The LayerZero Foundation has officially unveiled plans for a $110 million acquisition of Stargate (STG) token, aiming to bring one of DeFi’s most prominent cross-chain bridges under its own umbrella. Announced on Sunday, August 10, 2025, the proposal signals an era-defining moment for interoperability protocols and the communities that power them.

Image Source: Layer Zero

What’s Actually Happening?

LayerZero, renowned for developing infrastructure that seamlessly connects multiple blockchains, is offering to buy out all circulating Stargate tokens in exchange for its own ZRO tokens. STG holders would get to swap each token for 0.08634 ZRO, pegging the deal at $0.1675 per STG with ZRO valued at $1.94 as the announcement landed. Stargate’s decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), once the governing voice, is slated to dissolve, and STG the bridge’s native asset would effectively retire, making way for ZRO as the new fuel for cross-chain operations.

Why Stargate?

LayerZero’s CEO Bryan Pellegrino laid out the vision: “This offer is designed to accelerate both Stargate and LayerZero … to create a single stack that anybody integrating within the LayerZero ecosystem can adopt.” Stargate is a behemoth of blockchain volume, boasting $70 billion in cumulative transfers since its 2022 launch. While the technology has flourished, its token hasn’t: STG, once peaking near $4.14, has struggled under $0.20 for most of the past year, a sector-wide echo of risk and opportunity.

Bringing Stargate in-house wouldn’t just pad LayerZero’s stats. It would centralize liquidity, infrastructure, and user experience, setting the stage for rapid expansion, further technical integrations, and potentially reshaping competition against other cross-chain contenders like Wormhole and Synapse.

Industry Response

The news sent STG rallying 12% to $0.188 and ZRO jumping 18% to $2.33, boosting the notional value of the deal to $127 million overnight. ZRO’s price momentum, alongside LayerZero’s eye-catching airdrop campaign, has spotlighted the project’s crossover appeal and ambitions. But within Stargate’s own DAO forum, opinions are divided. Many community members are concerned the buyout undervalues the STG token and Stargate’s potential, citing its history of high yields and substantial quarterly revenue nearly $939,000 flowing to STG holders via bridge fees. Pellegrino responded that LayerZero insiders holding STG would abstain from voting, trying to reassure skeptics the process remains community-driven.

Future Outlook

The DAO’s community forum is open for discussion for seven days. If approved, Stargate’s governance ends, and ZRO becomes the sole asset for future bridging rewards and protocol decisions. The shift will redirect revenue streams, dissolve independent governance, and anchor Stargate’s technology and its users within LayerZero’s rapidly expanding ecosystem.

For LayerZero, the acquisition is a rare chance to absorb market share, unite developer communities, and cement its status as an interoperability powerhouse. For STG holders, the moment is bittersweet, a deal struck at bear-market prices with promises of a bigger future, but only if they’re willing to let go of independence in favor of a collective march forward.