Paymasters

Paymasters are a new type of specialized account within the ZKsync ecosystem. These accounts are designed to subsidize transaction fees for other accounts, enabling greater flexibility and enhanced user experience. Paymasters allow fees to be paid using ERC-20 tokens other than ETH, which makes them particularly well-suited for use with Sophon.

​

Benefits of Paymasters

The implementation of Paymasters significantly improves the user experience by offering various ways to subsidize or customize transaction fee payments. Some examples include:

• Protocol Sponsorship: A protocol can sponsor transaction fees for all of its users, incentivizing adoption and usage of the protocol.
• Transaction Limits: Limits can be set for specific users. For example, the top five users can receive 1,000 free transactions each, encouraging engagement and usage.
• NFT-Based Fee Waivers: An NFT can be created that allows holders to bypass paying transaction fees, adding value to the NFT while providing users with benefits.
• Alternative Gas Payments: Users can pay gas fees with an ERC-20 token other than SOPH, allowing for value accrual and expanding the range of token options for gas payment.

​

Conclusion

Paymasters enable a flexible and user-friendly way to handle transaction fees within the ZKsync ecosystem. By allowing various payment models, they open up new possibilities for developers and users, making the ecosystem more accessible and appealing.