Not just a simple currency exchange, an article analyzing the latest upgrade of the clearing protocol Everclear

Author: Deep Tide TechFlow

After a long period of dormancy, the crypto market has recently become lively. In addition to the booming Meme and compliance concepts, many infrastructure projects have also seen a wave of growth. Those infrastructure projects that understand the importance of timely updates may gain more favor in this enthusiastic bull market.

Today, the cross-chain settlement layer protocol Everclear ( @EverclearOrg ) announced an important upgrade plan: upgrading the NEXT token to CLEAR and introducing an innovative vbCLEAR (vote-bound CLEAR) mechanism.

Upon further investigation, we found that this is not a simple token swap, but rather a key upgrade for Everclear in the competitive landscape of cross-chain infrastructure.

Value Reassessment of the Settlement Layer from Data

The current cross-chain ecosystem is facing a somewhat awkward situation: the number of public chains has exceeded 250, and the traditional one-to-one liquidity connection model is becoming unsustainable. New public chains often need to invest significant resources to establish partnerships with various bridges and market makers at the initial stage, making inefficient liquidity acquisition a bottleneck for ecosystem development.

Everclear centralizes global settlement through its settlement layer, achieving a tenfold optimization in rebalancing costs. As Everclear itself states, "Everclear is like UberPool for the liquidity world, allowing cross-chain transactions to bid farewell to the traditional high-cost era through scaled matching and settlement."

During the three-month testnet operation, Everclear has shown impressive data performance: cross-chain transaction fees have dropped to a historic low of 0.011%, nearly 90% lower than traditional cross-chain solutions; the net settlement rate of liquidity reached 50%, meaning that every two cross-chain transactions can achieve a hedge through the settlement layer. The threefold growth over three consecutive months also proves that the settlement layer solution is not a "pseudo-demand" in the market.

Innovations Based on Arbitrum Orbit

From a technical perspective, Everclear has chosen to build its settlement layer infrastructure based on Arbitrum Orbit. The Orbit tech stack not only provides high-performance transaction processing capabilities but also ensures seamless compatibility with the Ethereum ecosystem.

In terms of implementation, Everclear's settlement layer design adopts a unique dual-layer structure:

1. Basic Cross-Chain Layer: Users initiate cross-chain transactions through traditional cross-chain bridges (such as Router protocol, Across, Synapse, etc.)

2. Settlement Optimization Layer: Professional Solvers (settlers) conduct cross-chain settlements through the Everclear protocol, significantly reducing capital costs.

This design allows Everclear to provide more efficient settlement services for cross-chain infrastructure without compromising user experience.

Token Swap + Staking: A Reimagined Economic Model for the Settlement Layer

In this arena, Everclear is not a solo act; traditional cross-chain bridges like Stargate and Hop Protocol are also continuously optimizing their settlement mechanisms. However, Everclear's differentiated advantage lies in its focus on the settlement layer niche, achieving extreme efficiency through specialized division of labor. This upgrade is also aimed at seizing the growing market trend of cross-chain demand.

vbCLEAR Mechanism for Staking Rewards

In addition to the 1:1 exchange of NEXT tokens for CLEAR, the core of this upgrade lies in the introduction of the vbCLEAR mechanism. Under the new mechanism, CLEAR token holders can stake to obtain vbCLEAR, thereby participating in ecosystem governance.

The vbCLEAR mechanism features a complete token economic cycle:

1. Staking Mechanism: CLEAR holders obtain vbCLEAR through staking.

2. Governance Voting: vbCLEAR holders participate in decisions regarding emission distribution, including voting to direct liquidity incentives (emissions) to specific chains and Solvers.

3. Incentive Distribution: Incentives are allocated to Solvers on various chains based on voting results.

4. Fee Rebates: vbCLEAR holders can receive two types of rewards.

1. Protocol Fees: Share in the dynamic fees paid by solvers and users using the Everclear liquidity settlement system (currently ranging from 0.2 to 1 basis points depending on transaction conditions).

2. Quarterly Incentives: A fixed reward pool, such as 1.75 million CLEAR in the first quarter, allocated to vbCLEAR holders.

Season 1 Quarterly Incentive Program

To ensure a rapid launch of the upgraded ecosystem, Everclear has introduced its first quarterly incentive program, Season 1. Starting from December 6, the three-month incentive season will release a reward pool of 1.75M CLEAR tokens and 70 ETH.

By creating a self-driven positive flywheel: more staking leads to more precise liquidity allocation, which in turn attracts more trading volume, ultimately benefiting ecosystem participants.

Conclusion

Everclear's upgrade is essentially a strategic layout betting on the future. The settlement layer, as a niche in cross-chain infrastructure, holds long-term value, and Everclear's innovative attempts bring more diverse participation methods to this sector.

The vbCLEAR mechanism balances governance rights, economic incentives, and market efficiency, providing new ideas for solving cross-chain liquidity dilemmas. While the high incentives of Season 1 offer a good entry opportunity, market participants should still engage cautiously and pay attention to the actual operational effects post-upgrade.