BNB Chain Sets Ambitious Goals for 2023

BNB Chain, the blockchain network with the largest user base, has unveiled its major development focus for 2023.

BNB Chain, the blockchain associated with Binance, is preparing to implement significant upgrades in performance, scalability, security, decentralization, and infrastructure this year, according to an announcement made early on February 15.

The platform plans to enhance its Web3 applications and on-chain layer, aiming to provide continuous technical support for developers and users while unlocking new security features.

As part of its 2023 roadmap, BNB Chain aims to triple the number of node operators (validators) from 29 to 100. Additionally, validators will gain greater on-chain governance rights, enabling them to better access network direction and regulations.

Increasing throughput from a 140 million gas limit and 2,200 transactions per second (TPS) to 300 million gas and 5,000 TPS is also a key milestone in the roadmap. The term "gas limit" refers to the maximum amount of gas users are willing to pay when transacting on the network.

Furthermore, BNB Chain will soon integrate Layer-2 scaling solutions, including zkBNB and Optimistic Rollups, to support the ecosystem. Optimistic Rollups expand scalability by offloading computation and storage from the blockchain, thereby reducing transaction fees and accelerating processing speed. zkBNB, on the other hand, is a Layer-2 solution utilizing zero-knowledge proofs specifically designed for BNB Chain.

Alvin Kan, Director of Development at BNB Chain, commented:

“Our core objectives for 2023 are to focus on EVM compatibility and launch our new Layer-2 mainnet solutions, zkBNB and BNB Greenfield, as well as advancing Web3 infrastructure.”

EVM, or Ethereum Virtual Machine, is the system that allows developers to easily deploy smart contracts on Ethereum. ZK (Zero Knowledge Proof) refers to cryptographic technology protocols.

According to the whitepaper, BNB Greenfield is a decentralized data storage solution based on BNB Chain's blockchain technology, enabling users and dApps to create, store, and transact data within a unified economy.

Developed by BNB Chain with support from Amazon Web Services (AWS), NodeReal, and Blockdaemon, BNB Greenfield aims to offer a user experience comparable to leading cloud storage services while granting users full data ownership and introducing blockchain transparency to new solutions.

In summary, BNB Chain, originally known as Binance Smart Chain, now encompasses three distinct blockchains:

1. BNB Chain Beacon, launched in April 2019: a foundational blockchain handling transactions directly.
2. BNB Smart Chain (formerly BSC), launched in September 2020: a blockchain supporting smart contracts for token issuance and dApps, compatible with Ethereum and other blockchains.
3. BNB Greenfield, introduced on February 1: a blockchain for data storage.

Since its inception, BNB Chain has processed over 3 billion transactions with more than 200 million wallet addresses.

See Also: A Look Back at BNB Chain in 2022: Leveraging Strengths to Overcome Challenges

According to DeFiLlama, BNB Chain is currently the second-largest blockchain by total value locked (TVL), with $6.9 billion, trailing only Ethereum. Despite an 8% increase in 24-hour trading volume, BNB Chain is still significantly behind its counterpart, Ethereum.

Top Blockchains by TVL. Screenshot from DeFiLlama as of noon, February 15, 2023.