Vitalik Buterin, one of Ethereum’s co-founders, has recently presented a series of solutions aimed at fortifying the decentralization of staking pools and protocols. In addition, he has put forth strategies to enhance the security of these protocols in the face of potential attacks.
These recommendations directly tackle the existing challenges associated with the staking process. Buterin specifically addresses concerns about the centralization risk posed by node operators and the strain on the consensus layer.
According to Buterin, the current selection process for node operators within various staking pools suffers from decentralization issues. Additionally, the Layer 1 (L1) consensus mechanism experiences inefficiencies in authorizing transactions.
To address these challenges, Buterin proposes the adoption of a two-tier staking system, similar to the models employed by projects like Rocketpool and Lido. This system introduces two essential roles: Node Operators and Delegators.
Node operators would serve as validators, running nodes to create new blocks and committing a specific amount of ETH to the staking pool.
On the other hand, Delegators would become pool members, staking their assets with their chosen node operators. In this setup, Delegators gain the autonomy to select their preferred node operators.
In addition to mitigating centralization concerns, the proposed two-tier system offers the promise of enhancing security within staking pools. It erects a formidable barrier against potential attackers by allowing Delegators to have a say in the selection of node operators.
Those aspiring to become node operators without the support of Delegators would be required to commit a substantial portion of their ETH, potentially up to 1/3 of the total staking, which could amount to more than 2.08 million ETH. Consequently, any attempt at hacking would come at a significant cost for the attacker.
Buterin emphasizes that implementing these recommendations could alleviate the issues affecting the Ethereum Layer 1 staking protocol. It empowers stakers to choose their preferred nodes, contributing to a more decentralized and consensus-driven system.
Moreover, the proposed model significantly reduces the number of required signatures from 800,000 to 10,000, which would encourage a surge in node validators.