Please describe your proposed solution

zkFold brings an Asterizm interoperability solution to Cardano.

Asterizm is the first enterprise-grade blockchain interoperability protocol providing a plug and play infrastructure with no off-chain consensus model and optional privacy in the case of private networks) allowing to build cross-chain dApps across public and private networks. Asterizm implementation by Web3 protocols or enterprises with private/public blockchains makes seamless and confidential (in the case of private networks) cross-chain operations (transmission of arbitrary messages or assets) in dApps possible without high transaction latency and overpaying for the intermediate blockchain as a guarantee of cross-chain transaction validity.

Thanks to a unique model of performing validity and integrity checks of cross-chain transactions exclusively on-chain, Asterizm has managed to move away from off-chain consensus and it also allows its clients to privately transmit payload (in the case of private networks) from one network to another, opening up incredible possibilities for creating cross-chain dApps not only within public but also private blockchains, bridging the economies of the web2 and web3 worlds.

All cross-chain transactions from private chains processed by the Asterizm protocol are confidential, thanks to the transmission of the payload exclusively through the client's server (dApp) and transaction proofs via relay servers. This enables the verification of the integrity and validity of transactions within the Asterizm Connector smart contracts at the destination chain through cryptographic primitives.

Developers will be able to create cross-chain native (omnichain) tokens, avoiding the use of asset bridges between Cardano and other chains. Asterizm enables the development of cross-chain asset bridges, lending, yield farming protocols, and other cross-chain applications that bring together liquidity and users from different networks and projects, all without the risk of losing operational control over cross-chain transaction execution or exposing personal/corporate data (in the case of private networks).

Asterizm secures cross-chain transactions with the Asterizm Connector, an on-chain module responsible for verifying the validity and integrity of cross-chain transactions. Additionally, it involves two independent off-chain entities: Asterizm Relayers and the Client off-chain module, which are used for transmitting payloads and proofs.

• Relayer servers - transport layer for the cross-chain transaction proofs. These servers transfer proofs of cross-chain transactions (hash + unique ID) from one network to another without any consensus between them but with rules on waiting for the right number of blocks to validate the transaction in each supported network, which significantly speeds up cross-chain transactions.
• Client off-chain module - transport layer for the cross-chain transaction data (payload), ensuring confidentiality (in the case of private networks). The Client off-chain module is a module for the client's server infrastructure (a Docker image), functioning as a transmitter of the cross-chain transaction data (payload). This module is responsible for transmitting the payload and proofs of cross-chain transactions across different networks. It also verifies their validity using xID after transmission through the relayer servers, serving as the initial step of verification.
• Asterizm Connector - a key module responsible for checking the validity and integrity of cross-chain transactions. A lightweight on-chain client consisting of the Initializer and Translator smart contracts, deployed to perform cross-chain operations.

Asterizm is designed with infrastructure modularity and the privacy of cross-chain transactions (in the case of private networks) in mind. It aims to provide reliability, security, and low-cost cross-chain transactions. The Asterizm architecture eliminates the need to maintain a network of validators with off-chain consensus, which typically requires significantly more time and money to validate a transaction. In Asterizm, cross-chain transaction validation occurs on-chain, significantly speeding up transaction execution and reducing costs.

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

zkFold and Asterizm interoperability solution will allow projects within the Cardano ecosystem to implement cross-chain operations, launch cross-chain native (omnichain) tokens, with a focus on attracting liquidity and users from other chains.

Developers will be able to create cross-chain native (omnichain) tokens, avoiding the use of asset bridges between Cardano and other chains. Asterizm enables the development of cross-chain asset bridges, lending, yield farming protocols, and other cross-chain applications. It will also facilitate the launch of projects in collaboration with companies operating in private chains. This includes:

• Saving money and time on the development of popular cross-chain use cases through the availability of ready-made Asterizm modules,
• Implementation of Asterizm's standard of cross-chain native FT & NFT on Cardano
• The ability to attract liquidity and users from other chains (EVM, TON, Solana, and others later)
• The launch of projects in collaboration with companies operating in private chains (both EVM and non-EVM),
• The opportunity to attract web2 enterprises into web3, including companies requiring privacy of the transmitted data.

As a result, the proposal offers significant opportunities for existing and future dApps of the Cardano ecosystem to grow and drive adoption. It will also attract liquidity to the ecosystem, thus benefiting developers, dApps, users, and investors.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

zkFold is a leading innovator in L1 and L2 scaling for Cardano, specializing in zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) to enhance blockchain performance. As one of the strongest experts in both the Cardano ecosystem and zero-knowledge technology, zkFold is driving innovation. With a team of seasoned Haskell, Rust, and ZKP developers, the company is set to deliver on multiple Project Catalyst initiatives. zkFold’s founder, Vladimir Sinyakov, successfully led the ENCOINS team, launching the DApp on Cardano mainnet. The team continues attracting new players to the Cardano ecosystem.

