Suzaku: Powering the Security Layer of Avalanche’s L1 Ecosystem

Key Insights

• Bootstrapping chain security and decentralisation is an extremely difficult and expensive process for any new layer-1 protocol, requiring attracting and coordinating stakers and infrastructure providers. Doing it alone is risky, expensive and the set-up might still end up compromised.
• Avalanche is the network for creating new layer-1 blockchains and the momentum is clearly growing, with big names like FIFA, Off The Grid and MapleStory Universe entering the ecosystem. 
• Suzaku has a strong reputation, perfectly positioned at the heart of the Avalanche ecosystem. They are aiming to help these layer-1s securely and cost-effectively scale and decentralise at their own pace with tailored security models.
• A bet on Suzaku is a bet on the growth of the Avalanche ecosystem. This dependency risk is mitigated by Avalanche’s very active builder community. We believe that there is a clear need for a project like Suzaku on Avalanche. 
• Investors in this deal will have their full allocation unlocked at the TGE. The TGE is expected to happen shortly after the Alpha Early Deal sale. Full terms will be published shortly.
• Complete a few very simple steps and become eligible for better terms!

An Intro to Avalanche

Avalanche is a network of blockchains known for its flexibility and scalability, with a focus on resource-demanding endeavours. Its unique architecture makes it perfect for projects building their own network and value sovereignty, scalability and compatibility. 

Avalanche also caters to developers who wish to build their own blockchain networks for scalability, sovereignty, or regulatory reasons. 

Each Avalanche chain (simply called “Avalanche L1”) is fully sovereign with its independent consensus and data layers, and specific security model, while remaining natively interoperable with other L1s of the Avalanche ecosystem.

In theory, this is great, as it allows developers to adopt all the key features of Avalanche without having to build everything from scratch. Meanwhile, developers have total freedom on how to develop and run the new chain, without the possible constraints imposed by the original network, as it happens with more classic L2 solutions.

The Problems Builders Face

While developers can save precious hours by building on Avalanche, there are still difficult questions that any new L1 has to answer. Questions like who will provide the security of the blockchain? How do I ensure that the validators I pick are trustworthy? How do I ensure that the validators are properly decentralised? 

In the context of proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchains, security refers to the ability of the network to resist attacks, ensure consensus and maintain integrity, availability and immutability of transactions. This primarily trickles down to the following 3 categories: 

1. Economic Security. In PoS networks, the amount of staked tokens represents the economic cost an attacker would need to gain control of the network (> 66.7% of the total stake). The more assets being staked, the greater the cost for the attacker. 
2. Decentralisation. A diverse and large validator set reduces the risk of collusion or single point of failure. If validators are geographically distributed, independently operated and numerous, the network is harder to manipulate, enhancing its security. 
3. Avalanche Consensus Mechanism. Avalanche uses a unique consensus protocol, based on random sampling and metastability, which is fast and scalable but relies on validators staking tokens to ensure honest behaviour. Security depends on enough validators participating and behaving correctly. 

For new L1 blockchains building on Avalanche , achieving sufficient security is challenging, due to the cold start problem. They need to attract validators and staked capital from scratch, which can lead to low initial security and potential centralisation if only a few validators participate. 

Solution: Suzaku, the (re)staking layer of Avalanche

Suzaku positions itself as the go-to protocol to help new L1s with all these challenging questions. In order to understand what they do, we should first briefly touch upon liquid staking and restaking. 

Restaking

In a simplified version, restaking is a powerful concept, where new L1s can “borrow” security from established networks in exchange for some rewards for validators. For L1s launching on Suzaku, this means the following benefits:

• Solving the cold-start problem. New projects will struggle to attract enough validators to secure their network at launch. Restaking allows them to leverage existing stake on other networks. This provides them with immediate cryptoeconomic security without needing to bootstrap their own from scratch.
• Increased gains for (re)stakers. Users can restake their tokens to secure multiple L1s, earning an APY from each of these. This increases the % amount one can make from their assets. 

Liquid Staking Tokens (LSTs)

LSTs are tokenised representations of staked assets. You can think of them as tokenised receipts that confirm your stake, but also allow you to further use this receipt in DeFi. And besides the better capital efficiency, there’s another important aspect - simplicity. Staking itself is usually somewhat of a complex process for beginners, but getting your hands on an LST is as easy as buying any other token. 

The new L1 benefits from this service in multiple ways. The fact that the LSTs allow for much greater capital efficiency, they act as a powerful catalyst for broader participation. This indirectly supports decentralisation by encouraging broader participation in staking. If there is also sufficient liquidity on the LST, users can also efficiently exit their position instantaneously on the secondary markets, further increasing their appeal. 

Pros and Cons

As you can see, Suzaku is well positioned to satisfy all parties in any Avalanche-based layer-1 economy: the stakers, the validators and the developers. 

In essence, Suzaku is an automated marketplace to connect Avalanche validators with new Avalanche sovereign L1s, while boosting yields for stakers. It’s a win-win-win situation!

Why Suzaku

Suzaku could become the de facto security layer for dozens or hundreds of Avalanche L1s, capturing a portion of each network’s value (through fees or token rewards). This “network of networks” effect provides an enormous upside if Avalanche’s multi-chain vision succeeds.

