Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has revealed that he does not stake all of his Ether (ETH) due to the complexities of multisignature wallets. On the Bankless podcast episode aired on June 29, Buterin explained that staking ETH requires the keys to be public on an online subsystem, typically in the form of a multisig wallet. However, setting up multisig wallets for staking is still challenging and can be complicated in various ways, leading Buterin to stake only a small fraction of his ETH.
This revelation prompted a response from Charles Hoskinson, the co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Cardano. Hoskinson expressed surprise on Twitter and stated that he staked “all” of his Cardano (ADA) holdings.
Buterin also discussed the EigenLayer protocol, which allows Ethereum validators and stakers to restake their assets on other emerging networks. Although still in the testnet phase and expected to launch in the third quarter of 2023, Buterin pointed out the centralization risks associated with the protocol. He explained that the system would value trustworthy stakers more than untrustworthy ones, making them less likely to face penalties.
Sreeram Kaanan, the founder of EigenLayer, emphasized the importance of taking a constrained approach when building restaking solutions to mitigate complex risks and ensure ecosystem benefits.
This discussion follows Buterin’s previous statements in a June 9 blog post, where he highlighted the need for sufficient scaling infrastructure on the Ethereum blockchain to enable cheap transactions. He also pointed out challenges related to smart contract wallets, particularly in terms of user experience and managing multiple addresses simultaneously.
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