“The four most dangerous words in investing are, it’s different this time.”

- Sir John Templeton

Howdy, investors!

Just as DeFi TVL surpasses $100 billion, we present our report on the top 10 staking platforms where you can earn yield for holding various crypto. Take a look and see who we are bullish on.

Bitcoin has resumed its rally, hitting a new all-time high to start the week. Ether has also crossed the $4,000 mark for the first time since 2021, hammering home that we are likely in a new bull cycle.

Coinbase met with the SEC to discuss spot Ethereum ETFs and claims that these ETFs should be categorized as commodities. However, a lack of SEC response has some analysts questioning the likelihood of a May approval for Ethereum ETFs.

In other Ethereum news, some say that liquid staking protocols are becoming too big and that ETH staking rewards need to be lowered to avoid centralization. However, critics believe such a proposal would increase the overall centralization of ETH.

Read on to explore more!

Top 10 Crypto Staking Platforms for 2024

by Preetam Kaushik

With the introduction of Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchains like Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana, staking has become a viable way to generate wealth via transaction verification–so much so that crypto staking has ballooned into a massive industry, with a market cap of over $248 billion in 2024.

With that in mind, here’s our guide to the top 10 crypto staking platforms available to retail users and enterprises in 2024. See who we think will set the pace for staking earnings this year.

Find your ideal staking platform here >>

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New Investor Scorecard: Hedera Hashgraph (HBAR)

Hedera Hashgraph is a distributed ledger platform that aims to provide decentralized transactions. Its native token, HBAR, serves as the network's utility token, which is used to secure it and pay transaction fees.

Our Investor Scorecard uses our industry-leading framework to determine if the Hedera Hashgraph project is worth your time. Is it roaring back? Or does it still need some time to bake?

We filter out the hype and noise behind the token, focusing on the fundamentals.

Premium members can download the Hedera Investor Scorecard here to learn what our analysts say about investing in HBAR.

Are you not yet a Premium member? Sign up now to access our tools and tips for better crypto investing.

Must Read

Today's most important stories for crypto investors.

Bitcoin Hits New Record High Above $71,000 As Crypto Rally Continues

(Forbes)

Bitcoin reached a new record high of $72,378, marking a significant recovery from the "crypto winter." Ether has surpassed the $4,000 mark for the first time since late 2021. The rally is driven by increasing investor enthusiasm, the approval of crypto ETFs, and the upcoming bitcoin halving. It's increasingly looking like this is the bull market investors have been waiting on since the end of the last bull run in late 2021.

Coinbase met with SEC over spot Ethereum ETFs

(Blockworks)

Coinbase met with SEC officials to discuss Grayscale's proposed ether ETF, with representatives from Davis Polk and the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets present. Coinbase presented that shares of the potential ETF would be categorized as commodity-based, similar to bitcoin ETFs, and argued that the spot markets for ETH are resilient to fraud and manipulation. However, Bloomberg analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart noted that the lack of comments from the SEC staff might not be a good sign for the approval of the ETF, giving the probability of a May approval as 60%. Investors need to watch developments closely and be ready to shift if necessary.

Has Ethereum’s $54bn Liquid Staking Industry Become Too Big?

(DLNews)

A proposal to reduce the issuance of new Ether has sparked controversy, as some critics argue it could harm solo stakers and centralize control over Ethereum's blockchain. The proposal addresses concerns about the dominance of liquid staking protocols, which could control most of the Ether supply and influence the blockchain. Critics, including those from liquid staking projects like Rocket Pool and Lido, fear that lowering staking rewards would push staking towards centralized operators. While this proposal is worth watching, it's not likely that it will gain enough traction to cause a change in Ether issuance.

Long-Term Wealth

$1K invested at today's market prices

This asset	invested 5 years ago	is now worth
Bitcoin (BTC)	$1,000	$11,269
Ethereum (ETH)	$1,000	$9,346
Uniswap (UNI)*	$1,000	$2,503
BNB Chain (BNB)	$1,000	$37,953

Note: The future may look different from the past. Please invest carefully.

* As UNI is less than five years old, we calculate from the launch date (Sep 2020).

Chart of the Day

TVL of Liquid Staking Projects

Liquid staking really took off in 2024, with a number of protocols doubling the total value locked in their ecosystems. We've also seen the liquid staking space capture the majority of TVL overall in DeFi.

That's raised concerns over-centralization, and looking at the growth in the top five liquid staking protocols can give some insight into this claim.

Lido continues to dominate the space, controlling just over half of all liquid staking, although newcomer EigenLayer is certainly making some inroads. And other smaller protocols are seeing comparable growth on a percentage growth basis.

The current landscape indicates that while liquid staking is increasing as a percentage of overall staking, there is no need to fear centralization. Normal competition should ensure one protocol doesn't control a 'monopoly' in the space.

ICYMI