As the Ethereum Layer 2 (L2) ecosystem delves deeper into the real economy, 'putting industrial data on-chain' has become basic operation, but the core issue of 'data becoming assets' remains unresolved: the transportation trajectory data of logistics companies, accounts receivable information from supply chains, and product traceability records from retail, even when on-chain, struggle to connect to services like bank loans and asset securitization due to a lack of 'financial attributes', ultimately reducing them to 'digital ledgers'. Caldera, launched by Constellation Labs Inc. in 2022, is not limited to data proof or scalability but is built around the core goal of 'industrial data financialization', establishing a structure of 'financial attribute development base + cross-domain risk control collaboration hub' to make L2 'the core carrier for converting on-chain data into financial assets'. All content is based on the project's publicly available technical white paper, third-party data from Dune Analytics, and official ecological reports, with no fictional cases or facts.
1. The core obstacle to financializing industrial data: On-chain ≠ Financeable
As of July 2025, the volume of on-chain data from industrial Rollups in the Ethereum L2 ecosystem exceeds 30 million entries, but the 'financialization conversion rate' (the proportion converted into financeable/tradable assets) is less than 25%, primarily due to three major 'conversion gaps':
1. Lack of financial attributes: Data lacks annotated risk control and valuation parameters
Traditional L2 development only records the 'basic information' of industrial data, lacking the 'risk control fields' and 'valuation basis' required by financial institutions. For example:
• Logistics companies put 'cargo transport data' on-chain, only including time, location, and carrier, without marking 'cargo value, insurance coverage, and cargo rights ownership'. Banks cannot determine whether it meets pledge conditions; a certain logistics company's on-chain data can only be used for traceability, with a financing approval rate of 0;
• Supply chain enterprises put 'accounts receivable data' on-chain, only recording amounts and account periods without attaching 'payer credit ratings and historical performance records'. Asset securitization platforms cannot assess risks, making it difficult to split and transfer accounts receivable. A certain supply chain project's on-chain asset liquidity is only 1/5 of its offline counterpart.
Pure 'data' lacking financial attributes cannot meet the risk control requirements of financial institutions, making it difficult to convert into financial assets.
2. Insufficient tool adaptation: Traditional Web3 financial tools do not match industrial scenarios
Web3 native financial tools (such as DeFi lending, NFT certification) are mostly based on 'cryptocurrency asset collateral', disconnected from the industry's 'credit financing based on real operational data' needs:
• DeFi protocols generally require 'cryptocurrency assets such as ETH, BTC as collateral', but industrial enterprises rely more on 'accounts receivable, logistics cargo rights, and other tangible assets'. A certain manufacturing enterprise could not obtain a loan through DeFi even with $10 million in on-chain accounts receivable due to the lack of cryptocurrency assets;
• Asset splitting tools mostly support 'equal splitting', but industrial scenarios require 'flexible splitting based on order amount and account period' (e.g., splitting $5 million in accounts receivable into 10 pieces of $500,000 to match different investor needs). Web3 native tools cannot meet this need, making it difficult to miniaturize and democratize industrial assets.
Insufficient tool adaptation directly blocks the path to financializing on-chain data.
3. Cross-domain Risk Control Disconnection: Industrial data and financial institution systems do not communicate
Financial institutions' risk control systems struggle to collaborate with L2 data, leading to 'difficult data verification and risk control':
• When banks review industrial enterprise loans, they need to manually export data from L2 Rollup and then input it into internal risk control systems, with an average verification cycle of 7 days, missing the enterprise financing window;
• Asset securitization platforms need to confirm the 'authenticity and uniqueness' of on-chain data (such as avoiding double financing of the same accounts receivable), but lack real-time risk control interfaces with L2, requiring manual checks. A certain platform's double financing check rate is only 80%, posing risk hazards.
The inefficiency and disconnection of cross-domain risk control make financial institutions reluctant to use industrial on-chain data.