The founding members of the Asterizm team have been active in the blockchain industry for over 7 years, with the past 3 years dedicated to developing cross-chain solutions that solve interoperability challenges. Among their achievements is the creation of Chainspot, one of the largest cross-chain aggregators, now supporting 37 networks.The Asterizm protocol has been live on Mainnet for over a year, supporting 20+ EVM and non-EVM networks. It’s also available on the TON and Solana testnets, with a full launch planned for November 2024. Asterizm is backed by Techstars, Blockchain Founders Fund, Optic Capital, v3entures and Oversubscribed Capital.

This is a highly skilled engineering team composed of PhDs in Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science, and the founding team are alumni of TechStars and Y Combinator. Team won several hackathons including prizes at ETH Global. One of Asterizm's early investors and its Chief Science Advisor is Dmitry Meshkov, a prominent researcher and former member of IOHK (IOG). Dmitry holds a Ph.D. in Physics and has authored numerous research papers in cryptography, distributed systems, and computational complexity theory. His groundbreaking contributions have been applied in platforms like Ergo, Waves, and Facebook’s Libra project.

What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1: Create documentation

Outputs: Well-structured documentation for the solution being developed.

Acceptance: Documentation is created and publicly accessible.

Evidence of milestone completion: We will provide a link to the documentation.

Milestone 2: Implement on-chain code. A set of Plutus smart contracts that implement Asterizm protocol.

Outputs: The written code reflects the milestone’s objective.

Acceptance: The code is written and publicly accessible.

Evidence of milestone completion: The code is open-source and will be published on GitHub (<https://github.com/zkFold/>).

Milestone 3: Implement off-chain code for Asterizm transactions on Cardano.

Outputs: The written code reflects the milestone’s objective.

Acceptance: The code is written and publicly accessible.

Evidence of milestone completion: The code is open-source and will be published on GitHub (<https://github.com/zkFold/>).

Milestone 4: Implement CLI for the Asterizm integration (transaction building and posting + data retrieval from Cardano).

Outputs: The written code reflects the milestone’s objective.

Acceptance: The code is written and publicly accessible.

Evidence of milestone completion: The code is open-source and will be published on GitHub (<https://github.com/zkFold/>).

Milestone 5: Cardano integration into off-chain Relayer and Client software

Outputs: The written code reflects the milestone’s objective.

Acceptance: The code is written and accessible.

Evidence of milestone completion: The code will be published on GitHub (subject to the “open source” clause).

Final Milestone: Deploy a cross-chain NFT token (Cardano &lt; &gt; EVM). Publish an updated dev documentation.

Outputs: The written code reflects the milestone’s objective

Acceptance: The code is written and accessible

Evidence of milestone completion: The code will be published on GitHub (subject to the “open source” clause).

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

The zkFold team consists of expert Haskell, Rust, and ZKP developers. ZKFold's team members participated in the development of several successful projects on different blockchains, including Cardano, Polkadot, and Near. The zkFold team won the EMURGO BUILD Hackathon on the zero-knowledge track and took 3rd place in the Battle of the Builders at the Cardano Summit 2023 in Dubai. Also, zkFold's Fund 11 and Fund 12 proposals have been accepted by the community and the team is delivering milestones as promised. We are proud of our core team which consists of talented and experienced blockchain and smart contract developers.

Asterizm is a highly skilled engineering team composed of PhDs in Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science, and the founding team are alumni of TechStars and Y Combinator. Team won several hackathons including prizes at ETH Global. One of Asterizm's early investors and its Chief Science Advisor is Dmitry Meshkov, a prominent researcher and former member of IOHK (IOG). Dmitry holds a Ph.D. in Physics and has authored numerous research papers in cryptography, distributed systems, and computational complexity theory. His groundbreaking contributions have been applied in platforms like Ergo, Waves, and Facebook’s Libra project.

zkFold team:

Vladimir Sinyakov

Founder and CTO,

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladimir-sinyakov/>

Founder and protocol architect of ENCOINS. Ph.D. in Computational Mathematics. Prior experience includes five years of postdoc in applied mathematics (Control Theory), publishing in top journals in the field. Previously completed a Project Catalyst Fund 6 grant leading the ENCOINS team. ENCOINS is a DApp on Cardano that has been recently launched on the mainnet.

Stanislav Marycev

Co-founder, Business Development.

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanislav-marycev/>

Bachelor degree in Business Management. Cardano Blockchain Certified Associate (CBCA). PMP and agile professional with 12+ years of experience in worldwide IT and blockchain projects. Stanislav has experience in leading multicultural international teams (30+ countries) and working closely with top level stakeholders in finance.

Eitan Chatav

Developer

PhD in mathematics, expert in advanced mathematics and physics; probability and statistics, algebra, real and complex analysis. 5+ years of experience with blockchain, NFT, Haskell

Vladimir Morozov

Developer

B.Sc. in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, PhD in Computational Biology. 6+ years of experience with Haskell and Python

Other zkFold’s developers will contribute to this proposal on request.

