What Is the Primary Trade-off of a Consortium Blockchain Compared to a Public Blockchain?

The primary trade-off is decentralization versus performance and control. Public blockchains offer maximum decentralization and permissionless access.

Consortium blockchains sacrifice some decentralization by having a limited, known set of validators. In return, they gain higher transaction speed, lower costs, and better regulatory compliance and governance.

This structure is often preferred for enterprise applications.