Experts dispel the myth about Ethereum 3.0: the new upgrade does not threaten L2 solutions

Rumors have been circulating in the crypto community in recent days that the new Ethereum upgrade known as Beam Chain, or Ethereum 3.0, is allegedly threatening the existence of Layer 2 (Layer 2) solutions. However, this information is not only far from the truth, but also fails to include the key benefits the upgrade will bring. Blockchain researchers led by Colin Wu have broken down what Beam Chain is and how it affects the ecosystem. First of all, it is just an upgrade of Ethereum’s current consensus layer, Beacon Chain. It does not create a separate network or a new cryptocurrency. This step within the existing roadmap is aimed at improving Beacon Chain’s performance. The main purpose of the update is to improve the security and scalability of the network. One of the reasons for the upgrade was the need to address issues related to centralization in the blockchain building process. Today, companies such as Flashbots have significant influence over the order of transactions, which increases the amount of MEV (Maximum Extractable Value) extracted. Beam Chain introduces so-called “inclusion lists” – mandatory transactions that validators check before approving a block. This makes the process more resistant to censorship and tampering. The upgrade will also lower the minimum steak size from 32 ETH to 1 ETH, making participation in the network accessible to more users. Beam Chain will also add support for SNARK technologies, which will greatly simplify the block verification process and prepare the network to defend against quantum attacks. This enhancement will strengthen both the security and economic logic of the Ethereum network.

“Rumors that Beam Chain threatens Layer 2 solutions are unfounded. On the contrary, the upgrade supports Ethereum’s strategy of focusing on scalability with Layer 2. SNARK technologies will reduce the load on the core network, but will not replace the functions of this layer, such as traffic management and application maintenance,” experts said.

In addition, the proposed changes may even improve the performance of Layer 2. For example, the use of SNARK on the core network will enable the integration of alt-VMs. As a result, Layer 2 projects will not only be able to maintain their role, but also evolve to offer new features to the ecosystem.