Four Crypto Projects Announce Shutdowns in Two Days, Including Zero Network

Zero Network, an Ethereum layer-2 project that pitched itself as gas-free, is shutting down. The closure adds to a string of crypto project wind-downs during the recent market slump.

Crypto news outlet The Block reported on May 22 that Zero Network, developed by Zerion, will cease operations about 18 months after launch.

The team wrote on X that it will wind down Zero Network and focus on Zerion’s API and wallet services instead.

Zero Network is an Ethereum-based layer-2 project launched in November 2024. At the time, the team described it as a “fully gasless EVM-compatible rollup” aimed at improving user experience and expanding mainstream adoption.

The team acknowledged that running an independent blockchain was not the best route to achieving that goal. It said it will now concentrate resources on its API and wallet businesses, where it already has an active user base.

The project said user assets are safe and advised users to bridge NFTs, ETH and other tokens to external networks by the end of July. New bridges into Zero Network have already been halted.

The market is also watching a growing list of crypto project shutdowns. According to The Block, Everclear, a cross-chain infrastructure project, also announced on May 22 that it would shut down its core UI, protocol, foundation and research operations.

A day earlier, Ethereum infrastructure firm Syndicate Labs and crypto card-game project Fantasy.top also announced service shutdowns.

That brings the number of crypto projects that have announced shutdowns over the past two days to at least four. Some cited the market downturn and deteriorating business sustainability as the main reasons.