain capabilities. For Moonbeam-based tokens, this means that they can be easily created as ERC-20s and easily moved around the Polkadot ecosystem once connected via the management system.

There are two types of XC-20s:

• External XC-20s are native cross-chain tokens transferred to Moonbeam from a single parachain or relay chain (Relay Chain). These tokens appear with an “xc” in front of the token name, such as xcDOT, and reside on a sovereign Moonbeam account in each blockchain.
• Mintable XC-20s are minted and burned directly on Moonbeam and can be transferred to other parachains. These tokens are not native to other parachains or the relay chain, so the token name and symbol need not have xc in front of its name.

XC-20 allow Moonbeam to serve as an extension point for Polkadot

XC-20 is the easiest way to integrate DOT or other native tokens into an existing application where ERC-20 is required. All the complexity of Substrate and Rust-based development is gone, and developers can work with these tokens from an Ethereum-compatible Moonbeam environment.

Many multichain teams have chosen Moonbeam because of its secure messaging capabilities (including XCM), XC-20, and the full Ethereum compatibility Moonbeam offers. 

For developers of new protocols, creating their own token in the form of XC-20 gives maximum optionality. They can start building their application and community locally on Moonbeam, but eventually move their token to other networks to access services there, or even to their own parachain in the future.

The impact of XC-20 on the Moonbeam ecosystem

The combination of the common XCM communication standard and ERC-20-style XC-20 interoperability enables rich interaction between non-native blockchains, as not only tokens can be moved between blockchains, but data can also be exchanged and features can be accessed from remote blockchains through a simple application interface.

The introduction of XC-20 enriches the tokens available in Moonriver and Moonbeam ecosystems and promotes token diversification. Tokens from other parachains on Polkadot will be able to circulate seamlessly on Moonriver and Moonbeam, allowing intranet protocols (including DeFi, games, NFT, and other domains) to use this feature to develop and create different use cases and thus scale the imagination of users and projects.

In addition, XC-20 allows relaychain tokens to appear in parachains, allowing many users who have tokens in Polkadot.js to seamlessly and quickly pass KSM/DOT to Moonriver/Moonbeam via XCM.

Benefits of

Let’s look at the features and why so many multi-network and native projects have chosen Moonbeam

1. Full EVM compatibility and Solidity support

Moonbeam is compatible with EVMs, but Polkadot does not initially support EVMs (Ethereum virtual machine), which means that developers cannot directly use Solidity smart contracts in the Polkadot ecosystem. 

This creates problems for projects that are already running on Ethereum or another EVM-compatible network. Similarly, the lack of Solidity support makes it difficult for new projects to enter the Polkadot ecosystem. 

Moonbeam provides a development environment that is as similar to Ethereum as possible, including matching the Ethereum account structure.

2. XC-20: ERC-20 with cross-chain support on Moonbeam

While XCM allows assets to be moved between Polkadot parachains, there are some practical differences between Substrate’s own tokens in other parachains and the ERC-20 tokens deployed in Moonbeam’s EVM. To fill this gap, Moonbeam has introduced XC-20 .

XC-20 is a new type of interoperable token that conforms to the ERC-20 standard, but is also Substrate’s own assets. 

All interoperable assets created in this format can move to other Polkadot parachains, and parachain tokens can move to Moonbeam as XC-20. This is possible because of a special precompilation that is added to Moonbeam’s ERC-20, making them available to the underlying Substrate architecture, translating EVM code into Rust.

The XC-20 standard allows Substrate tokens such as KSM, DOT or other parachain assets to make their way into Moonriver and Moonbeam EVM environments. They then become regular ERC-20s from an EVM perspective, allowing them to be used in DeFi or other applications. The connection can also work in reverse, allowing Moonriver’s own ERC-20 to be transferred to other parachains. 

Applications built on Moonbeam can leverage the functionality of Ethereum, Cosmos, Avalanche and Polkadot with messages sent on the blockchain. 

As a parachain on Polkadot, Moonbeam initially supports XCM as a messaging transport. But Moonbeam also supports cross-chain messaging systems such as Axelar, LayerZero and others. The built-in support for cross-blockchain messaging means Moonbeam is especially good at supporting DApp developers who need to support multiple asset types and use cases across multiple blockchains.

3. Unified credentials and private key format fully integrated with Ethereum

Unlike some EVM-compliant blockchains, Moonbeam has adopted an Ethereum-style format that allows seamless use of Ethereum-style wallet addresses and private keys. 

In this way, users can use the same private key and corresponding address to interact with both Ethereum and Moonbeam, including Moonbeam’s unique Substrate-based features such as voting and stacking. 

This way, users don’t have to manage different addresses for each network or switch private keys and wallets when performing multiple blockchain transactions. 

Moonbeam’s approach to unified accounts ensures the best possible user experience by standardizing the most popular and easiest-to-use address format.

4. Full compatibility with Ethereum development tools

Moonbeam is also fully compatible with the Ethereum toolkit. Developers can use the already familiar Solidity tools, which are currently the most mature tools in the blockchain development ecosystem. These include Truffle, Remix, Hardhat, Waffle, Scaffold-eth and many other well-known development tools.

In addition to these developer tools, a number of APIs and oracles are available to Moonbeam developers, including The Graph, Chainlink price feeds and APIs from SubQuery, Onfinality and Covalent.

With these tools and infrastructure services, developers can continue to use their tools and services when building applications on Moonbeam.

5. The largest and most active ecosystem on Polkadot

There are already hundreds of projects in Moonbeam. This opens up a number of attractive opportunities for developers in the space who need access to various DEX, launch panels, bridges and other key DeFi applications.

6. Compatibility with Substrate

While Moonbeam is compatible with Ethereum, it is also a Polkadot parachute based on the Substrate framework. This means that Moonbeam is compatible with all Polkadot parachains thanks to the XCM (messaging) feature. Users can move assets around the Polkadot Relay Chain and interact naturally with other parachains.

In addition, because Moonbeam is based on Substrate, the project can take advantage of Substrate-specific features such as voting and stacking. 

Since Moonbeam is a parachain on Polkadot, it also benefits from overall security thanks to Polkadot’s pool of network validators. This means that all transactions generated in any parachain connected to Polkadot are terminated by the same shared validator set, rather than an independently typed validator set.

7. Major investment in an optimized developer experience, including comprehensive technical support

Moonbeam has always been conceived as a developer-centric platform, and it continues to prioritize the developer experience in its day-to-day operations. 

The team has invested heavily in the developer relations function, launching a documentation site for developers with detailed tutorials. Moonbeam’s Developer Relations team also provides technical support to developers at all stages of the development process, and team members are available around the world to help developers in different time zones.

8. International Documentation

In an effort to offer the broadest possible support to builders in a number of regions, the Moonbeam team has translated the documentation site into several languages, including Spanish, French, Chinese, and Russian. 

In addition, the Developer Relations team speaks several languages and can directly support English, Spanish, and Chinese speakers via Discord. Additional language support is made possible through an expanded community.

9. The core code is open source and contributes

Moonbeam repositories are open source, and the code is available for review on GitHub. Any developer can branch out the Moonbeam code and run Moonbeam nodes with the attributes they want.

10. Moonbeam Grants Program

The Moonbeam Foundation has created a grant program for projects that add value to the Moonbeam ecosystem, such as DEX, lending and borrowing protocols, infrastructure providers, oracles, NFT collections and trading platforms, and more. Grants are available for projects at all stages of development, including brand new projects that want to build their own Moonbeam application.