Apart from this, there are at least three other major pillars that poise Suzaku for success.

Strong Backing and Ecosystem Integration

Suzaku is backed by the Avalanche Foundation and leading DeFi projects such as BENQI and Yield Yak , and infrastructure giants such as Chorus One . This strong network makes the Suzaku team perfectly positioned, right at the heart of the ecosystem. 

Tapping into Avalanche’s Growth

Avalanche is actively driving the L1 adoption - one example of such initiative is Retro9000, a $40m grant program aimed primarily at developers building, among other things, innovative L1s. With massive names like FIFA and Gunzilla Games, the creators of Off The Grid, building on Avalanche, there’s good reason to be optimistic about the future of Avalanche. 

Multi-Asset Support and Diversified Collateral

Suzaku’s model isn’t limited to a single asset; it supports AVAX, BTC.b, stablecoins, and potentially ETH/LSTs . This diversification reduces dependency on any one asset’s performance and helps maintain network security even during market downturns. 

Roadmap Highlights

Restaking dApp Launch (Q4 2024):

• Unveiled Suzaku via a detailed blog post and launched the restaking dApp.
• Early users earned Suzaku Points through deposits (e.g., sAVAX, BTC.b, AUSD). SwissBorg users had unique access to a restaking opportunity in the app. 

Participation in Avalanche 9000 Testnet (Q1 2025):

• Co-authored ACP-99 with Ava Labs, the official standard for L1s validator set management on Avalanche.
• Deployed phase 1 of the Suzaku testnet.
• Onboarded professional node operators.

Auditing & Testnet Phase 2 (Q2 2025):

• Auditing of the core protocol by 2 renowned firms, Omniscia and Cyfrin
• Launch of phase 2 of the Suzaku testnet with more node operators to onboard
• Kick-off of a marketing campaign with referrals, community partnerships, etc.

Suzaku Mainnet Launch & new DeFi integrations(Q3-Q4 2025):

• Suzaku Mainnet Launch with partner L1s like PLYR and Plan B (more to be revealed in the coming months) that will use Suzaku as their staking venue.
• Upgrade of Suzaku LRTs (Liquid Restaking Tokens) to integrate native yield (+1-1.5% APY), and integration to lending protocols (e.g. Euler).

Expansion of Supported Collateral:

• Plan to integrate additional assets (beyond initial blue-chip assets) and token types.
• Future integration with external restaking sources (e.g., EigenLayer & Babylon via Othentic).

Ongoing Ecosystem Growth:

• Onboarding additional Avalanche L1s.
• AVAX LST-as-a-service to allow anyone to launch a custom AVAX Liquid Staking Token aligned with their protocol/brand.
• Development of Suzaku’s own L1s to foster the broader ecosystem decentralisation, namely around interoperability

Founding Team

Suzaku was founded by the Ash team, which is known for its deep expertise in Avalanche. Before Suzaku, the co-founders Léo and Gauthier worked for a year on building open-source tooling and infrastructure for Avalanche L1s, including the Ash Wallet, used by 5+ L1 teams to secure their treasuries and critical operations. In Spring 2024, the team participated in the first cohort of the Avalanche Codebase accelerator, where the concept of Suzaku was brought to life and honed with the help of Ava Labs and key Web3 experts.

The Ash team behind Suzaku boasts a strong track record within the Avalanche community, with proven expertise demonstrated through successful accelerator participation, timely milestone deliveries, open-source contributions to the ecosystem like ACP-99, and talks in Web3 conferences like the Avalanche Summit. Their deep technical know-how—combined with strategic advisors like BENQI and Chorus One—minimises execution risk and ensures the protocol can swiftly adapt to changing market conditions and competitive pressures.

Partners

Risks and Considerations

Inherent to every Early Deal brought so far, there’s some risks involved with this deal. Below we outline the most notable ones in our opinion:

• Reliance on Avalanche Ecosystem Growth. Although Avalanche has a strong builders community and great initiatives, the growth of Suzaku is tied to the growth of the Avalanche ecosystem. 
• Adoption and Network Effect Uncertainty. Suzaku’s model requires commitment from multiple parties - developers, stakers, validators and curators. To mitigate this risk, they are working with established partners and validators they have been working with since the beginning. 
• Technical Risks. While the Suzaku team is technically capable and their smart contracts audited, the smart contract risk is never zero. 

Closing Thoughts

Suzaku stands at the crossroads of innovation and exponential growth in the Avalanche L1s ecosystem, offering a game-changing solution that unlocks unprecedented capital efficiency and easy-to-access security for new sovereign networks. 

With a robust framework, strong ecosystem backing, and a clear pathway to decentralisation, Suzaku not only addresses critical pain points in validator recruitment and network scalability but also positions itself as the backbone of Avalanche’s multi-chain future. 

For investors seeking exposure to transformative blockchain infrastructure, Suzaku represents a unique opportunity to get in early on a platform with the potential to redefine how decentralised networks launch and thrive. 

If you’re ready to back a project that marries cutting-edge technology with strategic ecosystem integration, Suzaku is a compelling call to action in the rapidly evolving world of blockchain.