Celo's Layer 2 Network Migration Completed, Ushering in a New Era of Blockchain

Celo Layer 2 Migration Completed, Opening a New Chapter in Blockchain

The completion of the transition brings to a close a long journey that began in July 2023 and a tough competition that Optimism won by convincing the Celo ecosystem to implement its technology.

Margot Nijkerk | Edited by Sheldon Reback Updated March 26, 2025, 8:05 UTC Published March 26, 2025, 5:02 UTC

What you should know:

• The long-awaited Celo blockchain project to convert to a Layer 2 Ethereum chain has been completed, culminating in a nearly two-year process, key organizations involved in the network have announced.
• The transition completes a long journey that began in July 2023 for the Layer 1 blockchain, which included a community vote in July 2024 and a fierce competition among Layer 2 networks, with Optimism emerging victorious and convincing the Celo ecosystem to adopt its technology.
• The upgraded network — like other Layer 2s — offers faster, more accessible transactions based on the Ethereum mainnet. The blockchain runs on Optimism’s OP Stack, a customizable platform that allows developers to build Layer 2 networks based on Optimism’s technology.

The long-awaited Celo blockchain project to convert to the Ethereum Layer 2 chain has been completed, culminating in a nearly two-year process, key organizations involved in the network announced Wednesday.

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The transition completes a long journey that began in July 2023 for the Layer 1 blockchain, which included a community vote in July 2024 and a fierce competition among Layer 2 networks, with Optimism emerging victorious and convincing the Celo ecosystem to adopt its technology.

The upgraded network — like other Layer 2s — offers faster, more accessible transactions based on the Ethereum mainnet. The blockchain runs on Optimism’s OP Stack, a customizable platform that allows developers to build Layer 2 networks based on Optimism’s technology.

“Whenever people ask us, we always recommend the OP stack because the team has provided us with significant help and support,” said Marek Olszewski, CEO of cLabs, the main development company supporting the Celo blockchain.

Plan for other layers 1

According to Rene Reisberg, CEO of the Celo Foundation, the migration is the first of its kind in the Ethereum ecosystem and will likely become a model for other EVM-compatible blockchains looking to become second-layer networks.

“This path is not just deploying a new chain, but actually maintaining that history and getting everyone on board with the new chain, which is a lot more work, which is great from a Celo perspective. It’s becoming kind of a shining example for Ethereum,” Rene Reinsberg, president of the Celo Foundation, said in an interview.

“Even based on the information I’m getting from other L1 founders who are asking, ‘Hey, what’s it actually like to go through this transition, how much work does it take, and what do you think about it? ’ There definitely feels like there’s a growing interest in this,” Reinsberg added.

While Ethereum executives have faced backlash from the community due to poor experience with multiple second-layer blockchains, the lag in the price of Ether (ETH) compared to other cryptocurrencies, and the loss of popularity of the blockchain

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