The recent announcement by Stripe CEO Patrick Collison about the launch of the new Tempo blockchain has sparked mixed reactions within the crypto community. The new layer-1 blockchain is designed to better accommodate the growing use of stablecoins and crypto transactions on Stripe's platform.
Announcement of Tempo Launch
Patrick Collison stated that existing blockchains are not optimized for the volume of transactions processed by Stripe, which peaks at over 10,000 transactions per second (TPS). He highlighted the significant difference compared to Bitcoin, processing 5 TPS, and Ethereum around 20 TPS.
Expert Opinions
Despite the optimistic tone of the announcement, opinions in the crypto community are divided. Joe Petrich, head of engineering at NFT platform Courtyard, noted that there is little demand for yet another blockchain, adding that "the problems are already solved for those committed to using blockchains."
Helius Labs CEO Mert Mumtaz also criticized Collison's figures, calling them "hilariously wrong," pointing out that Solana's actual TPS can exceed the cited numbers, with real data showing over 3,000 TPS.
Challenges and Benefits of the New Blockchain
Some industry insiders see promise in Stripe's approach. Steve Milton, CEO of Web3 wallet provider Fintopia, praised Tempo as a "game-changer" that could enable faster and cheaper on-chain transactions. However, critics questioned why Stripe chose to build a separate layer-1 blockchain instead of leveraging existing layer-2 solutions. Ethereum Foundation’s Devansh Mehta and commentator Leo Lanza suggested building on Ethereum layer-2 could offer decentralization and scalability without the need to create a new blockchain. Collison responded that real-world financial applications benefit when fees are denominated in fiat currencies, which existing blockchains typically do not support, as they denominate fees in native tokens.
The debate surrounding Stripe's Tempo blockchain highlights ongoing challenges in the crypto industry regarding scalability, decentralization, and practical adoption of blockchain technology for mainstream financial use.
