ZKsync Lite to Be Retired as Matter Labs Focuses on Next-Gen Zero-Knowledge Ecosystem

ZKsync developer Matter Labs has announced plans to retire ZKsync Lite, its earliest zero-knowledge rollup launched in 2020, marking a major shift toward its more advanced scaling solutions. The team emphasized that the deprecation will be “planned and orderly,” noting that it will not affect ZKsync Era or any other systems in the ZKsync ecosystem.

Originally introduced as a proof-of-concept payment rollup, ZKsync Lite validated core ideas that later shaped the architecture of ZKsync Era and the modular ZK Stack. According to Matter Labs, Lite accomplished its mission by showcasing the potential of zk-rollups and laying the groundwork for more sophisticated zero-knowledge infrastructure. The company formally rebranded ZKsync 1.0 to ZKsync Lite in February 2023 before shifting engineering resources entirely to ZKsync Era the following month.

Matter Labs’ head of engineering, Anthony Rose, noted at the time that ZKsync Era would function as an “alpha version” that required two to three more years of engineering but would ultimately serve as the backbone of the project’s zkEVM ecosystem. Unlike Lite—which supported only basic transfers, NFT minting, and simple swaps—Era launched with full EVM compatibility, prompting developers and liquidity providers to migrate. As a result, activity on Lite dwindled to fewer than 200 daily transactions this month, according to L2Beat.

Despite the deprecation, users still hold about $49 million in bridged assets on ZKsync Lite. Matter Labs confirmed that withdrawals to Ethereum will continue functioning throughout the wind-down, with detailed timelines to be published in 2025.

The decision comes a year after Matter Labs laid off 24 employees amid rising demand for ZK-powered chains. Decrypt has reached out to both Matter Labs and the Ethereum Foundation for additional comments as the ecosystem continues transitioning toward more scalable, zkEVM-based solutions.