Lido, a popular platform for staking Ethereum, is now directing most of its staked ETH to larger validators on the Ethereum network that were recently upgraded. These validator operators are also now investing their own money, increasing their commitment to the network.
Lido is streamlining its network by reducing the number of validators it uses. Instead of running many small validators, each with 32 ETH, they’re consolidating them into fewer, larger ones.
$16B in ETH Moved
The Ethereum Pectra upgrade, launched in May 2025, increased the maximum number of tokens a validator can effectively hold to 2,048 using a new system called 0x02 credentials. Lido Core’s latest update (released Monday) – specifically Curated Module v2 – now fully supports this change.
We’re focusing on the Curated Module – the system that manages over 90% of all the ETH staked with Lido since its launch in 2020. This includes more than 265,000 validators and a total value exceeding $16 billion (over 8 million ETH).
It’s important to note that Lido is making these changes during a challenging period for the market. As CryptoPotato reported, their revenue decreased by about 25% last year, and their portion of all Ethereum staked with them dropped from over 28% in 2024 to just above 24% by December 2025.
No Longer Trust, Operators Now Must Post Bonds
Simply relying on trust isn’t sufficient anymore; operators now have a financial stake in ensuring things run smoothly. They must deposit ETH as collateral, which will be forfeited if they act dishonestly or experience operational failures.
The connection between these parties is currently stronger than with completely open-source options, as they’re seen as more reliable. A recent update also streamlines operations by eliminating DAO votes for simple, everyday tasks like updating an operator address, which will make things more efficient.
Moving to the new system will take several months due to restrictions on how quickly Ethereum validators can transition and redeploy their assets. During this downtime, validators won’t earn rewards, and Lido estimates this will result in a loss of around 738.5 ETH. Although the fastest possible switch could take 117 days, a more realistic timeframe is around six months.
2026-07-29 02:07