Bitcoin faces a pivotal period that echoes the past block size wars, according to Bitcoin Core contributor Matt Corallo. In a recent blog post, Corallo examines the ongoing struggles within the Bitcoin community that could determine the future of the pioneering cryptocurrency. From Freedom to Fragmentation In his latest blog post, Matt Corallo outlines the […]
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Bitcoin Technical Analysis: Bulls Challenge Upper Resistance
Bitcoin’s price movement on May 6, 2024, showcases a complex dance of volatility and potential, captured vividly across various time frames and technical indicators. With an intraday range swinging from ,657 to ,489, traders grapple with a trading landscape rife with both uncertainty and opportunity. As oscillators mostly suggest neutrality with glimpses of buying strength, […]
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Bitcoin Technical Analysis: BTC Bulls Challenge Upper Resistance Amid Bearish Pressure
As of May 3, 2024, bitcoin’s price stands at ,142, with a 24-hour intraday range of ,789 to ,000. The leading cryptocurrency maintains a market capitalization of .15 trillion and has recorded a trading volume of .43 billion over the same period. Bitcoin Bitcoin’s daily chart analysis reveals a consistent bearish trend with BTC’s price […]
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Court Dismisses Custodia Bank’s Challenge Against Federal Reserve
In a significant ruling, a federal judge has dismissed Custodia Bank Inc.’s claim for entitlement to a Federal Reserve master account, marking a setback for the Wyoming-based depository institution. Custodia Bank argued that the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC) was legally obliged to grant its application for a master account, a critical financial […]
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Coinbase Files Legal Challenge Against SEC for Crypto Regulation Clarity
In a significant legal confrontation, Coinbase has filed a challenge against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the Third Circuit, contesting the SEC’s refusal to establish clear rulemaking for digital assets. San Francisco Crypto Exchange Coinbase Initiates Legal Action Against SEC’s Crypto Regulation Approach Coinbase’s legal action underscores the ongoing tension between the […]
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Riot and Texas Blockchain Council Challenge US Government’s Bitcoin Mining Data Request in Court
The publicly listed mining firm Riot Platforms and the Texas Blockchain Council have initiated legal proceedings against the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and other federal entities, aiming to obstruct what they deem an unauthorized data collection effort targeting the bitcoin mining industry. The legal battle underscores the escalating tension between bitcoin mining operations and […]
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Pro-Crypto Lawyer John Deaton Enters Senate Race to Challenge Elizabeth Warren
Cryptocurrency advocate John Deaton has formally announced his candidacy for the Senate in Massachusetts, setting his sights on unseating the current Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren from her position. “I’m excited for the opportunity to fight for change, and for the people of Massachusetts in the United States Senate,” Deaton wrote on Tuesday. Deaton vs. Warren: […]
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Binance’s Derivatives Arm Launches Tesla Model Y and Bitcoin Voucher Challenge
Binance has announced a competition through its crypto derivatives arm, Binance Futures, offering participants the chance to win a Tesla Model Y. According to the crypto exchange, the contest will unfold over four weekly challenges spanning from Feb. 18 to Mar. 17, 2024. Binance Futures Unveils Tesla Model Y Challenge and Daily Crypto Rewards Beginning […]
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Distributed Validator Technology More Primed to Overcome the Ethereum Validator Overload Challenge – Alon Muroch
While the Ethereum network’s migration to a proof of stake (PoS) consensus mechanism has seen the protocol become less energy-intensive, Alon Muroch, the founder of the SSV Network core team, said if the number of validators is not contained this can lead to a network overload.
The Promise Offered by Distributed Validator Technology
Muroch said many stakeholders including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin are already working on potential solutions which can stop the network from becoming overloaded. As the data from Staking Rewards has shown, the Ethereum network is on course to see a 100% staking of ether by December 2024. If this happens, the network runs the risk of not having any ETH left for transaction purposes, the founder of the SSV Network core team argued.
While the idea of capping the number of validators is seen as a more practical solution, Muroch said he believes Distributed Validator Technology (DVT) to be the ideal solution to the problem. He argued that besides helping to remove single points of failure, DVT increases client diversity and overall reduces systemic risk.
In his written answers sent to Bitcoin.com News, Muroch urged the staking community to make DVT the “gold standard” for staking infrastructure.” When this is widely adopted, DVT not only helps to reduce the systemic risk on Ethereum but also enables more robust staking services. Below are Muroch’s answers to all the questions sent.
Bitcoin.com News (BCN): According to Staking Rewards, there are more than 894,000 validators on the Ethereum network, and the number is expected to go up soon. Though it helps with decentralization, do you believe that the sheer number of validator nodes puts great strain on the network?
Alon Muroch (AM): The growing number of validators on the Ethereum network is a concern that’s being actively discussed amongst core devs/communities and projects like SSV Network. In a recent discussion thread, Vitalik [Buterin] addressed some ways to mitigate this issue, one of the solutions is to use DVT.
DVT can enable “grouping” many validators under a single cluster, in a distributed way, reducing the load on the beacon chain.
