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Ethereum’s Top Stakers Control 48% of Staked ETH in a ‘Potentially Unhealthy’ Centralization: Flipside

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There is a stark difference between the staking concentration of Ethereum and Polygon.

A new report suggests that Ethereum’s staking activity remains considerably more concentrated than Polygon’s in what it considers “potentially unhealthy” for the ecosystem.

Ethereum Staking Dominated by Few

According to Flipside’s “YoY PoS Staking Report” shared with CryptoPotato, from September 2023 to 2024, Ethereum’s top 10 stakers consistently controlled nearly half – around 47-48% – of the total staked ETH, reflecting a stable but concerning level of centralization in its staking ecosystem.

This lack of movement towards greater decentralization could raise red flags about the network’s reliance on a few dominant players.

“The stable concentration in Ethereum’s staking ecosystem suggests that the chain remains centralized to a (potentially unhealthy) degree and there hasn’t been significant movement towards either decentralization or further consolidation this past year.”

Polygon, on the other hand, saw its top 10 stakers grow their share from 20.4% to 24% over the same period. This increase, driven by smaller institutions, indicates a healthier distribution of staking power on Polygon and suggests a trend toward more decentralized control.

Since September 2023, 8 of Ethereum’s top 10 stakers have either maintained or expanded their PoS ETH stakes. Meanwhile, Lido remains the dominant player in Ethereum’s PoS staking, increasing its stake from 8.8 million to 9.8 million ETH during this period. Despite rising competition and notable Lido outflows among Polygon stakers, Lido’s growth on Ethereum has remained unfazed.

Consistent Inflows for Ethereum

Ethereum’s total staked ETH saw a significant increase from 27.2 million to 34.7 million between September 2023 and 2024, with staked ether growth closely aligned with validator expansion. The largest month-over-month surge occurred between January and February 2024, when staked ETH rose from 29.6 million to 31.4 million – a 6% increase.

This spike coincided with rising speculation about the SEC’s potential approval of futures Ethereum ETFs and heightened market activity, which likely drove more users to participate in staking.

Another notable growth period occurred between May and June 2024, where staked ETH increased by a million, reflecting enthusiasm following the successful Shanghai upgrade. Flipside noted that this upgrade introduced key optimizations and reduced fees, which likely contributed to the boost in staking activity.

Ethereum also experienced steady net inflows of staked ETH at the time with no significant periods of net outflows. On average, monthly net inflows ranged between 600k to 1 million ETH, with the highest inflow recorded in February 2024.

The figures peaked at 1.8 million ETH. This consistent growth reflects strong user confidence in Ethereum’s staking rewards and the network’s overall appeal. The expansion of Tether in November 2023, when 4 billion USDT was minted on Ethereum, likely contributed to increased network activity.

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Cryptocurrency

Saylor’s Strategy Bought Another 4,225 BTC Before Bitcoin’s Price Explosion: Details

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Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin-oriented brainchild has made another massive purchase, accumulating 4,225 BTC for $472.5 million.

Due to the cryptocurrency’s substantial price expansion in the past few years, Strategy now sits at a mindblowing unrealized profit of roughly $30 billion.

This is because the company has spent $42.87 billion to acquire its BTC stash of 601,550 bitcoins bought at an average price of $71,268 per unit. Given BTC’s price as of press time ($121,500), this puts Strategy’s fortune at over $73 billion.

Saylor hinted about this purchase yesterday, indicating that some weeks, “you don’t just HODL.” Recall that the company didn’t announce a new acquisition last week, which was somewhat surprising given its history since the US elections in November last year.

Strategy’s former CEO has also been particularly vocal on X about different BTC purchases from other companies. In the past few days alone, he has reposted the accumulations completed by the likes of Metaplanet, K33, DigitalX Ltd., Sequans, and the Blockchain Group.

The average price of Strategy’s latest purchase means that it was most likely completed in the middle of the previous week when BTC challenged $112,000. The asset has traded well beyond that level ever since Thursday.

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Metaplanet Snaps Up 797 More BTC in Aggressive Bitcoin Gold Rush

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Japanese investment firm Metaplanet has expanded its Bitcoin holdings with the purchase of 797 BTC, after spending approximately 13.8 billion yen, which is worth around $93 million.

The company acquired Bitcoin at an average price of around $117,000 per unit.

