Liquid staking protocols have been gaining significant traction in recent months, with users enjoying the convenience of earning passive staking rewards while still retaining control of their assets. The recent Shapella upgrade on Ethereum has only added to this growth, with over 400,000 Ethereum, valued at $763 million, being added to 17 liquid staking platforms since the upgrade on April 12th, 2023.
As of April 30th, 2023, the total value locked into liquid staking protocols such as Lido Finance, Coinbase’s Wrapped Staked Ethereum, Rocket Pool, Frax, Stakewise, Stakehound, Ankr, Ethereum.fi, and Bitfrost is just over $16 billion, with six out of the top ten platforms experiencing gains over the past 30 days, four of which showed double-digit growth. Lido dominates the market, holding 73.6% of the ethereum locked in liquid staking protocols.
Data reveals that Rocket Pool and Frax’s Total Value Locked (TVL) jumped by 29.24% and 31.65%, respectively, in the 30 days following the Shapella upgrade, while Stakewise saw a modest 1.23% increase over the same period. Even Binance has entered the fray, launching a new liquid staking product and standing as the tenth largest platform under Bitfrost, with approximately $38.69 million in TVL and 20,305 Ethereum staked into the application.
The addition of 400,000 Ethereum to the liquid staking TVL within just two weeks of the Shapella upgrade underscores the growing interest and attention this sector is receiving. Liquid staking protocols could have a significant impact on the overall cryptocurrency market and the future of staking. It provides users with the convenience of earning passive rewards while still retaining control of their assets.
It remains to be seen how liquid staking protocols will evolve and impact the cryptocurrency landscape in the long run. Nevertheless, the rapid growth in value locked into liquid staking platforms suggests that users are finding value in this service, and it could continue to grow in popularity as more people explore the benefits of staking their cryptocurrencies.
