validators

According to Theblock, institutional payment giants Visa and Stripe, as well as Zodia Custody under Standard Chartered Bank, have become early validators of Tempo.It is reported that Tempo is an Ethereum-compatible Layer 1 built for high-throughput payments and stablecoin settlements. The project is incubated by Stripe and Paradigm and launched on a private testnet in September. At the same time, Tempo also launched a proxy payment protocol aimed at enabling transactions through software proxies.

According to The Block, Ethereum researchers are exploring the "Block-in-Blobs" proposal (EIP-8142), which plans to encode block execution load data into Blobs. Validators can verify data existence through Data Availability Sampling (DAS) without needing to download the complete dataset, reducing bandwidth pressure and improving scalability.In the zkEVM scenario, this proposal can also fill the gap where zero-knowledge proofs cannot guarantee data availability and aims to unify execution Gas and Blob data usage into a single "data Gas" system.In addition, Biconomy, in collaboration with the Ethereum Foundation, proposed ERC-8211, which supports executing multiple operations in sequence under a single signature to reduce failed transactions and optimize the DeFi interaction experience.

According to the official blog, Circle's institutional-grade blockchain Arc has released a phased upgrade roadmap for post-quantum cryptography (PQ), planning to introduce post-quantum signature schemes at the launch of the mainnet, gradually covering full-stack layers such as private state protection, infrastructure hardening, and validator authentication.The Arc mainnet will support post-quantum signatures from the outset, using an opt-in mechanism that does not require mandatory migration or a full network reset, allowing users to independently create wallets with long-term security. The recent goal is to extend quantum resistance to the private virtual machine (VM) layer, protecting private balances, private transactions, and private payees, with public keys additionally encapsulated in a symmetric encryption layer under privacy mode.The mid-term plan is to advance the upgrade of the infrastructure layer, aligning with industry standards such as TLS 1.3, covering access control, cloud environments, and hardware security modules (HSM). The long-term goal is to complete the hardening of validator signatures. Given that Arc's block finalization time is less than 1 second, the current assessment considers the risk of quantum attacks in this phase to be relatively limited, and it will be steadily advanced after the post-quantum consensus toolchain matures.Circle also warns that attackers may adopt a "collect now, decrypt later" strategy, and institutions should plan their cryptographic migration paths as early as possible.

According to Decrypt, as large investors such as enterprises and exchanges choose to stake Ethereum for yield rather than sell during market rebounds, the number of Ethereum validators entering the queue has surged to approximately 3.4 million ETH, marking one of the longest staking queue records since the network transitioned to PoS, with an expected wait time of about 60 days.This figure has significantly increased from around 900,000 ETH in early January, indicating that major market participants are opting to lock up supply for yield.Industry feedback shows that current demand is primarily driven by large enterprises and exchanges seeking to generate returns on idle crypto assets. Analysts suggest that the narrative surrounding Ethereum's potential in payment infrastructure and AI-related applications may also be fueling this demand.

According to CoinDesk, DoubleZero, a crypto infrastructure startup co-founded by former Solana Foundation executive Austin Federa, will launch the second phase of its delegation program on March 9, reallocating 2.4 million SOL from its 13 million SOL pool to reward validators operating in underrepresented regions such as São Paulo, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Tokyo.Each region will receive up to 600,000 SOL in additional delegated staking incentives, aimed at reducing the increasingly concentrated geographical distribution of Solana validators in Europe and introducing the "multicast" data transmission capabilities widely used in traditional finance.Federa stated that one of the unintended consequences of blockchain acceleration is that validators are more likely to co-locate, similar to how early high-frequency trading on Wall Street competed to place servers close to the New York Stock Exchange.

ValidatorQueue data shows that the Ethereum staking amount has surpassed 30% of the circulating supply, reaching 30.27%, marking a new milestone.Meanwhile, investors are still queuing in the validator queue to deposit $8 billion worth of pending staking tokens, also setting a historical high.

According to The Block, the number of daily active validators on Solana has fallen below 800, reaching levels not seen since 2021.This data represents a decline of over 65% from the peak of approximately 2,500 validators at the beginning of 2023. The volume of validator voting transactions has decreased from about 300,000 per day to 170,000, a drop of 40%. The main reason for the loss of validators is the change in economic incentives, including the gradual reduction of voting cost support provided by the Solana Foundation Delegation Program and the staking matching policy over time.Despite the contraction in the number of validators, non-voting transaction volumes, such as user-initiated DApp interactions and token transfers, remain stable at around 100,000,000 transactions per day.

Tezos implemented its latest protocol upgrade, Tallinn, last week, reducing the base layer block time to 6 seconds. This is the 20th major update for Tezos since its launch in 2018, completed without the need for a network fork.The Tallinn upgrade lowers block time, cuts storage costs, and reduces latency, thereby accelerating the network's final confirmation time. The upgrade allows all validators (known as bakers) to validate each block, rather than the previous subset validation model. This is achieved through BLS cryptographic signatures, aggregating hundreds of signatures into a single signature for each block, reducing the load on nodes.The upgrade also introduces an address indexing mechanism, removing redundant address data and improving storage efficiency by 100 times. A Tezos spokesperson stated that this upgrade demonstrates the trend of blockchain networks pursuing faster and higher throughput to handle more transactions per second and shorten settlement times, meeting the growing demand for use cases.

