Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin explains that a 45-day lock-up period for unstaking is essential for Ethereum's protective measures.
In the world of cryptocurrency, the debate over Ethereum's unstaking process has taken centre stage, with the latest round of discussions ignited by comments from Galaxy Digital.
Michael Marcantonio, a representative from Galaxy Digital, criticised Ethereum's unstaking process, sparking a backlash from the X crypto community. Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum's co-founder, has not directly responded to the backlash.
The controversy stems from the lengthy waiting period for unstaking on Ethereum. With an exit queue of 2.5 million ETH, users are currently facing an estimated waiting time of approximately 43 days and 6 hours. This issue has been a topic of ongoing debate, with some, like Robert Sagurton, expressing concern that waiting 45 days for a withdrawal is too long.
Buterin, in a response to concerns, likened staking to a soldier leaving the army, suggesting some friction is necessary. He also compared staking to taking on a solemn duty to defend the chain. These comments followed an ongoing debate within the crypto community over Ethereum's long waiting time for unstaking.
The controversy deepened when Gabriel Shapiro, a well-known figure in the crypto industry, claimed that Galaxy Digital pressured its head of DeFi to delete posts attacking the network. The person representing the company who called for the deletion of the DeFi leader's Twitter posts attacking the Ethereum network is not explicitly named in the available search results.
Anthony Sassano, another industry expert, advised against working with Galaxy Digital, stressing that deleting tweets did not change the fact that its DeFi lead misunderstood the industry and spread Ethereum FUD. Jimmy Ragosa, a former Consensys product manager, suggested that Galaxy Digital's partners might reconsider their business ties due to the wave of criticism.
Despite the controversy, it's worth noting that more than 1 million active validators are participating in the Ethereum network, and a total of 35.6 million ETH has been staked, accounting for nearly 30% of the entire token supply. Data from the validatorqueue website shows Ethereum's current exit queue.
Meanwhile, the metric for Ethereum's unstaked ETH reached a two-year peak last week, highlighting the ongoing interest in the platform despite the controversy. Mike Dudas, another representative from Galaxy Digital, defended the firm, noting that while some stakeholders might distance themselves, the firm had already shown its ability to create value with Solana.
As the debate continues, it remains to be seen how Ethereum and its community will navigate this period of criticism and what changes, if any, will be made to the unstaking process.
