• Ethereum software developer ConsenSys unveils details of its EVM-based zk-rollup solution. 
• The Ethereum scaling solution could fuel an ETH price surge by promoting more adoption. 

Leading Ethereum blockchain software company ConsenSys revealed details of ConsenSys zkEVM network, its zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM) layer 2 network.

The company wrote in a blog post that it is launching the Ethereum roll-up network for private beta testing next week. The post added that the onboarding of external users to the network begins in January 2023. It further notes that the long-term plan is to make the network open-source.

The ConsenSys zkEVM network is a new zk-rollup, designed by ConsenSys research and development (R&D) unit. It handles native EVM bytecode for proving and verification to allow the execution of Solidity smart contracts. Many current zk-rollup solutions handle this process on networks separate from Ethereum and with other programming languages.

The zkEVM network also enables developers to get the benefits of zk-rollup using developer tools and infrastructure they are familiar with. It does this by allowing developers to deploy and test smart contracts as if they were using Ethereum directly while using ConsenSys’ other software including MetaMask, Truffle, and Infura.

The testnet participants can also bridge tokens, transfer tokens, and interact with deployed dApps listed on its ecosystem portal page. An Infura account is needed to join the testing, according to the post. Meanwhile, those interested in joining the private beta are directed to join the waitlist if they have not already done so.

“We intend to learn whether the developer experience of the zkEVM has the potential to accelerate innovation in Web3 and will be evaluating feedback from the community to inform our next step,” ConsenSys added.

Scaling solutions could drive ETH to new price highs

The Ethereum blockchain stands to benefit greatly from scaling solutions. Developers estimate that roll-up solutions such as Optimism and now zkEVM can increase Ethereum’s scalability by up to 100x. This is especially so with the network’s recent migration to using a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism.

Increased scalability also means that Ethereum will see reduced transaction fees and increased throughput. This will solve Ethereum’s most pressing current bottlenecks, and bring more adoption to the network.

The prospect raises hopes that the price of Ether (ETH) will recover its lost ground. At press time, ETH was trading at around $1,330, up 2.2 percent in the last 24 hours. Greater adoption can push the price of the token back above $2,000 in the short term. A sustained price surge could also see ETH rise above its previous all-time high of over $4,800.

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