Proposed Reduction in Withdrawal Times for Stage 1 Optimistic Rollups
Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, has proposed reducing the withdrawal time for stage 1 optimistic rollups from the traditional 7 days to just 1-2 days. This development could mark a major milestone in improving the usability of Ethereum’s Layer 2 networks.
Stage 1 rollups are considered sufficiently decentralized and functional but haven’t yet met all the criteria of full decentralization and trust minimization, which defines stage 2. By speeding up the withdrawal process, users would no longer have to wait an entire week to access their funds. This could make these rollups far more appealing to both users and developers.
Why Stage 1 Rollups Will Benefit the Most
Currently, optimistic rollups like Optimism and Arbitrum use a 7-day withdrawal period as a security feature to allow fraud proofs to be submitted if needed. However, Buterin argues that for stage 1 rollups—which already have decent decentralization and verifiability—the risk is lower, and so faster exits could be acceptable.
The suggested 1-2 day withdrawal time is seen as a trade-off between security and user experience. It’s fast enough to remove the frustration for users while still giving the network a chance to catch invalid transactions.
Meanwhile, stage 2 rollups—which meet all the highest security standards—would still maintain the full 7-day withdrawal period. This layered approach ensures users can choose between faster access or maximum security, depending on their needs.
TODAY: Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin discusses reducing withdrawal times for stage 1 optimistic rollups to 1-2 days.
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) November 5, 2025
Stage 2 rollups would keep the 7-day window for maximum security. Could this boost L2 adoption? pic.twitter.com/4AHluqYFfF
Could This Move Boost L2 Adoption?
Yes—and significantly. One of the biggest hurdles for Layer 2 adoption has been usability and liquidity flow, especially when users are faced with long wait times for withdrawals. Reducing this to 1-2 days could improve the user experience, make DeFi applications more practical, and ultimately drive more activity to Ethereum’s L2s.
This update aligns with Ethereum’s broader goal of scaling securely without sacrificing decentralization. It also shows how Ethereum is maturing by offering flexible infrastructure tailored to different user risk profiles.