We’re excited to announce that Chainlink CCIP—the standard for secure cross-chain interoperability—is now available on Astar Network. Securely connecting Astar Network to the multi-chain ecosystem is a crucial step towards expanding into Soneium and the Superchain ecosystem. This also allows protocols to bring liquidity through Astar Network and develop next-gen cross-chain applications. Additionally, CCIP will be pivotal in Astar Evolution 1.5, serving as the cross-chain infrastructure to support ASTR’s canonical expansion into Soneium.

We adopted CCIP as an interoperability solution because Chainlink has the most proven track record of maintaining the highest standard of security and reliability in the blockchain industry, with CCIP being the only interoperability solution achieving level-5 cross-chain security. Furthermore, CCIP is backed by the Risk Management Network—a separate, independent network that continually monitors and verifies cross-chain operations for suspicious activity. This additional layer of security is particularly important given historical industry exploits and the billions in user funds lost due to unreliable cross-chain infrastructure.

Thanks to its principle-driven approach, Chainlink has built one of the largest ecosystems in the blockchain industry and is being established as the standard for blockchain connectivity within capital markets. By connecting Astar Network to the Chainlink community and ecosystem, we can align with Soneium and the Superchain ecosystem to connect web3 with mainstream business, driving a wider adoption across a multitude of blockchain ecosystems.

CCIP supports our mission to drive innovation and connect more people to web3. This includes creating new roles for the ASTR token across the broader web3 ecosystem. By leveraging CCIP's secure cross-chain token transfer capability, Astar will evolve into a decentralized collective that can shape the growth of the broader blockchain industry, starting with Soneium, and the OP Superchain ecosystem.

In order to help secure cross-chain transfers within the Astar Network ecosystem, we needed access to a highly secure and reliable interoperability solution. After reviewing various solutions, we made Chainlink CCIP available on Astar Network because it provides a multitude of important benefits and features for our ecosystem, such as:

Defense-in-depth security—CCIP’s consensus and interoperability layer is powered by Chainlink decentralized oracle networks, which have already secured tens of billions of dollars for smart contracts and enabled over $14 trillion in onchain transaction value. CCIP also features additional layers of protection and reliability via the Risk Management Network and Smart Execution.
Secure Token Transfers—CCIP simplifies the process of transferring tokens cross-chain by providing audited token pool contracts that abstract away the complexity of cross-chain validation, without imposing vendor lock-in on token issuers. CCIP token transfers also feature additional security functions such as configurable rate limits and reliability features such as Smart Execution that help ensure reliable transaction execution on the destination chain, regardless of blockchain network congestion.
Programmable Token Transfers—CCIP messages are programmable, meaning token transfers and arbitrary data transfers can be one atomic transaction. This enables instructions to be passed in the data payload regarding what to do with the tokens once they arrive at the destination chain.
Extendable and future-proof—CCIP is built to support continuous updates, such as the integration of new blockchains, the introduction of advanced functionalities, and the addition of other defense-in-depth approaches to security. Thus, integrating CCIP eliminates future switching costs should new cross-chain functionalities be required.

We’re thrilled that Chainlink CCIP is now live on Astar Network. We’ll collaborate to expand ASTR adoption by implementing secure and scalable bridging solutions to Soneium. Making ASTR available in the Superchain ecosystems through Soneium! CCIP enables developers to securely expand with Astar Network and build next-gen solutions across multiple ecosystems.—Maarten Henskens, Head of Astar Foundation.