VeriMesh: a trust-adaptive multi-path relay framework for secure and resilient cross-chain interoperability

Blockchain interoperability remains a major challenge because heterogeneous blockchain networks cannot securely and efficiently exchange cross-chain data and transactions. Existing interoperability solutions often rely on central relays or trusted intermediaries, creating security vulnerabilities, limited fault tolerance, and a single point of failure. To address these limitations, this paper proposes VeriMesh, a decentralised mesh-based interoperability framework that combines trust-adaptive routing, multi-path relay verification, and Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP)-based validation for secure cross-chain communication. VeriMesh models relay nodes as a trust-weighted graph in which routing decisions dynamically adapt based on node behaviour and delivery reliability. Multi-path routing improves resilience against adversarial relay nodes, while transport-layer ZKP verification enables privacy-preserving validation without exposing sensitive information. The framework was implemented using Python relay nodes, Solidity smart contracts, and an Ethereum (Ganache) environment. Experimental evaluation using structured event-driven workloads demonstrated stable latency below 34 ms and delivery success rates above 85% up to 40% malicious node presence. Comparative evaluation against single-path and random multi-path relay baselines showed improved fault tolerance and routing reliability. The results demonstrate favourable scalability and robustness within the evaluated network range ( N = 10–30), while larger-scale evaluation remains future work. All experiments were conducted in a controlled local Ganache blockchain environment rather than on a public Ethereum testnet or mainnet, so the reported latency, gas, and delivery figures characterise protocol-layer behaviour under controlled conditions and should not yet be interpreted as representative of performance under public-network conditions such as real gas markets, block propagation delays, or network congestion.