Welcome to Puffer Mainnet! 🐡

gm, Puffers — our Mainnet is now live!

This launch is not just a massive technical achievement, founded on years of research and development in decentralized technologies, but also a pivotal moment in Ethereum’s history. With Puffer’s Mainnet, a more diverse set of Node Operators will now be able to join the network, enhancing its decentralization and resilience.

We’re celebrating this milestone by offering special incentives for stakers and Node Operators who join us in the early days of our Mainnet.

Additionally, we’re gearing up to start our vampire campaign, converting all stETH deposited on Puffer into ETH, helping to preserve Ethereum’s decentralization for future generations.

Keep reading for more details. 👇

Puffer mainnet is beginning and new chapter is on the way 🐡🥕

With the launch of the Mainnet, users can now deposit native ETH, stETH, and wstETH.

We’re excited to announce that Chapter 4 of the Crunchy Carrot Quest is on the horizon, bringing a revamped points system soon. For now, depositors will continue to earn both Puffer Points and EigenLayer Points and have the opportunity to boost their Puffer Points by interacting with our official DeFi and Layer-2 integrations — check them out here.

These launch promotions are designed to provide exceptional value to early participants, but remember, they won’t last forever!

PufETH withdrawals will soon be implemented. We’re ensuring the Mainnet operates smoothly and are working on an efficient withdrawal solution for stakers that is fair for home validators.

The 🧛

A significant concentration of validators within a single protocol, particularly if controlled by a few large entities, can lead to centralization risks. stETH, with approximately 29.2% dominance, poses the biggest centralization risk to Ethereum currently.

Such entities might have disproportionate control over Ethereum’s proof of stake consensus protocol, potentially leading to issues like transaction censorship, manipulative MEV extraction, and block timing influence. These practices can threaten the integrity and security of the network, contradicting Ethereum’s foundational principle of decentralization.

During the 🧛 , all stETH deposited will be converted into ETH over the coming weeks, helping to reduce Lido’s dominance over Ethereum’s validator set.

Stay tuned!

A Call to Node Operators 🖥️

From the outset, Puffer’s primary mission has been to bring a more diverse set of Node Operators to the Ethereum network, as diversifying operator presence is key to expanding Ethereum’s decentralization.

We’ve significantly reduced the entry barrier: with just 2 ETH, anyone can become a Node Operator on our Mainnet. This change is aimed at broadening participation, making it accessible for a diverse range of participants — including those smaller operators who might have been sidelined by the traditional 32 ETH requirement.

By combining yields from Ethereum Proof of Staking with EigenLayer Restaking AVS’, Puffer Node Operators should see a significant increase in yield when compared with staking directly on the beacon chain.

This diverse set of innovations is only possible due to the commitment from Puffer’s team for innovation, such as the Secure-Signer technology and Validator Tickets (VTs). The Secure-Signer, backed by an Ethereum Foundation grant, bolsters network safety by shielding Node Operators from possible slashable offenses. On the other hand, VTs offer a groundbreaking method to boost the efficiency, resilience, and profitability of both permissionless and bonded Liquid Staking Protocols (LSPs).

Our anti-slasher support (1 ETH) will be released in the coming weeks after mainnet launch.

Also, NoOp consensus rewards are not withdrawable in the short term as the EigenLayer team improves the gas efficiency of the EigenPod contracts. While EigenLayer is expected to improve gas efficiency in the coming months, Puffer is working on an innovative solution for our validators.

More details on special incentives for NoOps will be shared soon. Discover how to run your own validator here.

Update on Enclave-Based Registrations

As part of our ongoing commitment to security and operational excellence, we are taking a phased approach to implementing enclave-based registrations. Due to recent changes in Intel’s support for certain enclave hardware, access to the necessary hardware has become more challenging. To ensure the highest standards of security, enclave-registrations will not be available during the initial phase of our mainnet launch.

We are actively working on alternatives and enhancements to ensure that enclave-based registrations can be safely implemented in future phases.

Thank you for your understanding and support as we navigate these developments and strive for the safest and most effective solutions.

The Battle for Decentralization Continues

Puffer’s Mainnet launch is a unique moment for crypto history. By launching the most innovative Native Liquid Restaking platform, reducing the bond for Node Operators, enabling more validators to join Ethereum, and converting all the stETH to ETH, we are changing the whole Ethereum landscape towards a more decentralized and resilient future.

Puffer’s journey continues! After our Mainnet launch, we keep building to empower pufETH holders and becoming a hub for AVS’ on the EigenLayer ecosystem.

Stay connected with us through Twitter, Discord, and Telegram. See you!

About Puffer

Puffer is the first native Liquid Restaking Protocol (nLRP) built on EigenLayer. It introduces native Liquid Restaking Tokens (nLRTs) that accrue PoS and restaking rewards. Nodes within the protocol leverage Puffer’s anti-slashing technology to enjoy reduced risk and increased capital efficiency, while supercharging their rewards through native restaking exposure. http://puffer.fi/