The strike structure of Ethereum (ETH) is under fire after strong criticism from the crypto sector. A CEO of Galaxy Digital publicly questioned: is a network with such long waiting times suitable as a financial backbone of the future? In the meantime, founder Vitalik Buterin is also involved in the debate.
Ethereum strike under fire
There is severe criticism from Michael Marcantonio, head of Decentralized Finance (Defi) at investment company Galaxy Digital. He wondered at X if a blockchain that needs 45 days to release assets is suitable for global adoption. He compared Ethereum with Solana (SOL), where the Unstakes only lasts two days. Not much later he deleted his messages, reportedly under pressure from his employer.
The cause of this situation lies with how Ethereum works. The network uses proof-of-stake as a security system. That means that participants secure their Ethereum to help secure the network. These participants are called Validators. They check transactions and add new blocks to the blockchain. In exchange, they receive a reward in ETH. Activating a new validator can take some time, and the busier the network is, the longer that waiting time.
Buterin: “Friction at Unstaken is part of it”
Buterin responded fiercely. According to him, a strike is not a non -binding investment, but a serious responsibility for the network. Validators help Ethereum to keep safe, and that is why there should be friction in the process to stop.
He acknowledges that the current design of the strike queue is not ideal, but warns that a simple shortening of the exit time can affect the reliability of the network. According to Buterin, a solution must therefore be sought that shortens waiting times, without making concessions to safety.
Ethereum now has more than a million active validators. According to Data from Validatorqueuee, there is almost 2.5 million ETH in the queue to be released. The exit waiting time remains exceptionally high, with an average of more than 43 days. On the intake side, more than 434,000 ETH awaits activation as a validator, with a considerably shorter waiting time of about 7.5 days.
Ethereum gets hidden
Recently, Ethereum has repeatedly struggled with considerable congestions. In July the Unstoppaverkrij was already rising considerably. Validators then had to wait an average of eight to nine days to stop. At the peak there was about $ 1.9 billion in ETH in the queue. At the beginning of this month, on the contrary, crowds were created on the inflow side. Then 860,369 ETH, worth around 3.7 billion dollars, were ready to be staked.
Source: https://newsbit.nl/vitalik-buterin-slaat-terug-kritiek-op-ethereums-staking-queue-is-misplaatst/
