After years of research and development, BoLD (Bounded Liquidity Delay) is launching on @Arbitrum One.
This enables truly permissionless validation, while providing challenge resolution within a fixed time window.
Let's dive into how it works 👇
What makes BoLD a 0 -> 1 moment for scaling is simple:
A single honest validator can successfully defend against any number of malicious actors, with challenges resolved in parallel rather than sequentially.
This transforms what's possible for optimistic rollups.
BoLD requires attackers to spend many more resources than defenders.
Combined with the ability to trustlessly cooperate with other validators, this design makes attacking Arbitrum One prohibitively expensive while defense remains accessible.
BoLD also enables trustless cooperation
This allows multiple validators to pool resources to defend the same correct assertion without coordination.
This radical breakthrough means honest parties can share defense costs without having to trust each other.
And if attacked:
BoLD's parallel challenge resolution means withdrawal delays are bound to a max of ~12.8 days (2 challenge periods), regardless of how many challenges an attacker creates.
Traditional systems allow sequential delays that compound with each challenge.
The protocol uses multi-level refinement to minimize computation costs.
When disputes arise, challenges proceed through block level → big-step → one-step verification, making efficient use of validator resources.
From a security perspective:
BoLD is designed to confiscate the bonds from failed attackers, while honest validators get reimbursed.
This creates a strong economic incentive against malicious behavior while protecting honest participants.
BoLD is rigorously tested for security.
The protocol has undergone multiple audits, public testing, and peer review.
The formal specification and mathematical proofs are fully open source and available in the whitepaper.
For validators:
Running a BoLD validator requires no special hardware. Any consumer laptop can effectively participate in securing the chain.
Full documentation is available below.
BoLD also introduces Censorship Timeout
If an L2 sequencer is offline/censoring, the force inclusion window automatically reduces.
This promotes stronger censorship resistance across the entire network.
The protocol launches alongside a trustless bonding pool contract, allowing anyone to participate in validation without individually meeting full bond requirements.
This further democratizes chain security.
BoLD represents the culmination of over 10 years of research in interactive fraud proofs, starting at Princeton in 2014.
It establishes a new standard for secure, permissionless, and efficient dispute resolution in optimistic rollups.
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Disclaimer: The content above is only the author's opinion which does not represent any position of Followin, and is not intended as, and shall not be understood or construed as, investment advice from Followin.
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