Efe Nail Saltık 
Jito Labs, the developer behind an alternative Solana client, has announced the discontinuation of its mempool feature, a significant component of its technology stack. This move comes in response to the prevalence of “sandwich” attacks facilitated by this functionality.
Despite Solana itself not incorporating a mempool, the Jito client did, providing a breeding ground for costly sandwich attacks targeting traders.
The decision to cease mempool functionality marks a notable shift for Jito Labs, which recently lifted a ban on “front-running” practices due to enforcement challenges. Front-running, colloquially known as sandwich attacks, involves trading bots exploiting transactions sitting in the mempool but not yet executed, effectively squeezing value from traders before execution.
Jito Labs, responsible for an alternative Solana client, serves as a vital component in processing transactions on the Solana blockchain, with over half of validators utilizing its services.
Addressing concerns surrounding Negative Miner Extractable Value (MEV), Lucas Bruder, a contributor to Jito Labs, emphasized ongoing efforts to mitigate its impact. Despite attempting solutions to combat sandwich attacks, they found themselves locked in a futile battle with MEV searchers. Consequently, the Jito Labs team has opted to suspend mempool functionality, viewing MEV, including sandwich attacks, as detrimental to the Solana ecosystem. Their commitment remains unwavering in providing additional revenue streams for validators and stakers while striving to optimize Solana’s execution environment for all users.