Stephane Gosselin & Vasiliy Shapovalov: MEV-Boost – Preparing for the Merge

Flashbots has pioneered the work around MEV which has become one of the most important topics in crypto today. MEV-Boost is an implementation of proposer-builder separation (PBS) built by Flashbots for proof of stake Ethereum. Validators running MEV-Boost maximize their staking reward by selling their blockspace to an open market while protecting Ethereum decentralization. It is estimated that validators running MEV-Boost can increase their staking rewards by over 60%. MEV-Boost is free, open-source, and neutral software.

Lido has become the leading liquid staking solution on Ethereum with a huge amount of stake and has also taken on a key role in shaping the future of staking on Ethereum.

We were joined by Stephane Gosselin, co-founder of Flashbots, to chat about MEV and the importance of MEV-Boost, how it works and it's impact on Ethereum. Also joining the chat is Vasiliy Shapovalov, Tech Lead at Lido, to share with us the significant impact MEV-Boost will have on Lido.

Topics covered in this episode:

Stephane and Vasily introductionsWhat is MEV and why is it important?MEV supply chain and the centralization risks with itThe significance of MEV for LidoLido MEV policy for node operatorsThe economics around MEV-BoostFlashbot Protect - will this still exist in MEV-Boost?Beyond Ethereum - what are the solution for cross-chain MEVThe impact of L2s and rollups on MEV and MEV-BoostTimelines as we approach The Merge

Episode links:

FlashbotsLidoMEV-Boost in a nutshellWhy your blockchain needs an MEV solution - HasuStephane on TwitterVasily on Twitter

This episode is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain & Felix Lutsch. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/455