LayerZero Acquires Stargate in $110M Deal After Competitive Bidding War

LayerZero, a blockchain messaging protocol, has finalized its acquisition of crypto protocol Stargate for $110 million following a heated last-minute bidding war. The deal, approved by an overwhelming 95% of Stargate token holders, marks a significant consolidation in the cross-chain interoperability space.

Community participation reached record levels, with over 15,000 addresses voting—representing more than 7.2 million STG tokens in favor. LayerZero CEO Bryan Pellegrino called it the most engaged vote in Stargate's history, signaling strong consensus for the merger.

The acquisition faced late competition from rival Wormhole, which offered $120 million in cash with additional staker incentives. Other potential suitors including Axelar Network and Across Protocol showed interest but declined to submit formal bids.