Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin explained when L2 networks should move towards decentralization. In his opinion, there is no need to rush into it.
He believes that a rollup is only ready for decentralization when its proof system is sufficiently robust. The probability of failure should be lower than the risks associated with centralized governance, such as collusion or a security board error.
Until that point, decentralization may paradoxically reduce security by increasing reliance on a system whose reliability has not yet been fully proven.
Buterin's comments followed a discussion started by Loopring founder Daniel Wang, who noted the importance of code "maturity" and proposed a BattleTested metric for protocols that have proven their resilience to real-world load and attacks by managing significant assets ($100 million or more) for at least six months.
Kronos Research analyst Dominic John agreed that rollup teams need to carefully assess associated risks, such as general custodial weaknesses or geopolitical factors, before moving toward full decentralization.
CTOPureFi's Mike Tutin shares a similar view, noting the vulnerability of users if decentralization is done too early.
At the same time, Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman pointed out another problem: some well-known L2 solutions in the Ethereum ecosystem, in his opinion, remain fundamentally custodial.
He believes that control over key logic is in the hands of privileged structures, and relying on their incorruptibility is unreliable.
