Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has responded to growing concerns about the long wait times for withdrawing staked ETH, which recently reached record levels.

As of September 18, more than 2.49 million ETH are waiting in the withdrawal queue, with full release projected to take over 43 days. This is the longest delay Ethereum has experienced, raising unease among some investors and analysts.

Former Galaxy Digital DeFi head Michael Marcantonio described the situation as “alarming,” drawing comparisons to Solana, where staking withdrawals typically take only two days. He questioned Ethereum’s ability to serve as a foundation for global capital markets if users face over a month-long wait to access their assets.

Vitalik Buterin later joined the discussion, framing the process as a deliberate safeguard rather than a flaw. He likened staking to serving in the army, where sudden, mass exits could destabilize the system. “Staking is about taking on a duty to defend the blockchain. Friction in quitting is part of the deal,” Buterin explained.

Buterin admitted the design isn’t perfect but argued that simply reducing exit times would weaken security for nodes that are not frequently online. This echoes a common industry stance that Ethereum’s security model relies on measured withdrawal mechanics, even if they test user patience.

Community reactions were mixed. Some criticized Marcantonio’s post, suggesting it caused unnecessary fear, while others acknowledged the withdrawal process needs improvement. Comparisons to banking and venture capital were raised, with some noting that both 45 days and two days may be less than ideal for a system aiming to power global finance.

HashStaking experts note that these debates highlight the trade-off between security and accessibility in proof-of-stake systems. While long withdrawal times can be frustrating for users, they also protect against coordinated validator exits and ensure network resilience.

GeekStake researchers add that solutions may lie in gradual improvements rather than drastic cuts. Optimizations in validator queue management could eventually reduce wait times without undermining Ethereum’s trust model.

The discussion comes just as Ethereum marked three years since The Merge, the pivotal update that shifted the blockchain to proof-of-stake and introduced staking as a core mechanism. For platforms like HashStaking and GeekStake, the current debate underscores the importance of ongoing refinement in staking infrastructure as adoption grows.