BCN: Validator weaknesses, especially the key management and downtime risks, are not fully understood by the ETH community. Can you share a few details of what you with our readers?
AM: Running validators at scale is a complicated task, especially in a competitive market like ethereum. In recent weeks, several compromised operators and client developers affected Ethereum’s performance, which could have been avoided with a fault-tolerant protocol like DVT.
BCN: What is Distributed Validator Technology and how does it work?
AM: Distributed-Validator-Tech (DVT) is a protocol that enables the distributed operations of an ethereum validator between independent operators. SSV built a whole DVT network which enables anyone to run a distributed validator in seconds, and for developers to build entire applications.
DVT was initially designed, by the Ethereum Foundation, as a way to distribute ethereum and make it more robust. It helps with removing single points of failure, increasing client diversity and overall reducing systemic risk.
DVT uses a consensus protocol and threshold signatures as its core components (alongside P2P publish/subscribe networking). No single operator within a DVT cluster can compromise the validator.
BCN: With the growing number of Ethereum validators, how does SSV Network’s ETH staking infrastructure ensure seamless utilization of DVT at scale?
AM: DVT at scale is a hard challenge that we’ve been working on for 3 years. It requires a lot of design work, optimization and developer tooling. SSV is built as a network so every tool/ optimization/ research can easily propagate to the entire network.
SSV Just launched to fully permissionless mainnet and already manages 70K ETH stake with better than benchmark performance. We expect the DVT market share to be 10-20X what it is today.
BCN: Just like other protocols, your network claims to be an open-source, decentralized, and permissionless network. While a decentralized platform is always better for Web3, you are also aware that a lot of the decentralized projects have an element of centralization at their core. How do you assure developers and stakers that SSV Network is what you say it is?
AM: From inception, SSV set as a goal the independence of its DAO. That means the DAO has an independent ability to control and progress the protocol. Regardless of any specific team/ person.
To that end, grants are granted to different teams to develop different components of the protocol. The DAO controls the protocol contracts and any updates to them. All of that means that token holders vote to decide how SSV will look in the future.
BCN: Given the benefits of DVT, in your view, what initiatives should the staking industry take or encourage to make DVT as accessible and easy to use as possible for developers?
AM: I believe the staking community needs to adopt DVT as the gold standard for staking infrastructure and make sure we move from a single point of failure setup (the current tech stack most use) to a distributed validator future.
It will reduce the systemic risk on Ethereum and make better and more robust staking services. DVT is to staking what L2s are for transaction processing, a decentralized alternative, which is superior.
What are your thoughts about this interview? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Lavrov Highlights 30 Nations’ Interest in BRICS as China-Saudi Pact Poses Challenge to US Dollar
In a recent statement by Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Affairs Minister, he noted that the BRICS bloc is set to expand in 2024 with new members including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iran, and Saudi Arabia. He revealed that approximately “30 countries would like to establish partner ties with BRICS.” Additionally, as November drew to a close, China and Saudi Arabia forged a currency swap agreement valued at 50 billion yuan (.93 billion), which some interpret as Xi Jinping’s move to contest the supremacy of the U.S. dollar.
Lavrov: ‘30 Nations Aspire to Collaborate With BRICS’
This year, the BRICS bloc, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, garnered significant attention as an intergovernmental organization. During the 15th BRICS summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, the world observed as the alliance extended invitations to join the bloc to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Iran.
According to Russia’s TASS news agency, Lavrov announced on Tuesday that beyond integrating these new members next year, about 30 nation-states are interested in establishing partnerships with BRICS.
“In addition to the countries that have already joined our union, as of today, about 30 countries would like to establish partner ties with BRICS,” Lavrov stated. “We will continue to work on BRICS bolstering its positions as one of the pillars of a multipolar world.” The Foreign Affairs Minister added:
The theme of our watch in BRICS will be ‘Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security.’ Over 10 Russian cities will host more than 200 economic, political, and public events. It all will culminate with the BRICS summit in Kazan next October.
Telegraph Reporter Says China-Saudi Deal ‘Threatens to Topple American Hegemony’
Beyond Lavrov’s remarks, Melissa Lawford of The Telegraph posited in an editorial that Xi Jinping’s recent 50 billion yuan currency swap deal “threatens to topple American hegemony.” The agreement, designed to endure for three years with a possible extension through mutual concurrence, “will help strengthen financial cooperation… expand the use of local currencies… and promote trade and investment,” as per the People’s Bank of China’s declaration.
Lawford’s editorial suggests that “President Xi has ambitions to challenge the global dominance of the dollar.” She further reports that “BRICS members have been discussing how to make a common currency that can be used in emerging markets.”
Russia’s Lavrov specified that through BRICS partnerships, the bloc intends to enhance initiatives such as the BRICS Plus and Outreach platforms. These efforts are designed to widen the sway and collaboration of BRICS nations with other countries and areas, as well as to establish trade agreements, including currency swaps.
What do you think about Lavrov’s statements and The Telegraph editorial about the China-Saudi Arabia currency swap deal? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.