The Ethereum-based Jovay platform, developed by Ant Group, is aimed at achieving 100,000 transactions per second, an ambition which holds the potential to fundamentally alter the global financial infrastructure.
It is the conviction of Ant Group that the subsequent major advancement in digital financial technology will be realized not within a conventional banking institution but rather on the Ethereum network.
The Chinese financial technology powerhouse behind Alipay’s payment system, which serves 1.4 billion users, introduced Jovay on October 14, a novel Layer-2 (L2) blockchain that was constructed atop Ethereum with the intent of moving real-world assets (RWAs) onto the chain at an institutional level.
Understanding Jovay: A Closer Look
Jovay is characterized by Ant Digital, the blockchain division of Ant Group, as a “compliance-first, AI-assisted scaling network” that is intended to integrate data and value streams from the physical world into the realm of decentralized finance.
The platform employs two distinct verification systems, a zero-knowledge and optimistic hybrid, to guarantee both scalability and the capacity for verification. It was intentionally launched without a native digital coin, which signals that a concentration on corporate and institutional acceptance is prioritized over speculation from individual investors.
The implications are far-reaching. Alipay currently possesses 1.4 billion monthly active patrons and manages trillions in yearly transaction volume. If even a minor fraction of that activity were to be transferred onto the Ethereum infrastructure via Jovay, the network could be established as one of global finance’s most critical infrastructure connections.
In accordance with Jovay’s technical documentation, a performance range of 15,700 to 22,000 transactions per second (TPS) was achieved by the network during testnet trials, and it is targeting a rate of 100,000 TPS through the implementation of node clustering and horizontal scaling techniques is the goal.
This would represent a considerably higher throughput than what is presently achievable within the Ethereum layer-2 environment, an ecosystem which is currently spearheaded by Base, a network supported by Coinbase. Based on information from L2Beats, Base manages approximately 93 TPS is the rate that is processed by Base.
The Real-World Assets (RWA) Thesis Explained
Real-world assets (RWAs) have surreptitiously emerged as Ethereum’s most rapidly expanding category. Tokenized government securities, invoices, and investment funds on Ethereum now surpass $12 billion in valuation, an increase exceeding 300% since the commencement of 2024, according to data from RWA.xyz is the figure that is reported.
Nevertheless, the vast majority of that liquid capital is still restricted to specialized decentralized protocols that are characterized by limited regulatory transparency remains confined.
The protocol utilized by Jovay involves a five-step process: asset registration, structuring, tokenization, issuance, and subsequent exchange. At each stage, verification checkpoints and off-chain data confirmations are embedded, which effectively provides regulatory bodies with the same level of observability that would be afforded in conventional finance was introduced by the model.
By integrating AntChain’s corporate registration system with Ethereum, a mechanism could be established by Jovay that would facilitate two-way financial settlements between authorized institutions and on-chain liquidity providers.
For example, a financial institution that issues a tokenized bond on Jovay could execute an immediate settlement with a DeFi counterparty without internal data being exposed or territorial regulations being violated is one possibility.
In consideration of this, a statement was made by Abbas Khan, who serves as a Founders Success Manager at the Ethereum Foundation:
“This isn’t another startup experiment. It’s a signal that the next phase of global finance is being built on Ethereum rails…In China, Alipay isn’t an app; it’s an infrastructure layer for daily life, payments, loans, insurance, identity, mobility, and more. And now, Ant Group is taking that infrastructure onchain.”
The Macro Strategy Driving Ant Group’s Blockchain Push
The incursion by Ant Group into the Ethereum ecosystem signals a fundamental reorientation in the perspective that global financial technology firms have concerning the risks associated with blockchain is indicated by the move.
Restricted distributed ledgers such as Hyperledger were preferred by preeminent corporations for minimizing market volatility and open-network vulnerability. This prevailing perspective is presently undergoing revision as sovereign entities and substantial financial enterprises progressively trial decentralized public networks like Ethereum for advancing their own institutional objectives.
By constructing Jovay on the Ethereum network instead of a proprietary infrastructure, public decentralized infrastructure is effectively being validated by Ant Group as a viable basis for institutional financial operations was achieved.
Furthermore, the strategic action is a precaution against technological isolation and a maneuver for interoperability because any asset that is created on Jovay can, in principle, gain access to Ethereum’s $100-billion DeFi ecosystem is also a factor in the decision.
The cost structure is supportive of this strategic initiative is the fact that supports the move.
It was disclosed in reports that the Base network, which is supported by Coinbase, has contributed less than $5 million in blob and settlement charges to Ethereum’s Layer-1 validators since its introduction in 2023. This figure represents a 98% cost reduction when compared to the expenses for validators that would be incurred by a chain operating independently is the comparison that is made by this figure.
For Ant Group, that enhanced operational efficiency is directly translatable into reduced settlement expenses for its user base that numbers in the billions is the gain that is realized.
Ethereum’s Subtle Yet Significant Win
The inauguration of Jovay also serves as a demonstration of Ethereum’s gradual acquisition of trust from institutional players. What was once regarded as a highly unstable trial has been transformed into a neutral settlement platform that can be relied upon by major banks and fintech corporations without ceding operational sovereignty is the new reality that is now recognized.
If Jovay is able to achieve significant adoption, the portion of tokenized finance on Ethereum could expand beyond the current niche of real-world assets (RWA) is the possibility that is created by this development.
This would imply that every new class of assets that is brought onto the chain, including energy credits and municipal government debt instruments, will generate fresh requirements for ETH block space and for the intelligent routing of liquidity is the consequence that is foreseen.
As Khan has articulated, the strategic maneuver by Ant Group suggests that the next billion users will not be recruited through speculative memecoins or yield farming activities is the implication that is drawn.
Conversely, their arrival will be occasioned by the silent migration of their personal holdings, financial reserves, and credit instruments onto compliant delivery channels that operate on Ethereum is the anticipated reason.
