Polygon Labs CEO sees Layer 3 like the new Degen Chain as a risk to Ethereum.
Marc Boiron, CEO of Polygon, emphasized that Layer 2 networks are not considering developing Layer 3 protocols due to the potential risks to Ethereum security.
Boiron made this statement buoyed by the early success of Degen Chain, a layer 3 network running on Coinbase-backed scaling solution Base.
Layer 3 protocols build on top of Layer 2 infrastructure to improve scalability, allowing developers to tailor application-specific blockchains to their needs.
degen chain
Degen Chain is a layer 3 network built using Arbitrum Orbit for DEGEN tokens. The digital asset has quickly emerged as a key community token among users of Farcaster, a rapidly expanding web3 social media platform.
Since its launch on March 28, the network has attracted significant interest and trading activity within the cryptocurrency industry, with an impressive rise of over 200% in the past week.
According to available data, the network has facilitated over $30 million worth of connections along with power supply. 3.5 million transactions As of March 30th.
Community Discussion Layer-3
Degen Chain’s early success has sparked controversy from the cryptocurrency community, which has differing views on the network.
In a March 31 post on
According to him, such a trajectory is inconsistent with Polygon’s commitment to scaling Ethereum, which the company is already addressing with its Proof-of-Stake (PoS) and Zero-Knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM) chains.
Boiron also pointed out potential side effects of Layer 3 adoption, highlighting minimal performance gains and looming threats to Ethereum security. He said:
“If all L3s settle on one L2, Ethereum essentially gains no value, putting Ethereum security at risk.”
He added:
“If Ethereum earns no fees at all and there is no possibility of earning fees other than a small fee on this L2, then the value of ETH will fall and it will continue to fall because it has no economic effect. In the future, validators will no longer hold ETH. “There will be no desire to protect the network anymore.”
Meanwhile, blockchain expert Cygaar explained Layer 2 networks are not yet “mature” due to existing issues such as network centralization, upgradeable bridge contracts, and development of proof systems, and have not yet inherited Ethereum’s level of security.
As a result, he argued that integrating Layer 3 networks on top of Layer 2 networks could exacerbate risks and compromise the security of these blockchain networks.
