Wormhole Foundation Counters Layerzero’s Stargate Acquisition Bid

On Wednesday, the Wormhole Foundation announced its intent to submit a competing bid to acquire Stargate, directly challenging a proposal from cross-chain messaging rival Layerzero. This move potentially disrupts a pending acquisition and could lead to a bidding war for the prominent bridge protocol.

Rival Bid Emerges for Cross-Chain Protocol Stargate

Wormhole stated that Stargate’s holders “deserve a more competitive process” to ensure an appropriate valuation. It declared it is prepared to submit a “meaningfully higher bid” than Layerzero’s existing offer, which it contends significantly undervalues Stargate’s substantial treasury, ongoing revenues, and future economic potential. The foundation has requested a five-business-day suspension of the current Snapshot vote on the Layerzero deal to finalize its offer.

Layerzero‘s proposal, now undergoing a seven-day community vote, involves swapping all STG tokens for its ZRO tokens at a fixed rate. Valued at approximately $110 million when announced, the deal would dissolve the Stargate DAO and direct all future protocol revenue to buying back ZRO. The offer requires a 70% approval threshold from voters.

The Wormhole Foundation argues Layerzero’s offer is not compelling, noting Stargate’s treasury alone holds roughly $92 million in stablecoins and ether, excluding its STG tokens. It claims the deal hands over all assets and future revenue for a low token-based consideration.

Acquiring Stargate would combine its deep liquidity with Wormhole’s extensive cross-chain integrations, creating a “single, market-dominant ecosystem,” according to the foundation. To proceed, Wormhole has requested detailed financial and operational information from the Stargate Foundation, including a full asset accounting and any outstanding liabilities.

Voting on the Layerzero acquisition proposal is scheduled to conclude on Aug. 24, 2025. The Stargate community must now weigh the immediate terms of Layerzero’s offer against the possibility of a superior bid from Wormhole.