Sky Mavis Expands Ronin Nodes to Enhance Security

Ronin, an Ethereum-linked sidechain, has added three new validator nodes to bolster security following the $600 million hack in March.

Sky Mavis Expands Ronin Nodes to Enhance Security

In a recent announcement, Sky Mavis—the team behind Axie Infinity and the Ronin bridge—revealed that the number of nodes has increased from 14 to 17.

The new validators are Efficient Frontier, Community Gaming, and Nansen. The project is now working towards its three-month goal of establishing 21 independent nodes, with a longer-term vision of 100 nodes.

In a Proof-of-Stake blockchain like Ronin, validators are responsible for ensuring that all transactions on the network are processed correctly. Hence, increasing the number of validators typically enhances overall security. Currently, the network requires 70% of validators to approve a transaction.

Ronin is still recovering from one of the largest crypto hacks in history. In the incident, hackers—later linked by US authorities to North Korea's Lazarus Group—gained control of 5 out of 9 validator nodes on Ronin. This allowed them to approve withdrawal transactions, stealing 173,600 ETH and 25.5 million USDC, resulting in a total loss of $622 million.

In response, the project quickly raised $150 million to cover the damage and compensate the hack victims; announced plans for network restructuring; conducted audits before reopening the bridge; implemented a new governance mechanism; and set daily withdrawal limits.

Analysts have repeatedly warned about the "centralization" issues of blockchains like BNB Chain and Ronin. These top-tier networks use a relatively low number of nodes for transaction approval, raising concerns about the decentralization and security of the entire ecosystem.