What is Crypto Assets staking? (Crypto Staking)

1. Overview

Crypto Assets staking refers to users locking their held Crypto Assets in a blockchain network or trading platform to support the network consensus mechanism (such as PoS/PoS derivative mechanisms) and earn a certain proportion of rewards or interest income. Unlike Mining, staking does not require high-performance hardware; it only requires available tokens and an online address to participate, thus achieving a win-win situation of asset appreciation and network security contribution.

2. The Principles and Mechanisms of Crypto Assets Staking

Introduction to PoS and PoS Derivative Mechanisms
Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism

• PoS is a more energy-efficient consensus mechanism compared to traditional Proof of Work (PoW). Network nodes need to stake a certain amount of coins (Stake) to gain the right to produce blocks or validate transactions. The more coins staked, the higher the probability of being selected as a block producer or validator; upon successful validation, one can earn block rewards or transaction fees.
• Typical representatives: Ethereum 2.0 (ETH2), Polkadot (DOT), Cardano (ADA), etc.
  PoS Derivative Mechanism
• Some projects (such as Tezos, NEAR, and Algorand) introduce "Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS)" or "Authorized Validator Mechanism" based on PoS, allowing ordinary users to delegate their tokens to professional nodes, which are responsible for packaging and verification, while users share rewards proportionally.

  How does staking generate income

  • Staking Fee Rate (Staking APR/APY): Typically, the project team will set a basic annualized return rate (APR) or annualized comprehensive return rate (APY) as an incentive for stakers to participate in network security and governance.
  • Reward Distribution Method:
• Native staking: Users send coins to the designated staking contract address, and the project chain automatically calculates rewards and distributes them periodically (such as hourly, daily, or weekly).
• Platform Centralized Staking: The exchange or third-party service provider aggregates user stakes and centrally delegates them to nodes, with the service provider managing and distributing the profits uniformly, so users do not need to deploy nodes themselves.
  By staking, users can both earn passive income and enhance network security and decentralization.

  3. Advantages and Value of Crypto Assets Stake

Passive Income
Lock idle digital assets for network security and consensus to earn stake rewards. Compared to simply holding coins, staking can achieve "appreciation" of assets.

Cybersecurity and Governance Contribution
Participate in the consensus and governance of PoS/DPoS networks, enhancing the security and decentralization of the entire blockchain ecosystem, and have the right to participate in on-chain governance activities such as proposal voting and parameter adjustments.

Lower the threshold
Compared to PoW, which requires expensive hardware and electricity costs, staking only requires holding a sufficient number of tokens and transferring them into a staking contract or platform, allowing participation without technical barriers.

Liquidity Enhancement
With the development of DEFI (Decentralized Finance), the "Liquid Staking" scheme has emerged, where users can receive corresponding derivative tokens (such as stETH, sDOT, etc.) after staking. Users can invest these derivative coins into liquidity mining, lending, and other scenarios to continue increasing the value of their funds.

Project Ecosystem Incentives
Some new projects will distribute new tokens to early stakers through staking activities (such as airdrops, dividends, Launchpool, etc.), helping to achieve higher additional returns.

Four Types of Crypto Assets Stake

1. On-Chain Native Stake
   • Users directly stake tokens to the on-chain contract address provided by the project party, and rewards are automatically allocated by the on-chain protocol.
   • Example: Ethereum stake (ETH2), Polkadot stake (DOT), Cardano stake (ADA).
2. Custodial/Exchange Staking
   • Exchanges (such as Gate, Binance, Coinbase) or staking service providers hold user assets, centrally entrusted to verification nodes. Users do not need to deploy nodes, they only need to complete staking on the platform.
   • Gate "On-chain Earning Coin" is a typical example, supporting staking of various on-chain/cross-chain assets such as GT, BTC, ETH, DOT.
3. Liquid Staking
   • After users stake their tokens, they receive derivative tokens of equivalent value (such as stETH, etc.). Derivative tokens can be traded on decentralized exchanges or participate in other DeFi protocols, balancing staking rewards and secondary liquidity.
   • For example: projects like Lido Finance and Rocket Pool provide liquidity staking services for Ethereum 2.0.
4. Stake Pool
   • Small investors concentrate their tokens into a staking pool, operated by professional nodes, with the earnings within the pool distributed proportionally. This is suitable for users whose coin holdings are insufficient for individual staking.
   • Most DeFi platforms and some PoS public chains will launch officially or third-party operated stake pools.

Compliance Suggestions:

1. Choose well-known and community-active PoS/DPoS projects to reduce the risk of project abandonment or technical issues.
2. Complete centralized stake on large, reputable exchanges (such as Gate), where the platform will conduct strict security and compliance reviews of the projects.
3. Pay attention to changes in regulatory policies in various countries, especially regarding tax reporting and compliance requirements.

Risk Warning: This content does not constitute any offer, solicitation, or advice. You should always seek independent professional advice before making any investment decisions. Please note that Gate may restrict or prohibit all or part of its services from restricted areas. The Crypto Assets market is highly volatile, and investment should be approached with caution.