Networks and deposits
Layer 2
A network executing transactions on its own chain and periodically publishing its state to a main chain.
Arbitrum, Base and Optimism process transactions locally at very low cost, then anchor their state to Ethereum. Users get near-immediate confirmation and a sending cost far below layer 1’s.
The trade-off is finality: the layer 2 confirmation arrives in a fraction of a second, definitive settlement on Ethereum much later. Separately, moving funds between layer 1 and layer 2 goes through a bridge, a distinct operation with its own cost and counterparty risk.