Scroll joins 2024’s L2s in a race to the bottom

Scroll launched its mainnet on October 17, 2024, a significant step forward for the layer 2 project. It joins a list of L2 projects aimed at improving Ethereum’s scalability, albeit with competitive zk-rollup technology. 

News of the SCR token launch was met with initial excitement. However, Scroll has found it challenging to gain market traction compared to similar projects.

Among other updates that left them underwhelmed around the time of the airdrop, they especially worried about the percentage allocated to the Binance launchpool. Ye Zhang, a co-founder of the Scroll network, defended the project’s decision to favor Binance by saying they did it for the long-term benefits.

They have since learned the hard way that a Binance endorsement does not guarantee success. The Scroll token has been down 23% since its launch. Now, they can only hope that a price reversal is on the way, something that no other L2 launched this year has managed.    

L2s launched in 2024 have had a tough time

Scroll has been struggling despite the enthusiasm it generated in its testnet phase. However, it is not the only L2 having a hard time in these markets. Projects like Taiko and Blast are also down 40% and 65% since launch.

L2 tokens launched this year

Price Change since launch:$SCR -22%📉$TAIKO -40%📉$BLAST -65%📉$MANTA -66% 📉$MODE -80%📉$ZK -41%📉$STRK -82%📉

Estimated last-round investor roi:

(FDV to last round valuation)@Scroll_ZKP -48%📉@Starknet -50%📉@MantaNetwork +47%📈 pic.twitter.com/NFV9j88xPT

— 0xScope (@ScopeProtocol) October 24, 2024

Knowing how fast the crypto industry moves on, making the news means they have managed to be relevant. 

Scroll’s liquidity and transaction volumes are growing, but not fast enough. So far, the newest kid on the block has not been able to challenge the older L2s, like Polygon zkEVM in terms of bridge volumes from Ethereum.

Scroll is still playing catch-up in the aspects of attracting developer interest because others have more mature ecosystems, partnerships, and user incentives.

No doubt, Scroll’s mainnet is technically promising. However, now that the airdrop is done and there are no more scheduled incentives, many wonder how the L2 will fare.

If it does not do anything differently, however, it will probably continue to trend toward the same struggles that other L2s that launched this year have faced. 

Some of the challenges Scroll faces 

Scroll is a remarkable attempt at scaling the Ethereum ecosystem. The technology aims to enhance Ethereum’s transaction throughput and lower costs, but it has not gained nearly enough traction

While Scroll saw the participation of many users during its test phase, recording millions of transactions and attracting significant developer interest, its mainnet performance has found it difficult to replicate similar success. Transaction volumes and bridging activity have been lower than expected

One obvious problem is that Scroll is trying to stand out in a crowded space already dominated by other zkEVM-based solutions like Polygon and Matter Labs. Differentiating itself from the competition with the head-starts they already have will not be easy.

To be clear, some funds have been bridged to the Scroll network. However, not nearly as much as those that have gone into other zkEVMs like Polygon.

Another reason the Scroll mainnet is not doing as well as anticipated is that the broader market adoption of zk-rollup solutions has been at a crawl. Furthermore, the network’s reliance on Ethereum’s ecosystem may also affect its growth pace, especially because it is not immune to the occasional Ethereum congestion issues.

Compared to similar launches, Scroll’s adoption definitely seems more staggered, with Polygon’s zkEVM and Matter Labs’ zkSync enjoying more immediate usage post-launch.

However, if anyone is equipped to weather the storm, it is Scroll. The project has substantial funding, a signal of investors’ confidence in its long-term potential. 

Ethereum L2s are in serious competition 

Scroll is one of the latest blockchains to launch on a layer 2 scaling ecosystem, joining a list with names like Polygon zkEVM, zkSync Era, and Starknet. All three L2 solutions also aim to enhance Ethereum’s scalability via zk-rollups. However, how do they compare with Scroll?

Polygon zkEVM

Launched March 27, 2023, Polygon’s zkEVM uses zk-rollups to scale Ethereum. It enjoys the support of an established network (Polygon) and a strong user base.

Since its launch, it has witnessed steady growth. Its mainnet alpha has recorded consistent transaction volumes and developer activity. Its transaction throughput also outpaces Scroll’s post-launch performance.

The performance discrepancies may be due to various reasons, including better market recognition and stronger integration with decentralized finance.

zkSync Era

zkSync Era, yet another zk-rollup layer 2, launched on March 24, 2023. It also enjoyed a faster adoption curve compared to Scroll. In its first few months alone, zkSync Era registered strong transaction volumes and a thriving developer community.

zkSync was one of the earliest projects to deliver a zkEVM solution, giving it an edge in attracting early adopters. One of the differentiating factors was its emphasis on liquidity mining programs and partnerships with DeFi protocols. That meant that post-launch, users still had legitimate reasons to use the product rather than merely farming it for the airdrop.

Starknet

Starknet is powered by zk-STARKs, which is another form of zk-technology. It has also seen steady growth and broader adoption among developers, even though it operates differently from the zkEVM solutions like Scroll and zkSync.

Starknet has become a top contender in the zk-rollup space because of its focus on developer tooling and strong ecosystem partnerships. However, it experienced disaster post-launch as it faced scalability issues.

Fortunately, it quickly rebounded thanks to its focus on developer support and upgrades.

Scroll could actually see Starknet’s story as a reason to be optimistic in the long term.