January 23, 2026
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MEV Blocker RPC brings advanced backrunning auctions to SMG - strengthening its MEV expertise and accelerating its mission to deliver a more accessible, user-centric Web3.

MEV Blocker today announced that its infrastructure has been acquired by Special Mechanisms Group (SMG), a division of Consensys focused on blockchain microstructure research. SMG is the mechanism design powerhouse at Consensys and has been a long-standing research leader in the MEV space. MEV Blocker is one of the most widely adopted and effective MEV protection RPCs on the market. Consensys is the blockchain software company behind MetaMask, Linea, and Infura, serving millions of users across the Ethereum ecosystem.

MEV Blocker is recognized for returning MEV to users and delivering industry-leading transaction speed, as shown in benchmark studies. Since its inception it has served more than 4.5 million unique users and delivered 6,177 ETH in rebates to users. MEV Blocker has contributed to setting a new standard for fair, transparent transaction execution in Web3, delivering clearer outcomes for users and naturally aligning with SMG’s technical expertise and mission.

“SMG have long respected the MEV Blocker RPC. We’ve watched MEV Blocker set the standard for user-aligned MEV protection. Bringing it into SMG lets us build on what’s already working and push it further. By blocking exploitative MEV and replacing it with transparent, user-aligned backrunning auctions, MEV Blocker further drives SMG's vision: markets that work for users, not against them”, says Wanyi Dai Li, Head of SMG.

“It was important for us to find a buyer that was technically-excellent and mission-aligned to steward the continued development of MEV Blocker on behalf of its users,” says Anna George, co-founder of CoW Swap. “We are happy that SMG will continue to develop MEV Blocker and bring top-tier protection from frontrunning and sandwich attacks to even more users.”

CoW DAO, a pioneer in the field of MEV Protection and co-creator of MEV Blocker, will support the transition of MEV Blocker into the Consensys ecosystem, ensuring continuity and collaboration between teams. The DAO continues its commitment to providing class-leading MEV protection for DeFi users through its core products: CoW Protocol and CoW Swap.

CoW DAO was the first DAO to create an MEV protected DEX, RPC and AMM.  The DAO continues its commitment to providing class leading MEV protection for users across the DeFi space and will focus on scaling the DEX protection mechanism to the masses.

If you have any questions, please email contact_smg@consensys.net