Published
1 year ago on
April 17, 2023
Table of Contents
The finalization of Ethereum’s Shanghai hard fork, also known as Shapella, was completed at around 22:42 UTC.
The completion marks a new era for Ethereum, allowing users to withdraw their staked ETH and secure and validate transactions conducted on the Ethereum blockchain.
Over One Million ETH Withdrawn
With the Shanghai fork going live, Ethereum stakers could finally withdraw their staked ETH. The ETH had been staked since the time the Beacon Chain began accepting deposits in late 2020. According to data sourced from token.unlocks, the current amount of ETH withdrawn stands at around 1.02 million coins. Meanwhile, the amount of ETH deposited since the Shanghai hard fork went live stands at 373,040. This creates a net staking balance of around -646,210.
Currently, just under 15% of the total ETH supply remains deposited and locked. This amounts to just over 17.3 million ETH, worth just a shade over $36 billion. On the other hand, the amount of ETH, including pending withdrawal rewards, fell below the $2 billion mark. This figure had topped out just a day prior, reaching $3 billion. Currently, around 887,880 ETH is queued and waiting to be withdrawn. The value of this ETH at current prices is around $1.84 billion.
According to estimates, around $62.65 million worth of ETH will be withdrawn over the next 11-12 hours. This would result in an average withdrawal of around $125 million per day. The price of ETH is hovering around $2100 while staking APR. However, looking at the overall numbers, it looks like the Shanghai Upgrade has only had a minimal impact on the Ethereum protocol and the ETH token. According to data from Nansen,ai, there has only been a 0.25% change in staked ETH. Andrew Thurman from Nansen stated on Twitter that a majority of the withdrawals are addresses that are withdrawing just their rewards rather than their full stake.
CryptoQuant had noted in March that a majority of all staked ETH was facing a loss and that selling pressure would be relatively low after the Shanghai upgrade.
Kraken Leads Unstaking Numbers
According to the on-chain data published by Rated network explorer, out of all the validators that are unstaking their tokens, Kraken makes up 62%. According to Parsec Finance, the number of validators awaiting exit stands at just under 21,500. Kraken’s significant dominance when it comes to unstaking should not come as a surprise given the barrage of legal issues the exchange is currently facing in the United States, thanks to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
SEC Goes After Kraken
Back in February, the SEC stated that Kraken’s staking offerings were unregistered securities. In a statement released at the time, the SEC stated,
“The complaint alleges that Kraken touts that its staking investment program offers an easy-to-use platform and benefits that derive from Kraken’s efforts on behalf of investors, including Kraken’s strategies to obtain regular investment returns and payouts.”
In the end, Kraken had to settle with the SEC, paying a fine of $30 million.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Investment Disclaimer
