The Compact Overview

The Compact is an ownerless ERC6909 contract that facilitates the voluntary formation and mediation of reusable resource locks. It enables tokens to be credibly committed for asynchronous conditions and claimed once those conditions are met.

Key Components

Resource locks

Resource locks are created when depositors place tokens (ERC20 or native) into The Compact. Each lock is represented by an ERC6909 token with four key properties:

• The underlying token
• The allocator (prevents double-spending)
• The scope (single-chain or multichain)
• The reset period (for forced withdrawals)

Compacts

A compact is a commitment created by a resource lock owner (sponsor) that allows tokens to be claimed under specified conditions. Compacts use EIP-712 typed structured data for signatures and can be:

• Single: One resource lock on one chain
• Batch: Multiple resource locks on one chain
• Multichain: Resource locks across multiple chains

Key actors

• Sponsors: Deposit tokens and create compacts
• Allocators: Prevent double-spending and validate transfers
• Arbiters: Verify conditions and process claims
• Claimants: Fulfill conditions and receive tokens
• Emissaries: Provide fallback signature verification

How It Works

1. Deposit: Sponsors deposit tokens to create resource locks (ERC6909 tokens)
2. Create Compact: Sponsors sign or register compacts specifying conditions
3. Fulfill: Claimants meet the specified conditions
4. Claim: Arbiters verify and process claims to transfer tokens

Trust Model

The Compact operates on a trust-minimized model where:

• Sponsors trust allocators won't censor valid requests (but can force withdraw if needed).
• Sponsors trust arbiters will only process valid claims.
• Claimants trust allocators will maintain lock integrity.
• Claimants trust arbiters will process valid claims.

The Compact V1 has undergone two independent security reviews by OpenZeppelin and Spearbit Cantina.

Deployments

The Compact is deployed at the same address across multiple chains:

The Compact uses deterministic deployment, ensuring the same address across supported networks.

The Compact uses a permissionless deployment process. Anyone can deploy the protocol to a new EVM chain by submitting a transaction with the same to and data arguments. This ensures the same deterministic address across all chains and enables the creation of compacts that commit resource locks across multiple chains.

Where to Go Next

• Review core mechanics in Resource Locks.
• Learn signing and payload formats in Compacts & EIP-712.
• See audits and repositories in Resources.