Over a month after the Shapella upgrade, the number of staked Ether continues to climb.
Ethereum's staked Ether has touched new heights, reaching an impressive total of 23 million staked ETH by the end of June, following the Shapella upgrade that took place earlier in April.
Data from the crypto and NFT analytics solution Nansen highlighted that as of June 29th, the total number of staked Ether amounted to 23.5 million ETH, equivalent to around $43 billion. This accounts for roughly 20% of Ethereum's total supply, valued at $220 billion.
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In the context of Ethereum's blockchain, staking refers to the method of verifying transactions. Users gain the status of a validator and strengthen the network by staking Ethereum's native token, ETH, which yields returns.
The successful implementation of the Shapella hard fork on April 12th on the Ethereum blockchain led to validators having the ability to withdraw their staked Ether from the Beacon Chain. This resulted in an unstaking of more than a million ETH within the initial week of withdrawals. However, the number of staked Ether witnessed a steady climb since the upgrade.
CoinRoutes CEO Dave Weisberger elaborated on the positive implications of the Shanghai upgrade.
The Shanghai upgrade essentially eliminated this risk by allowing users to stake and unstake at will. As a result of this de-risking, we’re seeing a surge in staked ether — and, as expected, the network is quickly catching up to rival chains such as Solana in terms of percentage of the native token being staked on the network. This is a very healthy sign for Ethereum.
However, Ethereum's staking system has caught the attention of regulatory bodies. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been taking a more stringent stance on crypto-related firms providing staking services.
Crypto exchange Kraken had to settle with the SEC for $30 million in February and discontinue its staking services for American clients. The SEC has argued that the service was a securities offering and required Kraken to secure the appropriate license for its operation. In June, Coinbase fell under scrutiny for its staking program.
Despite the regulatory challenges, the continual rise in Ethereum staking indicates increased faith in the blockchain platform and is a promising signal for its long-term sustainability and acceptance.
