Staking is the act of depositing ETH or MATIC to activate new validators on the Ethereum protocol. Validators help keep Ethereum secure and operational by validating transactions and adding new blocks to the blockchain. For more on validators, Ethereum, and how it all works, check out our explainer here.
In return for staking ETH and operating a validator, stakers are eligible to receive rewards that may include:
- Consensus layer rewards, in the form of new ETH issuance
- Execution layer rewards, based on:
- A portion of the gas fees users pay to send Ethereum transactions
- Maximal extractable value, derived from software run by some validator operators.
Staking on Ethereum typically requires a minimum of 32 ETH, but some staking protocols, such as Lido and Rocket Pool, operate staking pools that allow individuals with less than 32 ETH to combine their deposits with others to activate validators. Lido and Stader Labs protocols offer the possibility to also stake MATIC tokens on the Ethereum network.
Staked ETH, MATIC and rewards received on Lido, Rocket Pool and Stader Labs can be withdrawn or swapped for other tokens. For more information, see here.
