Wall Street’s private blockchain obsession is a ‘race to the bottom,’ Ethereum advocate Raman warns
Centrally controlled, permission-only networks have a role to play in finance, but need a transparent, open base to reap the benefits blockchain technology offers.
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Summary
- The resurgence of private, permissioned “consortium chains” risks recreating siloed systems that undermine the interoperability and liquidity blockchain technology was meant to enable, Etherealize CEO Raman says.
- Etherealize, backed by Vitalik Buterin and the Ethereum Foundation, is pitching Ethereum’s open mainnet as the neutral base to which institutions can add permissioned and privacy-preserving features at higher layers.
- The rapid uptake of gated networks by major firms contrasts with new Ethereum-based products from firms like BlackRock, sharpening a debate over whether institutional adoption will favor open, public chains or curated systems controlled by corporate sponsors.
