Crypto glossary
Rollup-as-a-service (RaaS)
Rollup-as-a-service providers let projects launch and operate their own layer 2 or layer 3 chain on existing stacks without building the infrastructure.
Rollup-as-a-service (RaaS) works like cloud hosting for blockchains. A project picks a framework such as the OP Stack, Arbitrum Orbit, a zkEVM stack or a Cosmos-based rollup kit, chooses where to post data and settle, and the provider deploys and runs the sequencer, nodes, bridge contracts, block explorer and monitoring. Companies such as Conduit, Caldera, Gelato and AltLayer operate in this market.
RaaS explains why the number of L2s and L3s grew so quickly after 2023. Games, exchanges, wallets and consumer apps that want custom fees, their own token for gas or dedicated throughput can have a chain running in weeks instead of hiring a protocol team. Several well-known rollups are operated by a RaaS provider rather than by the brand behind them.
Outsourcing the chain also outsources key risks. The provider often controls the sequencer and upgrade keys, so its security and uptime become the project's. Many RaaS chains launch at stage 0, with few users and fragmented liquidity, and a chain is not useful just because it was cheap to start.
Example
A gaming studio contracts a RaaS provider to launch an Arbitrum Orbit chain that uses its own token for gas, with the provider running the sequencer and bridge.