- August 21, 2023
- Posted by: [email protected]
- Category:
LiFi, a multichain bridging protocol, has introduced a new multi-message aggregator designed to bolster decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) governance. Arjun Chand, LiFi’s research lead, announced this development on August 17 to address the need for enhanced security in cross-chain bridges, preventing potential governance attacks.
The catalyst for this initiative stemmed from a vigorous discussion on bridge security within the Uniswap community forums earlier this year. The debate centered around the governance of Uniswap, which operates via a DAO known as UniswapDAO. In January, the DAO explored deploying a duplicate version of Uniswap on Binance Smart Chain (BSC). This presented the challenge of governing Uniswap across multiple chains, as all voting traditionally occurred on the Ethereum network.
The debate culminated in a vote on January 24, where the DAO decided to deploy Uniswap on BSC using the Celer bridging protocol. However, concerns arose about the security of Celer in preventing cross-chain governance attacks. Some participants proposed alternative bridging protocols like Wormhole, LayerZero, or DeBridge. Despite the adoption of Wormhole in a subsequent vote, the process highlighted the need for a multi-bridge solution to enhance security.
LiFi’s announcement on August 18 introduced a new bridge aggregator that can require confirmation of votes from multiple bridges. This innovation offers a future-proof solution for various cross-chain messaging needs and ensures protocols are not reliant on a single bridge for governance messages. For instance, a protocol could demand confirmation from two out of three bridges for a vote to be considered valid. This approach significantly mitigates the impact of a potential hack on a single bridge.
While LiFi isn’t the only team to propose a multi-bridge aggregator for DAO governance, its introduction aligns with a growing demand for enhanced security measures in decentralized protocols. Gnosis introduced a similar solution called “Hashi” earlier, but it has been met with skepticism regarding its readiness for production.
LiFi’s new aggregator has yet to undergo a formal audit, but Chand’s announcement conveyed plans to expand its testing and submit the solution for an audit by Trail of Bits in the near future. This development marks a significant step forward in fortifying cross-chain DAO governance, ensuring protocols are safeguarded against potential threats across various blockchain ecosystems.
