Altcoins News
By James Thorp
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Giwa: Ethereum Layer-2 With Optimism’s OP Stack. Giwa, short for Global Infrastructure for Web3 Access, is built using the Optimism Foundation’s OP…
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Exchanges and Tech Giants Building Their Own Chains. Upbit’s step mirrors a broader trend in both crypto and traditional tech.
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Testnet Development and Activity. Evidence suggests Giwa’s development has been underway for several weeks.
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Cultural Roots of the Giwa Name. The term Giwa carries symbolic meaning in South Korea.
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South Korea’s Growing Role in Global Crypto. South Korea has consistently ranked among the most active crypto markets in the world.
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Competitive Edge in Layer-2 Expansion. Ethereum layer-2 scaling solutions are an increasingly competitive landscape.
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Outlook for Giwa and Upbit. The introduction of Giwa underscores Upbit’s intent to move beyond being “just an exchange.
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South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, Upbit, has rolled out an Ethereum layer-2 network called Giwa, now active on testnet.
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The development signals Upbit’s expansion beyond traditional exchange services into infrastructure building, joining a growing list of companies creating proprietary blockchains.
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According to its technical documentation, Giwa is designed to create blocks every second, enabling near-real-time transaction finality.
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The blockchain’s stated mission is to make Web3 infrastructure “easy and fun for everyone,” suggesting a focus on usability alongside technical efficiency.
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Coinbase introduced its layer-2 Base in 2023.
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Outside crypto, Google, Stripe, and Sony Group have all moved to develop or announce their own blockchain ecosystems in 2025.
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These projects highlight a competitive race where exchanges and corporations seek more control over transaction infrastructure and developer ecosystems.
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Evidence suggests Giwa’s development has been underway for several weeks. GitHub repositories show continuous updates, while on-chain data reveals over 4 million blocks added to…
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