Figment Surges Ahead in Ether Staking Race as Lido’s Slump Eases Market Fears

Staking wars heat up: Figment cements its lead while Lido's stumble gives competitors breathing room.

Who's winning the ETH staking game?

Figment isn't just outpacing rivals—it's rewriting the rulebook. Meanwhile, Lido's declining dominance has analysts breathing easier about decentralization risks. Turns out even crypto markets occasionally self-correct—usually right after someone's overleveraged position gets liquidated.

The takeaway? The staking landscape remains volatile, but Figment's growth suggests institutional players are placing their bets. As for Lido? Let's just say their 'too big to fail' narrative just got interesting.

One of the clearest beneficiaries of the rebalancing is Figment, a staking infrastructure provider with a strong institutional client base. While Figment has long ranked among the largest validator operators on Ethereum, the past year has brought a marked acceleration in ETH deposits from funds, custodians and large-scale asset managers.

According to data from Dune Analytics, Figment was the largest gainer of new stakers over the last month, adding roughly 344,000 and now holding 4.5% of all staked ETH. Lido lost the largest number, about 285,000. Ether.fi, Coinbase (COIN) and Binance also figure among the largest holders.

Figment said ETH staking demand from its institutional clients doubled after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said in May that staking didn't constitute a securities activity, a surge mirrored in rising validator queue wait times across the network. Last week, the SEC clarified that those participating in liquid staking WOULD also not need to worry about securities laws, a decision that is likely to open the doors to more staked products.

“Now that the largest institutions in the world are embracing digital assets, we’re busier than ever onboarding them," Figment CEO Lorien Gabel said in an interview. "We’ve built our business from day one on compliance, regulation, and risk-adjusted performance, exactly for customers like digital asset treasuries and neobanks. It’s working. If we weren’t winning the majority, I’d fire myself as CEO.”