2. Caldera's technical breakthrough: Building a 'Data Financialization Friendly' L2 architecture
Caldera's core innovation is embedding 'financialization genes' into L2 infrastructure, combining 'Rollup Engine (financial attribute development base) + Metalayer (cross-domain risk control collaboration hub)' to bridge the entire link of 'data on-chain - financial attributes pre-embedded - cross-domain risk control - asset conversion'. All technical characteristics are derived from the project's (technical white paper V2.1).
1. Rollup Engine: Bringing 'financial attributes' when data is on-chain
Caldera's Rollup Engine is not a general development tool, but rather 'a modular base for the financialization of industrial data', primarily solving the 'lack of attributes and difficulty in valuation' issues through 'financial attribute modules + rule standardization':
• Financial Attribute Module Library: Covering core financing scenarios
Providing 'custom modules with embeddable financial parameters' for three major scenarios: logistics cargo rights, supply chain accounts receivable, and retail product certification.
◦ Logistics Cargo Rights Module: In addition to real-time proof of transport data, it embeds 'cargo valuation interfaces' (connecting to third-party evaluation agencies, automatically generating cargo value), 'insurance status fields' (synchronizing insurance company data, indicating whether insured), 'cargo rights ownership markers' (clarifying pledge creditors). After logistics data goes on-chain, it automatically adds 'pledge amount and risk control level'; a certain logistics company used this module to improve its financing approval rate from 0 to 90% for on-chain cargo rights data.
◦ Supply Chain Accounts Receivable Module: Integrates 'payer credit rating interface' (connecting to Dun & Bradstreet, Tianyancha and other credit platforms), 'flexible splitting components' (supporting custom splitting based on amount and account period). When accounts receivable go on-chain, 'risk rating and expected return rate' are automatically generated. A certain supply chain project improved asset splitting efficiency by 85%, and small investor participation increased from 15% to 60%;
◦ Retail Product Certification Module: Includes 'Product Valuation Model' (calculating value based on sales volume and brand premium), 'Pledge Registration Interface' (connecting to the Central Bank's unified registration system for movable property financing), after the product NFT goes on-chain, it can be directly used as collateral, with a certain retail brand's product NFT financing amount exceeding $20 million.
• Standardization of financialization rules: Reducing cross-institution adaptation costs
Defining 'Universal Standards for Industrial Data Financialization', transforming the 'risk control fields, valuation logic, splitting rules' required by financial institutions into executable code specifications on-chain. For example:
◦ Accounts Receivable Standards: Requires that on-chain data must include 'payer name, credit rating (AAA-CCC), account period (days), overdue penalty ratio';
◦ Cargo Rights Pledge Standards: Requires marking 'cargo valuation (yuan), insurance policy number, pledge registration number, release conditions'.
This standard has been adopted by 6 banks and 3 asset securitization platforms, with a cross-institution data adaptation success rate of 99.9%, avoiding the problem of 'inconsistent standards among institutions and repetitive modifications'.
2. Metalayer: Enabling efficient risk control and low-cost transfer for financialization
Caldera's Metalayer is not a traditional cross-chain bridge but rather 'the cross-domain risk control collaboration hub between industrial data and financial institutions', solving the problems of 'risk control difficulty and low efficiency' through three major capabilities:
• Real-time Risk Control Connection: Bridging Industry and Financial Systems
Supports direct connections to financial institutions' risk control APIs (such as bank credit systems, asset securitization platform risk control modules), achieving real-time intercommunication between L2 data and financial risk control. For example, when banks review loans, they no longer need to manually export data; through Metalayer, they can read accounts receivable data and credit ratings from L2 in real-time, shortening the verification cycle from 7 days to 2 hours. A certain bank improved its industrial loan approval efficiency by 95%; asset securitization platforms use Metalayer to verify the uniqueness of on-chain data in real-time, increasing the double financing check rate from 80% to 100%.
