Fireblocks launches “Staking Link” for institutional Ethereum staking on June 11, 2026
Fireblocks, a major player in digital asset infrastructure, announced on June 11, 2026, the launch of “ETH Staking Link,” a new standardized interface designed to streamline how institutional Ethereum (ETH) staking providers integrate with its platform. Salick Cogan, VP of Onchain Products at Fireblocks, detailed the update which establishes consistent protocols for validator infrastructure to meet growing demand from banks, asset managers, and corporate treasuries.
The introduction of these standardized rails comes as ETH staking reaches record levels. More than 36 million ETH is currently staked across the network, accounting for roughly 30% of the total circulating supply. Supported by nearly 1 million active validators, the Ethereum ecosystem has matured into a core component of institutional capital strategy, moving far beyond its origins as a niche activity for crypto-native operators.
Fireblocks reports that its internal ETH staking volume has more than doubled over the last six months alone. The new ETH Staking Link is specifically intended to make operations more consistent for institutional clients while expanding optionality. Several high-profile staking providers, including Blockdaemon, P2P.org, and MAVAN, are now available through this new interface.
Standardizing institutional Ethereum staking integrations
The ETH Staking Link functions by defining the specific integration process for staking providers. These partners must implement endpoints for validator creation, health reporting, and various lifecycle events. Fireblocks then manages the underlying orchestration, transaction serialization, broadcasting, and lifecycle tracking.
This shift to a unified API reduces the “bespoke” nature of past integrations, allowing for faster scaling as Ethereum whales accumulate larger portions of the circulating supply.
For organizations like Blockdaemon, which secures over $110 billion in blockchain infrastructure, these standardized rails simplify the technical burden of supporting Fireblocks’ large client base. Similarly, P2P.org, which supports more than $10 billion in assets, can now offer its services through a more predictable framework. MAVAN, currently recognized as the largest single staking operation globally, has also been added to the suite of available providers.
By automating the state management and lifecycle tracking, Fireblocks aims to bring an “industrial” level of reliability to the staking process. This follows a broader trend where Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company and others are looking to institutionalize the asset class. The goal is to provide a seamless experience that mirrors traditional financial messaging protocols.
Adapting to post-Pectra compounding validator types
A primary technical driver for this standardization is the evolution of Ethereum’s validator types. The network is transitioning toward “compounding validators” (0x02), which offer several advantages over the legacy (0x01) versions. Unlike legacy validators that are capped at exactly 32 ETH, post-Pectra compounding validators can support up to 2,048 ETH per validator. This shift allows for significantly higher capital efficiency for large-scale institutional investors.
These new validator types also support auto-compounding rewards, top-ups to existing positions, and partial withdrawals. This is a departure from legacy systems where rewards were strictly distributed to a separate withdrawal address. By using ETH Staking Link, institutional clients can manage these more complex (0x02) validator lifecycles through a single, standardized dashboard while maintaining their existing legacy positions with providers like Figment and Kiln.
Regulatory oversight and custody requirements
Security and compliance remain the top priorities for the 2,200 organizations that utilize Fireblocks to secure over $10 trillion in transaction volume. Adam Levine, CEO of Fireblocks Trust Company, has previously noted that institutional investors require the protection of a qualified custodian while seeking additional yield.
Fireblocks Trust Company is a qualified custodian under New York law, providing a regulated environment that many decentralized alternatives cannot match.
The appetite for these services remains high despite the inherent volatility of digital assets. Even when a sudden Bitcoin price drop triggers market liquidations, long-term institutional interest in ETH yield tends to persist. Fireblocks expanded its reach in mid-2025 by integrating Liquid Collective’s Liquid Staked ETH (LsETH), allowing clients to access liquidity while earning rewards.
Ezra Solomon, Staking and Blockchain Strategy Lead at Fireblocks, noted that enterprise-grade liquid staking options like LsETH allow customers to access rewards while preserving capital efficiency. This integrated approach—combining native staking, liquid staking, and standardized infrastructure—suggests that Fireblocks is positioning itself as the primary gateway for institutional participation in the Ethereum network.
Refining security in large-scale staking operations
The move toward standardized rails also serves as a strategic effort to improve operational consistency. The industry still references a 2021 incident involving a lawsuit with StakeHound over 38,178 ETH. Fireblocks CEO Michael Shaulov denied negligence in that case, clarifying that the keys were managed outside the Fireblocks platform.
However, the event underscored the necessity for streamlined, consistent integration processes between infrastructure providers and staking operators.
By requiring providers to implement specific endpoints for health reporting and lifecycle events, Fireblocks can ensure better visibility into the status of staked assets. This transparency is vital for risk management teams at neobanks and trading platforms. As Ethereum continues to grow, hiding the underlying complexity of the blockchain behind standardized software layers will be essential for mass adoption by traditional financial institutions.