Polkadot is a network of blockchains that are linked together. Consider a wheel with a hub and spokes as one example. Each blockchain, known as a parachain, is represented by the spokes, and the hub is the native blockchain element that connects everything together. The goal has always been to allow these parachains to communicate with one another, which XCM now allows.
XCM is a token messaging format that allows assets to be exchanged across Polkadot’s parachains. It enables parachain users and developers to exchange data and crypto assets. This will make it simple for users of these blockchains to transfer tokens from one to the other.
Polkadot parachains first went live in December 2021 and have remained fragmented until now. Polkadot has achieved its primary goal of being a fully interoperable ecosystem with the launch of XCM.
“Now that Polkadot’s cross-chain messaging protocol has been enabled, Polkadot has fulfilled its objective to be a fully interoperable multi-chain ecosystem,” said Shawn Tabrizi, lead developer at Polkadot.
XCM does not rely on traditional bridges that rely on asset “wrapping” to move assets from one blockchain to another. Rather, XCM was builtinto the Relay Chain, Polkadot’s central hub that secures all parachains. This means that the entire network of linked parachains will now support the token flow.
This setup is thought to be more secure than bridges alone, which can have centralised weakpoints and are frequently hacked for large amounts of crypto. Messages will be able to be sent between parachains without having to be stored on the Relay Chain in future iterations of the XCM.
“With XCM, we have a stable and reliable inter-chain messaging channel that is far superior to the fragmented bridges, ”Hoon Kim, said chief technical officer of Astar, a smart contract service on Polkadot.