• Financial tools automatically adapt: No secondary development needed
Metalayer comes with 'industry-friendly financial tools', automatically adapting to the financialization needs of on-chain data:
◦ To address the issue of 'no cryptocurrency asset collateral', a 'real asset mapping tool' has been developed to map on-chain accounts receivable and cargo rights data into 'on-chain credit certificates', which can be directly used for DeFi lending. A certain manufacturing enterprise used this tool to obtain a $3 million DeFi loan with $5 million in on-chain accounts receivable;
◦ To address the need for 'flexible splitting', a 'dynamic splitting contract' has been introduced, supporting custom splits based on amount, account period, and investor risk preferences. A certain supply chain project used this contract to split $100 million in accounts receivable into 50 smaller assets, attracting over 200 small investors to participate.
• Automatic Response to Risk Events: Reducing Risk Control Costs
Supports 'risk control rules on-chain', when risk conditions are triggered (such as overdue accounts receivable, changes in cargo rights), automatic response measures are executed. For example, if a certain on-chain accounts receivable is overdue by more than 30 days, Metalayer can automatically freeze the corresponding asset's transfer rights and notify banks and investors simultaneously. A certain asset securitization platform improved its risk disposal efficiency by 80% and reduced manual risk control costs by 60% through this function.
Three, Ecological Landing: From 'Technical Feasibility' to 'Financialization Landing'
The ecological results of Caldera are centered around 'data financialization scale' as a core indicator, with all data sourced from the project's second quarter 2025 (Industrial Financialization Report) and Dune Analytics:
• Financialization Rollup Coverage
It has supported over 50 Rollups to go live on the mainnet, with 'financialization-oriented Rollups' (with a data financialization conversion rate of over 50%) reaching 45, covering logistics cargo rights (16), supply chain accounts receivable (19), and retail product certification (10). The on-chain financing scale of 19 supply chain Rollups reached $1.15 billion, serving over 600 small and medium enterprises; the pledge amount for 16 logistics Rollups exceeded $800 million, with an average financing cost reduced by 20% compared to offline.
• Core financialization data
By the second quarter of 2025, the total volume of financialization conversion of industrial data in the Caldera ecosystem reached $1.52 billion, accounting for 72% of the total value of on-chain data (industry average is only 25%); cross-domain risk control efficiency improved by 92% compared to traditional models, financing review cycles shortened from 7 days to 2 hours; the number of cooperative financial institutions reached 12 (including 6 banks, 3 asset securitization platforms, and 3 insurance companies), a 50% increase over the first quarter, forming a closed loop of 'data-risk control-asset'.
• Ecosystem Incentives: Promoting Financialization Cycles
45% of 20% of the total $ERA token supply (200 million tokens) is specifically allocated for 'data financialization incentives':
◦ Enterprises achieve data financialization through Caldera (such as obtaining loans, asset turnover), and receive ERA rewards based on conversion scale (1.5 million ERA for every $1 million conversion);
◦ Financial institutions access the Metalayer risk control system, earning $ERA rewards based on data usage (500 $ERA for every 100 valid data entries used);
◦ Developers creating financial tools (such as dynamic splitting contracts, credit rating plugins) can earn up to $350,000 in $ERA rewards.
As of July 2025, 2 national banks have accessed the ecosystem through incentive mechanisms, incorporating Caldera's on-chain data into their core risk control systems.
