The Complexities of Drivechains and Mining Incentives

Introduction

In the world of cryptocurrency, drivechains have once again become a hot topic of discussion among enthusiasts. Drivechains are a second layer protocol that aims to introduce new possibilities and benefits to the blockchain ecosystem. However, there are several issues regarding the incentives for miners that need to be taken into consideration. In this article, we will delve into the complexities of drivechains and the impact they have on mining incentives.

Separation of Concerns: Mainchain Miners and Sidechain “Miners”

One of the main claims made by drivechain proponents is that the activation of this protocol does not introduce any new requirements or costs for miners. While this may be technically true, the design of drivechains naturally motivates miners to take on full responsibility for operating sidechains themselves in order to maximize profit.

The proposal for blind merge mining (BMM) in drivechains specifies a mechanism for users to bid in the mempool for miners to select their sidechain block for confirmation. Miners must include a matching commitment to selecting the block in their coinbase transaction. This design