LayerZero Acquires Stargate: New Dynamics in the DeFi Power Game Seen Through a $110 Million Acquisition

Event Review: LayerZero Foundation has completed the acquisition of Stargate for $110 million, with the deal approved by Stargate DAO at a 95% voting rate. Starting Monday, STG token holders can swap their tokens for ZRO at a 1:0.08634 ratio.

What’s behind this deal?

Originally, the Wormhole Foundation also wanted Stargate and offered $120 million in cash. However, Stargate DAO ultimately chose LayerZero—not for the higher price, but for the promise of long-term integration. This reflects a new trend in the DeFi space: shifting from “one-off deals” to “growing together.”

What does on-chain data show?

The current price of STG is around $0.18, down 0.74% over 24 hours, but with a market cap of about $116.5 million. Most interestingly, trading volume has surged 174%—the community is digesting the news, with some bearish and some bullish sentiment, leading to clear market polarization.

Why is this deal significant?

1. Cross-chain ecosystem integration: LayerZero has always focused on cross-chain routing; by acquiring Stargate (a leading liquidity protocol), it now covers the entire stack from base-level communication to upper-layer applications

2. Game between centralization and decentralization: Some question whether this strengthens LayerZero’s monopoly in the cross-chain sector, while others see it as an inevitable trend of consolidation in DeFi

3. Valuation signal: Wormhole’s $120 million offer was rejected, showing that the market values not just price, but also strategic synergy and long-term value creation

What do you think? Is this a sign of DeFi maturing, or is the risk of centralization increasing? Let’s discuss in the comments.