Validators don’t always play by the rules the blockchain sets, a new report finds.
Summary
- Solana validators are incentivized to game the blockchain for better rewards.
- By slowing down block reward production, validators can get up to 3% better rewards.
- In the end, this timing game may hurt ordinary users on the network.
Solana (SOL) has long had a problem with malicious validators. On Wednesday, August 13, the Chorus One research team published a report, detailing how validators can game the blockchain to extract aditional rewards.
The report shows that validators can slightly delay block production to pack more transactions into their assigned slots. Since validators earn rewards from transaction fees, this tactic allows them to collect more fees per unit of compute.
By combining timing games with compute optimization, validators can boost rewards by as much as 3%. While that figure may seem small, most validator costs are fixed, meaning the additional rewards translate directly into higher profit margins.
“Our analysis demonstrates that both timing games and latency optimization materially impact validator rewards on Solana. When combined, they produce the highest yield uplift—up to 3.0% in total rewards, or 27 basis points annually—primarily through increased MEV extraction and improved fee capture,” the report wrote.
MEV games can hurt Solana users
The concern with timing games is that slowing block production impacts inflation mechanics, reducing the rewards that SOL stakers receive while boosting earnings for the validators engaging in the practice.
The benefits also skew toward large validators with sophisticated hardware and significant staked holdings, leaving smaller operators at a disadvantage and contributing to network centralization.
To address the issue, Chorus One recommends that Solana update or replace its primary validator client, Agave. Firedancer, a competing client, offers comparable efficiency without introducing slot delays, effectively eliminating the timing advantage.
