Tenderly's Strategic Expansion as an Official Polygon RPC Provider and Its Implications for EVM Ecosystem Growth

Blockchain infrastructure has long been a silent force driving the maturation of decentralized ecosystems. In 2025, the partnership between Tenderly and Polygon exemplifies how robust RPC (Remote Procedure Call) services and developer tooling can catalyze adoption, reduce friction, and unlock new economic opportunities. By becoming an official Polygon public RPC provider, Tenderly has not only enhanced the scalability and reliability of the network but also positioned itself as a critical player in the broader EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) ecosystem. This analysis explores the strategic, technical, and economic dimensions of this collaboration and its implications for infrastructure-driven blockchain growth.

Infrastructure as a Catalyst for Developer Adoption

Tenderly's integration as a Polygon RPC provider marks a pivotal shift in how developers interact with the EVM-compatible chain. By offering enterprise-grade infrastructure-characterized by high availability, low-latency responses, and no rate limits for basic usage-Tenderly addresses a persistent pain point in blockchain development: unreliable or overburdened RPC endpoints. Developers now access a public Polygon RPC endpoint at tenderly.rpc.polygon.community, enabling seamless deployment of DeFi protocols, NFT marketplaces, and gaming applications.

This partnership aligns with Polygon's 2026 infrastructure roadmap, which emphasizes scalability and stability through upgrades like the Rio and AggLayer protocols according to Chainstack. Tenderly's role extends beyond mere RPC provision; it offers a full-stack development suite, including Virtual TestNets for isolated testing and a Transaction Simulator to preview on-chain outcomes before execution as reported by Tenderly. These tools reduce development cycles, mitigate risks, and lower the barrier to entry for new builders.

Developer Economics: Metrics and Momentum

The impact of Tenderly's infrastructure on developer economics is evident in Polygon's Q3 2025 performance. Daily active addresses on Polygon PoS surged by 10% quarter-over-quarter to 600,000, while daily transactions hit 3.8 million-a 12% increase. Payments-focused applications on the network facilitated $1.82 billion in transfer volume across 50+ platforms, a 49.2% rise compared to the prior quarter. These metrics underscore a growing reliance on Polygon's infrastructure for real-world use cases, from cross-border payments to tokenized assets.

Technical upgrades further bolster this trend. The Bhilai hard fork achieved 1,000 TPS and near-zero gas fees, while Heimdall v2 reduced block finality to five seconds, advancing scalability toward 5,000+ TPS. Such improvements, combined with Tenderly's tooling, create a flywheel effect: better infrastructure attracts more developers, who in turn build applications that drive user activity and economic value.

Economic Incentives and Ecosystem Growth

The Tenderly-Polygon collaboration has also prioritized economic incentives to sustain ecosystem growth. Polygon's Community Treasury plans to deploy 80 million POL by 2025 for liquidity incentives, token investments, and founder support, part of a 1 billion POL commitment over the next decade. Crossmint, a key grant allocator, has already distributed 568,000 POL to eight projects and an additional 170,000 POL to milestone-driven initiatives, focusing on onchain and agent-based applications.

These incentives are not merely financial; they signal a strategic alignment between infrastructure providers and developers. By integrating 25 new chains in 2025-bringing its total supported networks to over 100-Tenderly has positioned itself as a universal infrastructure layer. This diversification strengthens Polygon's position as a payments-focused chain, with strategic partnerships with Starbucks and Reddit amplifying its real-world utility.

Implications for EVM Ecosystem Growth

The broader EVM ecosystem stands to benefit from this collaboration. As blockchain infrastructure matures, specialized use cases-such as ZK rollups and Cosmos SDK chains-are gaining traction. Tenderly's support for these technologies reflects a shift toward modular, application-specific solutions, a trend that aligns with Polygon's AggLayer vision as detailed by Chainstack.

Moreover, the partnership highlights the importance of developer economics in sustaining long-term growth. Polygon's Q3 2025 TVL (Total Value Locked) increased by 3% to $1.36 billion, driven by DeFi protocols and oracle networks. This growth is not accidental but a result of deliberate infrastructure investments and economic incentives that reward innovation.

Conclusion: A Blueprint for Infrastructure-Driven Adoption

Tenderly's expansion as a Polygon RPC provider is more than a technical upgrade-it is a strategic move that redefines how infrastructure can drive blockchain adoption. By combining low-latency RPC services, developer tooling, and economic incentives, the collaboration creates a self-reinforcing cycle of growth. For investors, this signals a shift in focus from speculative assets to foundational infrastructure, a trend that is likely to accelerate in 2026.

As the EVM ecosystem evolves, projects that prioritize infrastructure-like Tenderly and Polygon-will play a defining role in bridging the gap between blockchain's potential and its practical applications. For those seeking long-term value, the lesson is clear: infrastructure is the bedrock of the next phase of blockchain innovation.