Sequential vs. Simultaneous Blockchain Consensus with Adversarial Attacks
Speaker: Yunlong Liu
Affiliation: University of Queensland
Abstract
In the past few years, the successful launch of Tendermint in blockchains has brought attention to the decades-old theory of the Byzantine Generals’ Problem from the computer science literature. The solution to this problem is known as Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) protocols. The idea behind BFT-based blockchains is to introduce a multi-round voting mechanism to enhance the protocol’s fault tolerance. While BFT-based blockchains analyze a voting mechanism in a sequential context, we study a voting game in simultaneous and sequential voting protocols, capturing the major features of BFT-based blockchains. We characterize all equilibria, and the findings are expected to provide guidance for the successful design of blockchains. We find that sequential voting consensus is better than simultaneous consensus if no adversary is present in the committee voting. However, if an adversary appears in the voting, the choice of voting protocol depends on the society’s preferences and the evaluation of the trade-offs.
About Financial maths and economics seminars (UQ-Osaka)
Students, staff and visitors to UQ are welcome to attend our monthly seminars between December 2024 to November 2025.
The events are jointly run by the School of Mathematics and Physics and Osaka University (Japan).
The Financial maths and economics seminars are part of the collaborative initiative Advancing Quantitative Methods for Emerging Challenges in Finance and Insurance between UQ and Osaka University. This initiative is supported by the UQ Global Partnership and aims to foster innovation and collaboration in the field of financial mathematics and economics.
