How Exclusive are Ethereum Transactions? Evidence from non-winning blocks

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Pahari, Vabuk, Canidio, Andrea
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Pahari, Vabuk
Canidio, Andrea
author_facet Pahari, Vabuk
Canidio, Andrea
contents We analyze 15,097 blocks proposed for inclusion in Ethereum's blockchain over an eight-minute window on December 3, 2024, during which 38 blocks were added to the chain. We classify transactions as exclusive -- appearing only in blocks from a single builder -- or private -- absent from the public mempool but included in blocks from multiple builders. We find that, depending on the methodology, exclusive transactions account for between 77.2% and 84% of the total fees paid by transactions in winning blocks. Moreover, we show that exclusivity cannot be fully attributed to persistent relationships between senders and builders: only between 7% and 8.4% of all on-chain exclusive transaction value originates from senders who route exclusively to one builder. Finally, we observe that transaction exclusivity is dynamic. Some transactions are exclusive at the start of a bidding cycle but later appear in blocks from multiple builders. Other transactions remain exclusive to a losing builder for two or three cycles before appearing in the public mempool. These transactions are therefore delayed and then exposed to potential attacks.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_16052
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle How Exclusive are Ethereum Transactions? Evidence from non-winning blocks
Pahari, Vabuk
Canidio, Andrea
Cryptography and Security
Distributed, Parallel, and Cluster Computing
General Economics
Economics
We analyze 15,097 blocks proposed for inclusion in Ethereum's blockchain over an eight-minute window on December 3, 2024, during which 38 blocks were added to the chain. We classify transactions as exclusive -- appearing only in blocks from a single builder -- or private -- absent from the public mempool but included in blocks from multiple builders. We find that, depending on the methodology, exclusive transactions account for between 77.2% and 84% of the total fees paid by transactions in winning blocks. Moreover, we show that exclusivity cannot be fully attributed to persistent relationships between senders and builders: only between 7% and 8.4% of all on-chain exclusive transaction value originates from senders who route exclusively to one builder. Finally, we observe that transaction exclusivity is dynamic. Some transactions are exclusive at the start of a bidding cycle but later appear in blocks from multiple builders. Other transactions remain exclusive to a losing builder for two or three cycles before appearing in the public mempool. These transactions are therefore delayed and then exposed to potential attacks.
title How Exclusive are Ethereum Transactions? Evidence from non-winning blocks
topic Cryptography and Security
Distributed, Parallel, and Cluster Computing
General Economics
Economics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.16052