Interoperability is the ability of separate blockchain, ledger, or payment systems to exchange information, assets, or transaction state in a coordinated and reliable way.
Interoperability mechanisms include bridges, messaging protocols, shared verification systems, atomic-swap designs, common standards, and institutional gateways. The systems remain separate, so interoperability requires a method for one system to trust or verify information about another. Different designs make different trade-offs among security, speed, generality, governance, and operational complexity.
Interoperability connects distinct systems. It does not require those systems to merge into a single ledger or share the same consensus mechanism.
Stablecoins often exist across several networks, making interoperability central to liquidity movement, cross-chain payments, and the treatment of represented claims.
A cross-chain messaging protocol can verify that stablecoins were locked on one network before allowing a corresponding representation to be released on another.