According to Cointelegraph, the Bank of Italy simulated an extreme scenario where the price of Ether drops to zero, to demonstrate how the market risks of Ethereum's native token could translate into infrastructure and financial stability risks.In a new research paper titled "What If the Price of Ethereum Drops to Zero? How Cryptocurrency Market Risks Evolve into Infrastructure Risks," the bank's economist Claudia Biancotti explores how extreme shocks to the price of Ethereum could impact the cryptocurrency market. She believes that a portion of validators may rationally exit to slow down block production, weakening Ethereum's ability to withstand certain attacks and ensure timely final settlement of transactions.

Solana Status has issued an urgent notice on the X platform, recommending all mainnet beta validators to use version v3.0.14. This version includes a series of critical patches applicable to both staked and unstaked nodes.

The Ethereum treasury company Bitmine has once again deposited 82,560 ETH into the Ethereum staking system, bringing its total staked ETH amount to 544,064, valued at approximately $1.62 billion at current prices.Due to Bitmine's recent acceleration in staking, the current Ethereum validator queue has increased to about 977,000 ETH, with new validators expected to wait nearly 17 days. The amount of ETH waiting to be withdrawn in the exit queue exceeds 113,000.Ethereum network data shows that over 35.5 million ETH have been staked at this stage, accounting for about 29% of the total supply, with an annualized staking yield close to 2.54%.

The Jito community has released proposal JIP-31, which suggests redistributing 100% of protocol revenue to BAM validators. The proposal states that this move will not only enhance the competitiveness of the Solana network but also attract more developers and users, further promoting the development of its ecosystem. Additionally, it can reduce harmful MEV and maximum extraction strategies on the network.

ChainCatcher message, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin posted on the X platform reminding that a key feature of blockchain is that even if it suffers a 51% attack, invalid blocks cannot be turned into valid blocks. This means that even if 51% of validators collude (or encounter software vulnerabilities), they cannot steal user assets.However, if the validator set is trusted to do other things that the blockchain may not be able to control, then 51% of the validators can collude and provide incorrect answers, leaving users with no recourse.

ChainCatcher news, the NEAR Foundation announced support for three proposed economic model upgrades put forward by the community, aimed at optimizing the token inflation structure, strengthening network decentralization, and incentivizing governance participation.The core content includes: 1: Inflation halving upgrade: The maximum annual inflation rate of NEAR will be reduced from 5% to 2.5% to build a more sustainable token economy. This upgrade will officially take effect if 80% of block validators support it. After the adjustment, with 50% of tokens staked, the annual staking reward will remain at approximately 4.75%. 2: HSP-002 Validator Support Program: A budget of 100,000 NEAR per year will be established to subsidize small validators, avoiding the centralization risk caused by inflation reduction. The top 100 validators with the smallest and most stable staking scale are eligible to receive an additional 150 NEAR each quarter. 3: HSP-003 veNEAR Holder Reward Program: To promote participation in House of Stake governance, a reward mechanism with a total budget of 280,682 NEAR for three months will be established, which is expected to provide an additional 4%-4.5% annual yield for veNEAR holders participating in governance.The NEAR Foundation stated that this proposal aims to ensure the long-term security and economic health of the network, promoting further expansion of NEAR in cross-chain liquidity and AI-driven on-chain economy. Currently, the House of Stake governance platform has launched on the mainnet, allowing NEAR holders to participate in voting and governance discussions.

ChainCatcher news, according to the official disclosure from BNB Chain, validators are proposing to reduce the minimum gas fee price for the BNB Smart Chain (BSC) from 0.1 Gwei to 0.05 Gwei, while accelerating the block interval from 750 milliseconds to 450 milliseconds to maintain competitiveness with the fastest blockchains in the cryptocurrency space.

ChainCatcher news, Nasdaq-listed Solana treasury company Sharps Technology announced a partnership with Jupiter to utilize Jupiter's staking infrastructure as part of its SOL treasury strategy. It is reported that Sharps Technology plans to natively stake a portion of its SOL directly to the validators on the Jupiter network and also plans to stake some assets on Jupiter's liquid staking token (LST) platform JupSOL to support the validation and economic security of the Solana network.

ChainCatcher message, staking service provider Kiln has initiated an orderly exit of all Ethereum validators following the SwissBorg-related Solana incident, expected to be completed in 10 to 42 days, with an additional 9 days required for withdrawals, as a precautionary measure to ensure asset safety.The Kiln team stated that rewards will still be earned during the exit period, and there are currently no signs of other financial losses. Some services are temporarily suspended, and infrastructure is being reinforced. A detailed report will be released afterward.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, as of July 26, the number of Ethereum validators in the exit queue has reached 744,000, hitting a historical high.It is reported that in the previous two weeks, the average daily exit rate was only about 1,000 validators. Analysts believe this situation may be due to liquidity shocks from the Aave lending platform, with approximately 167,000 ETH (worth over $630 million) withdrawn from the Aave lending pool, causing its wrapped ETH (wETH) lending annual interest rate to rise from about 3% to double digits. The increase in interest rates turned previously profitable staked ETH (stETH) leveraged trading strategies into losses, forcing traders to repay loans and seek native ETH.

ChainCatcher message, SOL Strategies released the June data update on platform X, disclosing that the company held 392,667 SOL and 26,440 jitoSOL as of June 30, and now has over 3.7 million SOL delegated to validators (an increase of 163,000 compared to May).