EIP-8433: Retire 0x00 validators

EIPs EIPs core
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Discussion topic for EIP-8433: Add EIP: Retire 0x00 validators by ensi321 · Pull Request #12390 · ethereum/EIPs · GitHub

Second stage of the 0x00 withdrawal credential deprecation. EIP-8365 (EIP-8365: Disallow new 0x00 validators) closes the inflow by rejecting deposits that would create new 0x00 validators. This EIP exits the remaining 0x00 validators through the standard exit churn, at a capped rate per epoch, starting from a published epoch (RETIREMENT_START_EPOCH) after fork activation. BLSToExecutionChange stays open throughout, so a retired validator’s full balance remains recoverable by rotating to 0x01, and anyone who rotates before the start epoch keeps validating uninterrupted.

This is the forced-exit part that was split out of EIP-8365 following the ACDC #187 discussion ie. deposit guard in Hegotá, exits in a subsequent fork, with the timeline documented in the EIP text rather than left to announcements. EIP-8367 (balance sunset, EIP-8367: Balance sunset for retired BLS validators) builds on this one.

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As previously communicated, a significant number of validators remain stuck within the 0x00 address due to lost mnemonics. This issue is widely recognized and documented at deprecatebls(.)com. Core developers have expressed their support for identifying an appropriate exit solution for this non-adversarial stake.

This new EIP submission indicate an intention to bypass these established recommendations. We accepted your initial proposal, EIP EIP-8365, to prevent new 0x00 registrations, as this measure is non-destructive with respect to the lost mnemonic issue. However, the proposed EIP is particularly problematic because it would compel validators to exit without offering a solution for those who are currently stuck. As stated previously, we recommend suspending this initiative until a reasonable resolution is achieved.

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