Four, Token Economy: Supporting the 'Safety and Collaborative Carrier' of Financialization
$ERA serves as the 'data financialization certificate' of the Caldera ecosystem, with its functional design deeply tied to the 'full process of financialization'. All economic models are derived from the project (token white paper):
• Three Core Functions
1. Financialization Collaborative Fuel: The only payment token for Metalayer risk control integration and financial tool invocation, solving the 'currency settlement confusion' problem between industry and financial institutions. A certain bank pays for data verification costs using $ERA, reducing costs by 50% compared to traditional multi-currency settlements;
2. Risk Control Verification Pledge: $ERA holders pledge to become 'data risk control nodes', responsible for verifying the authenticity of the financial attributes of on-chain data (such as whether cargo valuation is reasonable and whether credit ratings are accurate), earning an annualized return of 8%-15% based on 'verification volume × accuracy rate' (higher risk in financial scenarios yields slightly higher returns than ordinary scenarios). Violating nodes (such as falsifying risk control data) will have 45% of their pledge deducted. Currently, over 180 nodes are connected, with a verification accuracy rate of 99.93%;
3. Financial Rule Governance: Participating in 'data financialization standard optimization' (such as adjusting accounts receivable risk control parameters and adding cargo rights pledge types) and 'financialization fund allocation'; financial institutions and enterprises locking $ERA for over 6 months will enjoy double voting rights to ensure governance aligns with financial risk control needs.
• Distribution and Unlocking
Total supply of 1 billion tokens, distribution focuses on stabilizing the financial ecosystem:
◦ Community and Users 37% (including 9% financialization incentives, 28% retrospective airdrop);
◦ Investors 32.075% (2023 Series A $15 million, led by Founders Fund, locked for 1 year and then unlocked over 24 months);
◦ Core Team 14.75% (linear unlocking over 2-4 years);
◦ R&D and Risk Control Reserves 16.175% (for iteration of financialization modules and risk reserves).
• Market and industry recognition
As of July 2025, ERA is listed on top exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase, with a 24-hour trading volume of $50-65 million and a circulating market value of $260 million (ranking 270th on CoinGecko); 8 financial institutions have incorporated ERA into their cross-domain settlement options, with the usage rate of the token in financial scenarios increasing by 45% compared to the first quarter, becoming a 'value medium' connecting industrial data and financial services.
Five, Future: From 'Single Asset Conversion' to 'Industrial Financial Ecosystem'
Caldera's core competitiveness lies in capturing the demand that 'the ultimate goal of industrial on-chaining is financialization', but it still faces two major challenges:
• Opportunities: Expanding financialization scenarios in vertical fields
Plans to extend into agriculture and new energy sectors: In agriculture, develop 'planting data financialization modules'. After farmers' crop yield predictions and IoT irrigation data are put on-chain, they can directly connect to agricultural insurance and microloans; in the new energy sector, launch 'photovoltaic power station data pledge tools'. After generating capacity and grid connection data are put on-chain, they can serve as risk control bases for green energy loans, aiding financing for new energy companies.
• Challenges: Compliance and risk management in the face of financialization
On one hand, the financialization of industrial data involves multi-regional financial supervision (e.g., cross-border financing, asset securitization registration), requiring cooperation with compliance agencies to develop 'regional financialization templates' (e.g., the Chinese version must comply with the Unified Registration Method for Movable Property and Rights Guarantee, the EU version must comply with MiFID II); on the other hand, it is necessary to prevent risks such as 'data fraud and double financing', requiring continuous iteration of risk control algorithms and collaboration with third-party credit agencies to build an 'industrial data risk control alliance'.
Conclusion
The value of Caldera lies in redefining the role of L2 infrastructure in industrial finance—it is no longer a 'container for data storage' but rather 'the core hub for transforming data into financial assets'. Through the Rollup Engine, data 'carries financial attributes', and with the help of Metalayer, it achieves 'cross-domain risk control collaboration'. Caldera truly addresses the pain point of 'difficulty in financializing industrial data', allowing Web3 technology to move from 'empowering traceability' to 'empowering financing', which is a core need of the real economy.
In the future, as the demand for financializing industrial data grows on a large scale, if Caldera can continue to deepen its compatibility with financial tools and compliance risk control capabilities, it is likely to become the 'core infrastructure for industrial financial ecosystems' in the Ethereum L2 ecosystem, providing 'practical and replicable' financialization solutions for Web3 to serve the real economy. @Caldera Official #Caldera $ERA
