Cross-chain Bridge problems

Cross-chain bridges are designed to solve the challenge of interoperability between different blockchains. A cross-chain bridge is a protocol that lets a user port digital assets from one blockchain to another. For example, Wormhole is a cross-chain bridging protocol that allows users to move cryptocurrencies and NFTs between the various smart contract blockchains such as Solana and Ethereum.

While bridge designs vary, users typically interact with cross-chain bridges by sending funds in one asset to the bridge protocol, where those funds are then locked into the contract. The user is then issued equivalent funds of a parallel asset on the chain the protocol bridges to. In the case of Wormhole, users typically send Ether (ETH) to the protocol, where it is held as collateral, and are issued Wormhole-wrapped ETH on Solana, backed by that collateral locked in the Wormhole contract on Ethereum.

A new type of crosschain applications emerge, called crosschain messaging protocols, for example Wormhole. Now developers can transfer data and instructions across chains, not assets themselves, thus eliminating the risks of asset hacks.