Filecoin team launches smart contracts on the project’s mainnet

Filecoin developers activated the update that enables users to deploy smart contracts on the project’s mainnet. The platform gained compatibility with EVM, allowing applications from the Ethereum ecosystem to run on the blockchain.

? Today, the Filecoin community is proud to announce the successful launch of the #FVM! As of 3.14PM UTC, the Filecoin blockchain now supports smart contracts & user programmability, unlocking the enormous potential of an open data economy. Learn more: https://t.co/m2vWwkq7uA pic.twitter.com/RfeYFYGNA9

— Filecoin (@Filecoin) March 14, 2023

Execution of smart contracts became possible thanks to the deployment of the Filecoin Virtual Machine (FVM) computing environment. According to the developers, the integration with FVM has already been reported by a number of projects and companies, including SushiSwap and Ankr.

“Launching FVM strengthens Filecoin’s position as a first‑level blockchain, unquestionably suitable for building an open data economy. […] FVM not only brings closer the advent of a more resilient, accessible and decentralised cloud, but also opens opportunities for ownership and reward for individual contributions to the data economy in ways previously unimaginable for thousands of developers, service providers, entrepreneurs and other participants in the network,” the statement said.

FVM is compatible with EVM, which allows applications from the Ethereum ecosystem to run on the blockchain. It is reported that in the future the platform will gain the ability to interact with other virtual machines as well.

Developers noted that with the new computing environment, Filecoin enables running external decentralized protocols, including lending and liquid staking.

FVM also opened access to perpetual data storage on the blockchain — previously the relevant deals had to be renewed every one and a half years.

Earlier in January 2023, the Filecoin Foundation announced plans to test IPFS connectivity in space.