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More than 30 Ethereum projects have collaborated to launch MEV Blocker RPC, a tool designed to protect users from various types of Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) attacks, including front-running and sandwich attacks.
The initiative brings together prominent names in the industry, such as CoW Swap, Beaver Build, Agnostic Relayer, EigenPhi, Builder0x69, ZeroMEV, Balancer, Gelato, Gnosis DAO, bloXroute, 1inch, Safe, Paraswap, and more.
Remote procedure call (RPC) services normally connect users to nodes that power a blockchain. But this MEV Blocker also offers the additional feature of protecting users from MEV.
The collaborative effort aims to address the growing problem of MEV in the Ethereum ecosystem, which puts users at risk of receiving unfavorable prices on trades, NFT purchases, ENS name registrations, and liquidity provisions due to MEV bot hijacking. Simply put, MEV creates more difficult economic conditions for on-chain users.
MEV Blocker was jointly developed by decentralized exchange CoW Swap and two other firms operating in the MEV niche: Agnostic Relay and Beaver Build.
“At CoW Swap it’s our mission to put the user first, while CoW Swap offers the best protection for any on-chain swaps, there are also other transactions that suffer from MEV attacks. With MEVblocker we are offering a solution for everyone,” said Anna George, CEO of CoW Protocol.
How does it work?
To better understand how MEV-Block works, it is important to define the exact nature of MEV.
MEV refers to the maximum potential value that can be extracted from a blockchain transaction, including arbitrage and front-running of user transactions. Usually, block builders on Ethereum capture the profits from MEV by determining the order of transactions and relaying it to Ethereum validators.
Searchers, a separate class of participants, support block builders in identifying opportunities for MEV from transactions. Together, these two groups create an order flow for transactions in bundles, which is then passed to validators using software called MEV-Boost to settle on the blockchain.
MEV Blocker RPC routes user transactions to a network of “searchers” instead of the public memory pool. These searchers bid for the right to backrun transactions while shielding users from front-running and sandwich attacks. The searchers create a backrun bundle, which is then merged with the original signature by the RPC and relayed to block builders and validators for execution on the network.
The tool submits bundles to all major block builders, such as Builder0x69, bloXroute, Blocknative, Flashbots, rsync builder, and Beaver Build. It provides searchers with a steady payment over time by offering access to a larger order flow.
MEV Blocker RPC returns at least 90% of the profits from winning bids to users and allocates 10% to validators as a reward. As a result, users are protected from malicious MEV attacks and may also profit from the arbitrage opportunities their transactions create – an advantage previously reserved for advanced Ethereum users.
MEV Blocker RPC is set to compete with existing RPC tools like Infura, Ankr, and Alchemy, as well as the in-development Flashbots’ MEV share, which also aims to protect users from MEV and share revenue with them.
© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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MicroStrategy acquired an additional 1,045 bitcoin worth around $29.3 million, it revealed on Wednesday.
MicroStrategy shares have risen 105% year-to-date, while bitcoin is up over 72%. Shares in the firm are viewed by some as a proxy for investing in bitcoin due to its large exposure to the digital asset. MicroStrategy was up 1.3% in pre-market, trading around $303.
Founder and CEO Michael Saylor shared on Twitter that his firm acquired the new bitcoin at an average price of $28,016. The purchases were made between March 24 and April 4 while the crypto market was digesting further regulatory unease as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) brought a case against Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao.
Today’s purchase comes hot on the heels of last week’s $150 million buy when the firm also cleared its loan with Silvergate. MicroStrategy and its subsidiaries now hold approximately 140,000 bitcoins — with an aggregate purchase price of approximately $4.17 billion, according to an 8-K filing with the SEC.

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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BNB Chain is set to undergo a hard fork upgrade called Planck at block height 27,281,024 — currently slated for April 12. This upgrade will introduce enhanced security and improved stability to the network, the core team said.
The hard fork is designed to implement security enhancements proposed in BEP-171. This proposal aims to strengthen the cross-chain bridge between the two blockchains that form part of the BNB Chain network — namely, the Beacon Chain and Smart Chain. Through the upgrade, BNB Chain hopes to improve its blockchain network’s security, efficiency, and interoperability.
In late 2022, BNB Chain fell victim to a major hack — which was traced back to a flaw in the IAVL proof verification mechanism. This security mechanism safeguards the cross-chain bridge, allowing users to transfer assets between BNB Smart Chain, BNB Beacon Chain and other networks.
The upcoming Planck upgrade will involve a migration from the vulnerable IAVL proof verification to the more-secure bridge security mechanism, called ICS23 specification. Additionally, the upgrade will introduce a timer-lock mechanism for large cross-chain fund transfers, as well as the automatic pausing of cross-chain channels in the event of forged proof detection or during emergencies, such as reported hacks. These measures aim to bolster the security of the BNB Chain network and better protect user funds against potential attacks.
To ensure a smooth transition to the upcoming Planck upgrade, the BNB Chain core team has called on all stakeholders to prepare accordingly. In particular, full node operators have been told to download and compile the latest software, version v1.1.21, to enable the hard fork.
© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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Author: Vishal Chawla