Across Protocol is a cross-chain bridge that consistently delivers the cheapest and fastest bridging for EVM chains. It connects Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon, zkSync, Linea, and others — and is the bridge used in SovereignAI's revenue routing system to move swap fees from Solana to Base.
How Across Works: Intents and Relayers
Most bridges work by locking tokens on the source chain and minting on the destination. Across uses an intent-based model:
- You submit a deposit on the source chain specifying: origin chain, destination chain, token, amount, and the minimum amount you'll accept on the other side
- A network of relayers competes to fill your intent. The fastest relayer bridges their own capital to the destination chain immediately — you receive funds in seconds, not minutes
- The relayer is repaid (plus a fee) from the origin chain deposit once the transaction is verified
- The verification uses UMA's Optimistic Oracle — a 2-hour fraud window. If no dispute, relayer is repaid automatically
The key insight: you get capital immediately (from the relayer's inventory), not after waiting for cross-chain messages to finalize.
Why Across Is Usually Cheapest
Capital efficiency: Relayers optimize their inventory across chains. High-demand routes (Ethereum → Base) have deep relayer competition, driving fees down.
Intent netting: Multiple deposits in the same direction can be batched by relayers, reducing per-transfer costs.
Gas optimization: Across minimizes on-chain footprint. No complex message passing — just deposits and repayments.
In practice, Across often quotes fees 20–50% lower than Hop, Stargate, or official chain bridges for the same transfer.
Across vs Other Bridges
| Feature | Across | Stargate | Wormhole | Official Bridge | |---------|--------|---------|---------|----------------| | Speed | 1–5 min | 1–5 min | 15–30 min | Up to 7 days | | Fee model | Intent + relayer | LP pool | Guardian | Free (slow) | | Security | UMA Optimistic Oracle | LayerZero | Guardians | Native rollup | | EVM chains | 10+ | 10+ | 30+ | Source/dest only | | Solana | No | No | Yes | No |
For EVM-to-EVM transfers, Across is typically the best choice on cost and speed. For Solana bridges, Wormhole or Allbridge are needed.
How to Use Across
- Go to across.to and connect your Ethereum/EVM wallet
- Select source chain, destination chain, token (USDC, ETH, WETH, etc.)
- Enter amount — Across quotes the fee and estimated receive amount
- Confirm the deposit transaction
- Funds arrive on the destination chain within 1–5 minutes in most cases
No registration, no KYC, no account — entirely permissionless.
ACX Token
ACX is Across Protocol's governance token. It governs protocol parameters including:
- Relayer fee structure
- Supported chains and tokens
- Risk parameters for the UMA oracle dispute window
ACX was distributed via retroactive airdrop to bridge users and continues to be distributed through liquidity mining to relayers.
Across in the SovereignSwap Revenue System
SovereignSwap's revenue loop uses Across to bridge collected USDC fees from Solana (via CCTP/Wormhole) to Base, where they enter the RevenueRouter contract for distribution to $SOVAI stakers. Across's low fees preserve more revenue for the staking pool versus more expensive bridge alternatives.