Linea ¹

The L2 built into MetaMask by default, backed by ConsenSys (the company behind MetaMask, Infura, and half of Ethereum's infrastructure). Where banks experiment with DeFi.

Unique Position Linea appears as a default network in MetaMask's 100M wallets, giving it instant distribution most L2s can't buy. ConsenSys's enterprise clients (Mastercard, Visa, JPMorgan) use it for their blockchain experiments. Comes with the entire ConsenSys toolkit built-in, though that also means ConsenSys controls everything.

Primary Use Cases

• Projects seeking MetaMask's massive user distribution
• Enterprise DeFi requiring institutional credibility
• Applications leveraging ConsenSys development tools
• Cross-chain protocols using MetaMask Portfolio integration
• MEV-sensitive applications using advanced bundle RPCs

Ecosystem Character Corporate-friendly ecosystem attracting both crypto natives and traditional finance experiments. Surge Program with LXP rewards bootstrapping early adoption. Developer community split between those embracing ConsenSys tools and those wary of centralization. More institutional than grassroots compared to other zkEVMs.

Trade-offs

• ConsenSys controls sequencer, prover, and upgrades entirely
• Stage 0 maturity despite zkEVM security claims
• Corporate reputation alienates some crypto natives
• No clear technical differentiation from Scroll or zkSync
• Open-sourcing promised for 2025 but not guaranteed

Technical Details

Architecture Fully EVM-equivalent ZK rollup using validity proofs for all operations. Pure Ethereum data availability without custom layers or fallbacks. Advanced RPC support including eth_sendBundle for MEV protection and open-state tooling for sequencer transparency.

Performance Two-second block times with near real-time proof generation. Throughput scales with prover capacity rather than artificial limits. Fees track Ethereum L1 gas prices through calldata posting. No congestion issues due to early-stage adoption.

Security & Trust Model Validity proofs ensure computational integrity before Ethereum settlement. Full data availability on Ethereum L1 provides strong security guarantees. However, centralized sequencer and prover create single points of failure. No fraud proof fallback if ZK system fails.

Control & Governance ConsenSys maintains complete control over all protocol components. No decentralized governance or community input mechanisms. Upgrade authority centralized with vague decentralization roadmap. Enterprise partnerships influence development priorities over community needs.