By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 29th, 2024
In addition to these tech giants, several other firms have joined EigenLayer as operators, including Deutsche Telekom MMS, HashKey Cloud, P2P, Nethermind, Figment, Everstake, Kiln, and AltLayer.
Coinbase Cloud has announced its participation as one of the initial operators on EigenLayer and declared its readiness to partner with users interested in restaking their ETH or Liquid Staking Tokens (LSTs). Additionally, Sam Padilla, product manager at Google Cloud, shared the news that the Google Cloud EigenLayer mainnet operator is up and running.
In addition to these tech giants, several other firms have joined EigenLayer as operators, including Deutsche Telekom MMS, HashKey Cloud, P2P, Nethermind, Figment, Everstake, Kiln, and AltLayer. This diverse array of participants is a proof of the growing interest in decentralized technologies and the potential for the Decentralized Finance (DeFi) protocol to become a driving force in the industry.
This partnership is of great importance as it immediately enhances the protocol’s reputation and position in the market. Notably, in a release by Coinspeaker, it was revealed that EigenLayer has become a popular figure among users, ranking second as the second-largest DeFi protocol and boasting billions of dollars in total value locked (TVL). Hence, this collaboration further enables the DeFi protocol to gain access to unparalleled expertise, resources, and industry recognition. Moreover, the involvement of these industry giants shows the confidence they have in their vision of utilizing Ethereum’s security to improve decentralized services.
Understanding EigenLayer’s Restaking Model
EigenLayer is designed to leverage the security of the Ethereum network, which currently has over 31 million ETH staked, to secure a broader range of services. The protocol enables stakers to restake their assets, allowing them to secure additional networks beyond Ethereum.
For those interested in restaking their assets, using an Automated Validation Service (AVS) like EigenDA, they must delegate their entire stake to an operator who has opted into that specific AVS. If an operator opts into multiple AVSs, the stake delegated to them secures all of the AVSs they have chosen.
It further states the role of operators within its ecosystem, revealing that EigenDA’s active operator set at any given time comprises the largest 200 operators (by delegated stake) that have attempted to register. This operator set will expand over time, as the current limitation to 200 is due to gas cost constraints and the need to ensure a smooth and secure protocol launch. Eigen Labs is actively working on solutions to greatly expand the operator set.
Transaction Volumes Spike Launch Announcement
The launch of these projects has led to a spike in transaction volume for LRTs(Liquid Restaking Tokens (LRTs), according to a DeFi analytics platform called IntoTheBlock on X. It revealed that this uptick is primarily driven by the potential for an EigenDA airdrop and future earnings from AVS fees. It further noted that, top LRTs like EtherFi and RenzoProtocol have witnessed a particularly notable increase, as only the top 200 operators will initially be considered active operators for EigenDA.
LRT Transaction Volume is Spiking, Here's Why👇
🚀Since the announcement of the @eigenlayer mainnet launch and the introduction of @eigen_da , LRTs have witnessed a significant spike in transaction volume.
➖This uptick is primarily driven by anticipation around the potential… pic.twitter.com/jSRK5N0uHD
— IntoTheBlock (@intotheblock) April 10, 2024
The popularity among users and the surge in volume have also prompted large investors to push more funds into the project. This is reflected in the words of Elias Simos, CEO and Co-founder of Rated.
“Congratulations on the Mainnet launch, EigenLayer. All the largest operators on Ethereum are ready to restake,” said he.