The Ethereum network went through one of its major upgrades recently. The much-awaited Shanghai upgrade came with one key feature: the ability to withdraw staked ETH.
There were concerns that ETH’s staking protocol could lead to a surge in withdrawals and a drop in value. But, contrary to those expectations, ETH’s value increased and surpassed the $2,000 mark. However, at press time, ETH had dropped to $1,831.
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Moreover, the selling pressure seems to be low. This is due to the fact that the Shapella upgrade is likely not to cause a sell-off due to the current state of staked ETH holdings. But, one noticeable thing has happened to the Ethereum network. This is nothing but increased institutional investor staking.
Ethereum investors stake over 572k ETH
According to the latest data from Dune Analytics, Ethereum investors have ramped up their staking game to make profits. The latest data reveals that over 571,950 ETH have been deposited into staking contracts. This has brought the current number of staked ETH to 16,353,927. Data from TokenUnlocks reveals that at present, there are around 623.22k ETH pending withdrawal. The net staking balance yesterday stood at 41.26k ETH.
Ethereum and the whole cryptocurrency market have gone into a downward spiral in the last week, with BTC and ETH losing double-digit gains.