An Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) Aurora, also a blockchain layer on the NEAR Protocol has launched a $90 million token fund in partnership with Proximity Labs which is NEAR Protocol’s DeFi arm.

The main aim of this fund is on financing decentralized finance (DeFi) applications on the Near protocol. From Aurora Labs' DAO treasury Proximity Labs received 25 million Aurora tokens which is currently valued at roughly $90 million to seed the fund. Due to this funding model, Proximity Labs will now be responsible for managing the funds and providing grants to developers wishing to create DApps for Aurora. According to the Aurora Labs team, the token-based funding structure will also increase activity across the network.

Proximity will manage the tokens. Developers interested in building DeFi-based applications on Aurora can receive grants from Proximity. To strengthen the overall activity of the network, blockchain or cryptocurrency founders uses similar token-based funds.

When the new developer fund launched Aurora Labs said it is wishing to create an EVM layer on Near that is more appealing to Ethereum developers. Due to its EVM compatibility, Aurora has emerged as an important network in the Near ecosystem. In total, it holds more than $800 million in total assets locked in the chain. Among them are Aurigami, Bastion, Trisolaris, and others. In recent months, it has also started integrating top Ethereum-based projects. The Ethereum-based decentralized exchange Curve Finance launched its Defi offering on Aurora last week.

Founder of Aurora Labs, Alex Shevchenko, stated development of Ethereum applications on the Near protocol will be more attractive to developers due to the launch of the new token fund. He said, “Aurora DAO continues its mission to extend the Ethereum economy outside Ethereum blockchain.”

One month before, NEAR Protocol's team which is separate from Aurora Labs raised $350 million in a funding round led by Tiger Global. This shows that application development Near ecosystem has additional funds at its disposal. The Aurora project is part of the NEAR Protocol ecosystem. It operates as a separate blockchain layer.

Ethereum's core operating system is based on the Ethereum Virtual Machine. It is responsible for transaction execution, smart contract implementation, and other essential operating functions, as well as enabling developers to build DApps on its blockchain. Independent blockchains that are increasing in number have adopted the EVM as the default smart contract engine which includes BNB Chain, Avalanche Chain, Polygon and Fantom.

About Near Protocol

Near Protocol is a DApp platform. Its focus is on usability among developers and users. Near Protocol is a layer-1 competitor to Ethereum. It is also a smart contract that is capable and runs a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism.

Indrani Bose

CBW - External Analyst

INDIA