Ethereum breaks records: 3 out of 10 ETH are already staked after its latest surge

Ethereum is approaching 30% of its ether staked after the implementation of Pectra, an update that is improving the network's efficiency, costs, and decentralization.

Onchain data shows that the Pectra upgrade has strengthened the network by consolidating the participation of its validators and significantly boosting staking, reaching an all-time high of 29,5% of Ethereum's total supply.

For experts, this achievement reflects the community's growing confidence in the protocol and represents a key advance in the efficiency and profitability of the staking. 

Thanks to Pectra, new opportunities for greater decentralization and accessibility have opened up, allowing users of diverse scales around the world to actively participate in network security. 

Pectra has revolutionized staking on Ethereum

Pectra, implemented The month of May of this year has brought about an invisible but palpable transformation, especially for validators and large staking providers. The most significant improvement implemented by this update was the increase in the maximum limit of ETH that a validator can stake, going from 32 ETH to the astonishing figure of 2.048 ETHThis improvement has relieved the network of an enormous technical and financial burden.

Previously, those wishing to stake large amounts of ETH had to deploy numerous nodes, each with its own hardware, maintenance, and energy costs. Therefore, the change introduced by Pectra allows all of these nodes to be merged into fewer, more powerful and efficient validators. This allows large participants to drastically reduce their operating costs, while maintaining strong network security thanks to the historic volume of staked tokens.

From fragmentation to efficiency: Why does validator consolidation matter?

At the beginning of 2025, Ethereum staking seemed to have lost momentum. The proportion of ETH locked for staking was below 28,1% and continued to decline to 27,2% in March, a clear sign that confidence or profitability was waning. However, everything changed with the arrival of the Pectra upgrade. This technical innovation not only halted the decline, but The percentage of ETH staked shot up to record levels, reaching 29,5% in July 2025., far exceeding the previous high recorded in November 2024.

The secret behind this change lies in the efficiency and simplicity that Pectra introduces to the system. By allowing large amounts of ETH to be pooled under fewer nodes without losing operational robustness, the update made staking much more profitable and simpler for both large institutional players and small users. This reduces the saturation caused by multiple small nodes, which translates into better net rewards and shorter times to activate new validators. In other words, Pectra optimized the network to make it more attractive, accessible and efficient for everyone.

Nearly 30% of ETH staked strengthens the network's future

By reaching almost a third of Ethereum's total supply, the network is becoming stronger from a security perspective. A greater amount of ETH locked means greater difficulty and cost for malicious attacks, shielding the infrastructure from potential threats. For users, it represents trust and stability, key factors that attract both developers and large institutional funds.

While this accelerated growth may also bring new challenges, the Ethereum community remains active, developing incentives and mechanisms to diversify operators and ensure decentralization. 

The innovations that transform Ethereum

While the focus has been on validator consolidation and historic ETH staking numbers, Pectra has also introduced innovations to the user experience and overall network efficiency.

Account abstraction proposals, such as EIP-7702, make it easier for temporary wallets to function as smart contracts. Users can then make multiple transactions at once and pay gas fees using different cryptocurrencies in addition to Ethereum. This improvement eliminates complexity, reduces barriers for new users, and promotes the development of more intuitive decentralized applications.

In the long term, these advancements fuel the diversity and depth of the ecosystem, as developers can create new products, explore dynamic payment schemes, and bring Ethereum to everyday services without technical barriers or prohibitive costs. 

In this way, staking is emerging as a powerful tool for any user interested in participating and actively contributing to the growth of the blockchain network.