MEV & The Dark Forest
The hidden economy of blockchain. Maximal Extractable Value, sandwich attacks, builders, MEV-Boost, and how to protect yourself with current 2024-2026 data.
3 lessons · 35 min · expert
- 1MEV: The Hidden Crypto EconomyHow sophisticated bots extract value from every Ethereum and Solana transaction, the cumulative scale of MEV, and how to protect your trades.3 min
- 2MEV Protection for UsersA practical guide to protecting yourself from MEV. Flashbots Protect, MEV Blocker, CowSwap, 1inch Fusion, RPC setup, slippage discipline, dollar-saving examples, the Solana sandwich landscape, and the current builder market shares.15 min
- 3MEV Economics: Builders, Searchers, ValidatorsThe full MEV value chain. Searchers, builders (Titan, BuilderNet, Quasar), MEV-Boost relays, validators, block construction economics, the "trust the relay" assumption versus optimistic relays and ePBS, fair sequencing services (Espresso, Astria), MEV redistribution (CowSwap MEV Blocker), Solana MEV economics (Jito $674M), and the "MEV is inevitable vs MEV is a bug" thesis.17 min
Educational only — not financial advice.