Ethereum
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Interest in staking ether (ETH), or locking coins on the Ethereum network for passive income, has skyrocketed since the Shapella update. The number of frozen coins increased by 4.4 million after the update. This figure amounted to more than $8.16 billion at the current exchange rate. It took less than 1.5 months.
According to Glassnode, since April 12, 2023, more than about 17% – 18% of the total number of virtual coins have been contributed to the smart contract for placement. Thus, at the time of writing this news, their number reached 22.58 million ETH or $41.87 billion.
“The surge in demand for staking is coming from large Ethereum holders who prefer not to liquidate their digital assets, but seek passive income,” Bitfinex analysts said in a weekly report. Experts expect this trend to continue. In their opinion, the deflationary mechanism of the cryptocurrency will significantly increase the price of ETH, and thus attract new users.
As previously reported, the demand for staking has increased despite the fact that the waiting time for deposits exceeds 1 month. Ethereum holders who want to become network validators have to wait about 36 days, according to Wenmerge. Currently, there are more than 50 thousand people in the queue who want to receive such a status. At the time of publication, users are offered an annual yield of 4% to 5%.
Staking became very popular as a way to generate passive income after the Beacon Chain Ethereum network was launched in December 2020.
For 2.5 years, stakers could not withdraw locked coins and their rewards. This possibility appeared only with the latest Shapella update. It significantly reduced the risk of placing bets and attracted a new audience.
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