Asterizm core team consists of:

Denis Polulyakhov

https://www.linkedin.com/in/denispol/

https://x.com/Den_Sur

Co-founder, CBDO

Denis brings more than 13 years of experience to the team. He is also a Techstars London 2023 alumnus and. Denis has been an IT entrepreneur since 2010 and possesses extensive knowledge of the blockchain industry. He founded Carbyn Group, a web3 venture studio (investor and advisor at Chainspot.io, a cross-chain aggregator and router), and has been a public speaker at over 50 blockchain conferences, including prestigious Harvard and Columbia universities. With his in-depth understanding of the market, Denis plays a crucial role in the team as a co-founder and CBDO.

Artem Avdeev https://www.linkedin.com/in/afmx/

Co-founder, Product owner

Artem brings over 8 years of experience to the team. He is an alumnus of Techstars London 2023 and has a strong track record in the crypto industry. Artem co-founded Chainspot.io, a cross-chain aggregator and router, and served as a portfolio manager at Warp Capital, a DeFi Hedge Fund. He also held positions as COO at Indacoin, specializing in crypto and online payments, and as a co-founder and PM at Webstoryz, an e-commerce SaaS platform. Artem has successfully launched several IT and crypto startups, including ventures in VPN, p2p exchange, and payments.

Alex Gotovets https://www.linkedin.com/in/gotovets-alexandr/

Co-founder, CTO, senior blockchain and backend developer,

Alex has accumulated over 15 years of experience in the field. Like his fellow co-founders, he is a Techstars London 2023 alumnus. Alex served as the CTO of Chainspot.io, overseeing the development of the cross-chain aggregator and router. He has held various technical leadership positions in companies such as PointPay and Indacoin, specializing in crypto and online payments. Throughout his career, he has successfully managed multiple high-load projects in payments, crypto, e-commerce, and m-commerce.

Alex Yurganov <https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-yurganov-79813415b/>

Fullstack Engineer

Ph.D. Computer Science, Y Combinator W20

15 years of experience. Ex. CTO &amp; Co-Founder at Legionfarm ($1M MRR), 6 years of experience in developing a startup from a small team to an International Company

Stepan Kushtuev https://www.linkedin.com/in/skushtuev/

Full-stack

10+ years of experience. Proficient in Solidity for smart contract development. CTO at Chainspot (cross-chain aggregator). Ex: Senior developer at Chronopay (e-commerce and e-payments), Blockchain developer at Indacoin (crypto, online payments), Full-stack developer at PointPay (crypto, online payments), GameFi developer with expertise in blockchain integration.

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Documentation and Project Management: 75,000 ADA

1 Technical writer @ $1,350 per month for 3 months = $4,050 (~11,900 ADA)

1 Blockchain developer @ $3,500 per month for 5 months = $17,500 (~51,500 ADA)

1 Project manager @ $1,315 per month for 3 months = $3,945 (~11,600 ADA)

A set of Plutus smart contracts that implement Asterizm protocol: 189,700 ADA

3 Blockchain developers @ $3,500 per month for 5 months = $52,500 (~154,400 ADA)

1 Backend developer @ $3,000 per month for 4 months = $12,000 (~35,300 ADA)

Implement off-chain code for Asterizm transactions on Cardano: 70,600 ADA

2 Backend developers @ $3,000 per month for 4 months = $24,000 (~70,600 ADA)

Implement CLI for the Asterizm integration: 70,600 ADA

2 Backend developers @ $3,000 per month for 4 months = $24,000 (~70,600 ADA)

Cardano integration into off-chain Relayer and Client software: 53,000 ADA

2 Backend developers @ $3,000 per month for 3 months = $18,000 (~53,000 ADA)

Deploy a cross-chain NFT token (Cardano &lt; &gt; EVM): 41,100 ADA

2 Blockchain developers @ $3,500 per month for 2 months = $14,000 (~41,100 ADA)

Total: $170,000 = ~ 500,000 ADA

No dependencies.

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The cost of this project represents excellent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem due to its significant potential to attract liquidity and users from other blockchain networks. By implementing Asterizm’s cross-chain GMP and native (omnichain) standard, developers will have the ability to create cross-chain dApps and native tokens without relying on traditional asset bridges. This drastically reduces the complexity and costs associated with cross-chain operations while maintaining operational control.

Moreover, by enabling cross-chain asset bridges, lending, and yield farming protocols based on zkFold and Asterizm implementation will provide ready-made modules that save developers both time and money on the implementation of popular cross-chain use cases. This interoperability solution is key to fostering the growth of projects within Cardano by enabling seamless collaboration with companies on public and even private chains facilitating the migration of Web2 enterprises to Web3.

In particular, the ability to attract liquidity and users from other ecosystems such as Ethereum (EVM), TON, and Solana through the creation of cross-chain native tokens ensures that Cardano can expand its user base and liquidity. As a result, this proposal will drive adoption and development of dApps within the Cardano ecosystem, benefiting developers, users, and investors alike. Ultimately, the cost of the project is justified by its substantial contribution to the Cardano ecosystem’s growth and long-term success.

The project requires a deep understanding of Cardano smart contracts, blockchain backend infrastructure as well as expertise in Asterizm interoperability protocol’s implementation. As we pay competitive salaries to our developers, we've arrived at the budget breakdown above. Ultimately, the project's cost is comparable to other Cardano projects of similar scale.