Ethereum Unstaking Queue Surges 392% Amid MetaMask Exits

The Ethereum unstaking queue has surged 392% since the start of October, reaching a peak of approximately 850,000 ETH on October 2. This is the longest exit line Ethereum has seen all year, with the wait to exit reaching about 14.77 days. The queue was dominated by MetaMask's exits, which accounted for around 523,000 ETH, a significant share of which was tied to Lido's operations.

Jiang Zhuoer, founder of an LTC mining pool, attributed the jump in the queue to holders taking advantage of current prices to lock in profits. However, he noted that the price barely moved, trading in a narrow band between $2,686 and $2,725 from September 30 to October 2.

Once MetaMask's exits clear, the queue is expected to shrink noticeably, although it remains to be seen whether fresh exits will replace them. The event highlights the impact of decisions made by one infrastructure partner on a larger pool of staked ETH, with around 43.6 million ETH still staked across about 878,000 validators.