Hop Protocol pioneered fast Ethereum L2 bridging with an AMM-based liquidity model. Users receive assets on the destination chain in minutes, backed by liquidity providers earning fees. Well-integrated across L2s though volume has partially migrated to Across.
How Hop works
Hop uses a hub-and-spoke architecture with per-chain AMM pools. When bridging ETH from Arbitrum to Optimism, Hop routes via Ethereum mainnet using hToken (a Hop-issued bridging asset) and destination-chain AMM pools that swap hToken back to native ETH.
This design gives fast bridging (minutes) while relying on economic incentives (LPs earning fees) rather than trusted intermediaries.
Where Hop still shines
- L2-to-L2 bridging on major routes
- HOP token governance
- Long operating history with clean security record
Verdict
Hop is a solid mid-tier bridge with real track record. Not always the cheapest anymore (Across usually undercuts), but reliable and well-integrated across L2 ecosystems.