By
Steve Muchoki
April 23rd, 2024
The MetaMask marketplace provides institutional players with a one-click crypto staking experience by offering all the necessary tools to build their Web3 portfolio.
On Wednesday, March 22, ConsenSys announced that its Web3 wallet for enterprises aka MetaMask Institutional unveiled the first institutional staking marketplace in partnership with Allnodes, Kiln, and Blockdaemon.
MetaMask Marketplace for Institutional Staking
This new marketplace will leverage ConsenSys’ native technology aka ConsenSys staking which seeks to provide simplified and unmatched access to institutional staking. However, institutional staking facilities come with their own complexities and can deter companies from further participation. The MetaMask institutional marketplace seeks to provide a level playing field by working along with its partners and offering a one-click staking experience to organizations.
One of the biggest challenges with institutional staking is choosing the right vendor. This involves considering several factors such as rebates, fees charged, reporting standards, and terms and conditions. Also, different staking providers offer different benefits to institutions such as differences in infrastructure like multi-cloud, multi-client, or multi-region.
The MetaMask Institutional marketplace seeks to reduce this complexity by streamlining access to some of the top staking providers that offer institutional-grade reporting, standardized terms and conditions, and also access to simplified staking experience for broader institutional web3 participation. Speaking on the development, MetaMask Institutional Product Lead Johann Bornman said:
“The Ethereum Merge last year was one of the most profound accomplishments in the history of Crypto—resulting in increased economic security, reduced energy costs, and client diversity. With withdrawals coming soon, we believe institutional demand to secure the world’s computer will surge. We are delighted to work with these ‘best-in-breed’ staking partners. We believe MetaMask Institutional can play a unique role in providing unrivaled and seamless staking access to all organizations”.
Crypto Staking and SEC
The latest development from MetaMask comes at a time when the US SEC has been aggressively going after crypto-staking service providers. In fact, the SEC believes that crypto staking comes under their jurisdiction as securities laws are applicable.
Although Thereum’s transition to a Proof-of-Stake blockchain last year got institutional players interested, the SEC has its eyes on it. However, the good thing is that despite these regulatory distractions, MetaMask is moving ahead with this new service. MetaMasklaunched the staking functionality for its users just two months back and now this is yet another significant step by the platform.
Alongside engaging with staking service providers, dealing with institutions require multiple custodial integrations. This binds the institutions to the custodian that the staking service provider has to offer. MetaMask Institutional has democratized this process by joining hands with 11 custody and self-custody platforms globally. This would give institutions seamless and unrivaled access to staking providers.
Along with the marketplace, MetaMask Institutional offers a powerful Web3 portfolio interface, while offering a range of cutting-edge tools that would allow organizations to manage how they interact with Web3.
The Web3 Portfolio dashboard by MetaMask Institutional offers clients “institutional controls, portfolio management, digital asset monitoring, and transaction reporting, all in one place”.