Aiming for “Escape Velocity”

Following the latest acquisition, Metaplanet currently holds 16,352 BTC, equivalent to approximately $1.64 billion. It maintains its position as the world’s fifth-largest publicly traded corporate BTC holder, according to data shared by BitcoinTreasuries. The accumulation now comes just a week after the Tokyo-listed company purchased 2,205 BTC.

The firm, which shifted from hotel operations to Bitcoin treasury management last year, has been accelerating its accumulation strategy amid rising institutional interest in crypto assets. Metaplanet has set an ambitious target to control over 210,000 BTC by 2027, which is around 1% of the total Bitcoin supply.

Metaplanet had previously revealed its plans to leverage its growing Bitcoin reserves to acquire cash-generating businesses, even potentially including a digital bank in Japan.

Last week, Gerovich told the Financial Times that the company is racing to accumulate as much BTC as possible, while describing it as a “Bitcoin gold rush” to reach “escape velocity” and maintain a lead over competitors. The exec also said that he would never sell the crypto asset.

“We think of it as a Bitcoin gold rush. We need to accumulate as much Bitcoin as we can to get to a point where we have reached escape velocity, and it just makes it very difficult for others to catch up.”

Metaplanet’s Ambitious Bitcoin Plan

In its next phase, Metaplanet aims to use the crypto asset as collateral to access financing, similar to how securities or government bonds are used. The goal will be to deploy these funds to buy profitable businesses aligned with its strategy. While crypto-backed lending remains rare in traditional banking, experiments like Standard Chartered’s pilot with OKX suggest growing institutional interest.

Gerovich ruled out issuing convertible debt to fund growth, preferring options like preferred shares to avoid repayment tied to volatile share prices. The firm said that it envisions digital banking services as a future area of expansion, and aims to deliver superior retail banking options in Japan using its BTC-backed leverage.

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Bitcoin Price Analysis: BTC Nearing Exhaustion or Gearing Up for $130K Next?

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Bitcoin has officially entered price discovery once again, trading just below $122,000 at the time of writing. After months of consolidation and multiple failed breakout attempts, the bulls have finally regained full control.

The breakout above the previous all-time high around $112,000 was followed by explosive momentum, and investors are wondering how much further BTC will run.

By ShayanMarkets

The Daily Chart

The daily chart shows that the asset is still respecting the long-term ascending channel, as it rebounded from its lower boundary and is currently rallying toward the mid-line. The price decisively closed above the $112,000 previous all-time high, a level that acted as a distribution zone for over a month. Following this breakout, BTC printed several bullish continuation candles, pushing all the way up to $122,000.

Yet, a retracement into the $114K–$117K zone is probable to cool the market down. This pullback would not invalidate the bullish structure but instead offer a healthier continuation setup. As long as the price holds above the $114K breakout level, the medium-term structure remains strongly bullish.

The 4-Hour Chart

The 4H chart shows a clean breakout from the recent range and a near-vertical price expansion, confirming the daily momentum. After breaking above the descending channel, Bitcoin formed a strong impulsive leg. As a result, the RSI is now extremely elevated at 78+, hinting at potential short-term exhaustion.

The 4H chart also highlights the newly formed Fair Value Gaps stacked below the price, which could get revisited in the coming sessions or days. These FVGs can both attract the price and act as potential support. As long as BTC remains above the 114K block, short dips into this region would be considered bullish retests.

Moreover, if the price begins to range around the 121K–122K area, it would allow RSI to cool off and provide fresh momentum for the next breakout, without experiencing much correction.

Sentiment Analysis

Bitcoin Funding Rates

Funding rates have started to spike again, reflecting the surge in long-side leverage after the breakout. This sharp uptick in funding confirms that traders are aggressively chasing the move. While elevated funding is expected during trend continuations, it also introduces risk: the higher the leverage imbalance, the more vulnerable the market becomes to a flush.

Historically, when funding remains excessively positive while prices stall or consolidate, it often leads to a liquidation-driven pullback. So far, we haven’t seen aggressive spikes like those in Q1 2024, but it’s something to monitor closely.

If the asset fails to push higher while funding stays elevated, a quick shakeout into the 114K zone is possible. Until then, the sentiment remains bullish but slightly overheated, which aligns with current RSI readings and market structure.

 

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Disclaimer: Information found on CryptoPotato is those of writers quoted. It does not represent the opinions of CryptoPotato on whether to buy, sell, or hold any investments. You are advised to conduct your own research before making any investment decisions. Use provided information at your own risk. See Disclaimer for more information.

Cryptocurrency charts by TradingView.

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