Wormhole Launches New Blockchain Connecting to Any Cosmos Appchain

CORRECTION (July 21, 10:50 UTC): Corrects headline and lead to clarify that Gateway is an application-specific blockchain, not a bridge.

The Wormhole Foundation launched a new application-specific blockchain (appchain) into the Cosmos ecosystem Friday morning, making it the first appchain that connects liquidity and users from more than 20 different blockchains to any Cosmos appchain.

According to a Wormhole blog post, the new blockchain called Gateway is designed to make it easier for developers and users to on-ramp tokens to any Cosmos chain, with the purpose of driving “liquidity to grow the Cosmos ecosystem.”

Appchains, such as Gateway, are blockchains customized to operate a single application. Instead of building a decentralized application on top of an underlying blockchain like Ethereum, developers build their own blockchain from the ground up which is usually meant just for a singular application - but one that can be continually upgraded to met user needs.

While Wormhole expanded into the Cosmos ecosystem in 2022 by integrating with Injective, a Cosmos-based blockchain, this launch impacts the entire network of appchains.

According to its website, Wormhole has over $378 million in total value locked across its various bridges.