The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Polygon Labs Marc Boiron, has expressed a negative sentiment towards layer 3 (L3) networks, arguing the necessity and implications of the solutions for scaling Ethereum – the second largest cryptocurrency asset.
Polygon CEO Claims Layer 3 Devalues Ethereum
In a heated conversation on the X platform, Marc Boiron claimed that these layer 3 networks pose a potential risk to the value of Ethereum. The Polygon CEO asserted that the major purpose of L3s is to devalue ETH and the layer 2s that serve as the foundation for layer 3s.
As a result, Boiron believes that layer 3 is not required to scale Ethereum. Since L3 networks are not required to scale current networks, Boiton has declared that Polygon Labs will not operate on the networks.
L2 solutions reduce network congestion through the diversion of transactions from the main chain. Additionally, they provide reliable benefits by transmitting the transactions to the main chain.
On the other hand, L3s can guarantee cross-chain connections between several protocols. Effectively, they might also support layer-1 and layer-2 network communication.
The Polygon’s CEO claims appear to have attracted much criticism from the crypto community. A pseudonymous X user disagreed with Boiron, saying that there is no such thing as taking away value from the asset and onto the L2s, as L2s on ETH are value Ethereum.
While Boiron agreed with the user that L2s are Ethereum, he disagrees with the notion that L2 value is ETH value. According to the Polygon CEO, ETH will essentially gain no value if all the L3s settle to a single layer 2. Consequently, the security of Ethereum will be compromised and will be vulnerable.
He then emphasized the possible dangers and consequences of these L3s devaluing the cryptocurrency excessively. “If Ethereum earns no fees and has no prospect of earning fees other than a tiny amount of fees from this one L2, then the value of ETH will drop,” he stated.
Given that it has no economic future, he believes it is obvious that it will keep falling; therefore, both the willingness to hold ETH and to protect its network will fade among validators.
Benefits Of Layer 3 Solutions
The Polygon CEO’s insights suggest that layer 3 networks do not provide any major benefits to the cryptocurrency landscape. However, Peter Haymond, one of the community members in charge of creating Ethereum‘s scaling solutions, has spotlighted several benefits of L3 solutions.
According to Haymond, these networks do not devalue ETH in any way, while drawing attention to Potuz’s post highlighting some of the advantages of L3s. These include the low cost of native bridging from L2 as opposed to L1, the minimal cost of a challenge game or proving on the chain by playing the game in L2 rather than L1, custom gas tokens, and others.