Quantitative Analysis of the Reward Rate Disparity Among Delegators in a DPoS Blockchain

Abstract

In the blockchain architecture, some selected nodes create blocks. Various consensus protocols, such as Proof of Work (PoW), Proof of Stake (PoS), and Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS), have been proposed to select nodes. DPoS protocol works similarly to an election, where token holders vote for validator candidates. Elected validators generate blocks and earn block generation rewards. BNB Chain using DPoS has implemented a leveling mechanism to prevent the concentration of votes on a particular validator. However, token holders who have voted do not always act according to economic rationality. This causes disparity in the rewards received by token holders. The electoral process in DPoS causes this disparity; PoS does not have such a disparity. To quantitatively assess the current state of the leveling mechanism, we investigated the reward rate for the top 1,000 addresses based on the number of tokens they had voted on the BNB Chain. As a result, we found that token holders who frequently generated delegate-related transactions earned up to 25% more rewards than those who did not. In addition, we found a greater disparity in reward rates between token holders who have voted and keep a higher reward rate, compared to those who did not.