Overview
- Nethermind, which announced the change Wednesday, stopped operating decentralized verifiers for LayerZero and signed on as a Chainlink node operator and development partner.
- The company said it will concentrate its cross‑chain work on Chainlink’s Cross‑Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) and also support Chainlink Data Feeds and institutional integrations.
- Nethermind framed the move as the result of an “extensive review” but did not publish that review or disclose financial terms or a timeline for completing the migration.
- The decision follows the April 18, 2026 rsETH exploit that drained roughly $290 million and joins earlier migrations by BitGo, Aave, and Wyoming’s FRNT toward Chainlink’s CCIP.
- The shift deepens consolidation of cross‑chain infrastructure around Chainlink, which could reassure regulated institutions through vetted node operators and limits but raises questions about concentration of operational responsibility and transparency.