Ethereum Staking Hits Record 34% of Supply

Ethereum's proof-of-stake network has reached a new milestone, with approximately 34% of its total supply now staked. This represents a significant increase from roughly 29% at the beginning of the year and means that more than one out of every three ETH is committed to securing the Ethereum network through staking.

Recent data reported by The Block put the amount of staked ETH at about 41.4 million, a record level for the network. This growth has strengthened Ethereum's security base, but it also raises questions about the future of native staking yields. As more ETH enters the validator system, the economics of staking could gradually change.

The answer to this question is important because Ethereum's native staking yield is not a fixed interest rate. It changes according to network conditions, including the amount of ETH participating in staking and the rewards available to validators.

One proposal, EIP-8361, would gradually increase the amount of validator rewards that are burned as the staking ratio rises. Under this modeling, consensus yield at today's roughly one-third staking ratio could decline from about 2.6% to approximately 1.2% over an 18-month period.