Investor Paradigm Expresses Concern Over Controversial Launch of Ethereum Layer-2 Blast

By: Isha Das

Crypto venture capital firm Paradigm, a seed investor in crypto startup Blast, has criticized the protocol's marketing strategy as inappropriate and potentially harmful. Paradigm's head of research, Dan Robinson, publicly expressed his disagreement concerning Blast's decisions, such as launching a bridge prior to its layer-2 network and not allowing withdrawals for three months. According to Robinson, this may set a wrong precedent for other crypto projects.

Paradigm reached out to Blast regarding its concerns but acknowledged that there remains significant disagreement between the two firms. However, Paradigm noted that despite its criticism, Blast is backed by a team of competent builders capable of producing quality products. The firm remains unsure of Blast's governance structure and its role in the startup's decision-making process.

The launch of Blast, characterized by Paradigm as crossing lines in messaging and execution, has also drawn criticism from other figures in the crypto sphere, including Jarrod Watts, a developer relations engineer at Polygon Labs. Watts has highlighted various security concerns associated with Blast's system. Regardless of the significant controversy surrounding its launch, Blast has amassed over $555 million in total value locked (TVL) since its launch. The protocol is marketed as the only Ethereum layer-2 solution offering a native yield for ETH and stablecoins.