Cross-chain interoperability made easier in Cosmos With Wormhole Gateway

In a recent move to improve blockchain interoperability, the Wormhole Foundation unveiled the Wormhole Gateway, a blockchain powered by the Cosmos SDK. The new launch aims to increase liquidity and expand access within the Cosmos ecosystem, facilitating the integration of assets from Ethereum, Solana and several other chains.

Introducing ✨✨Wormhole Gateway✨✨ – an application-specific blockchain powered by @kosmos SDK.

The Gateway’s goal is to help expand access (and bring liquidity) to the Cosmos ecosystem while also improving the security and sovereignty of Wormhole. pic.twitter.com/qG1kyvcnoY

— Wormhole🌪 (@wormholecrypto) July 21, 2023

There are two types of Wormhole Gateway users: “Cosmos developers who want to seamlessly ingest users and liquidity from other ecosystems like Ethereum and Solana, and users who want to link their assets to or from Cosmos.”

Gateway will enable all users to easily move bridge assets between Cosmos chains. While the interactions will not be directly with the chain interface, they go through the background technology during every cross-chain transfer.

Gateway’s emphasis on transactional transparency and security is central, providing enhanced protection for Wormhole messages and enhancing Wormhole transparency and sovereignty.

The system works by allowing an entity to link a token to any Cosmos chain via the Gateway. The linked asset is then closed and a new ICS-20 is generated at the Gateway, which is forwarded to the destination chain via Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC).

The Wormhole Foundation’s choice to use the Cosmos SDK was to use IBC light clients for security, increase Wormhole’s transparency, and maintain its sovereignty. This includes the use of modules such as Governor and Global Accountant, which add further security and maintain asset interchangeability.

Furthermore, Wormhole Gateway focuses on the seamless integration of Cosmos chains with other ecosystems, standing as a secure, efficient and affordable platform for the Cosmos ecosystem. Gateway integration with the Cosmos ecosystem requires a simple IBC connection and does not charge additional user switching fees, making it a more cost-effective option for users.

Gateway will have all 23+ connected Wormhole chains in 6 runtimes connected to @kosmos through a simple IBC integration. This will allow users to link funds to any Cosmos app chain with 0 additional bridge fees.

— Wormhole🌪 (@wormholecrypto) July 21, 2023