EigenLayer rolls out ‘major update’ to restaking contracts

Eigen Labs, the developer behind EigenLayer, deployed a “major update” to the restaking protocol aimed at “making native [Ether] restaking on EigenLayer easier and more rewarding,” according to a Sept. 4 blog post.

The upgrade is designed to improve the performance of so-called EigenPods — EigenLayer’s restaking smart contracts for Ether (ETH) staked on Ethereum’s Beacon Chain — by granting users greater flexibility in harvesting or reinvesting staking rewards. 

“EigenPod users can now complete a checkpoint to restake their beacon chain ETH rewards on top of their existing EigenPod balance,” Eigen Labs said. “Beacon chain rewards are automatically restaked back into EigenLayer, enabling restakers to earn additional rewards.”

The upgrade also seeks to improve EigenLayer’s user interface, according to the post. 

Related: EigenLayer’s EigenDA to support layer-2 native token restaking

Restaking involves taking a token that has already been staked — posted as collateral with a validator in exchange for rewards — and using it to secure other protocols simultaneously. EigenLayer currently commands approximately $11.5 billion in total value locked (TVL), according to DefiLlama.

EigenLayer supports a growing constellation of “actively validated services” (AVS) — protocols secured using EigenLayer’s restaked ETH. The largest EigenLayer AVSs include EigenDA, Lagrange State Committees, and ARPA network.

EigenDA, EigenLayer’s data availability protocol, was the first AVS launched on EigenLayer and also the biggest. It is secured by some 3.5 million restaked ETH contributed by more than 123,000 restakers, according to EigenLayer’s website.

In August, EigenDA began supporting native token restaking for layer-2 scaling networks, in addition to ETH and EigenLayer’s native EIGEN token. 

“Teams can now restake their ERC-20 token to secure a custom quorum for their rollup, unlocking stronger security for rollup users and token yield for token holders,” according to the Aug. 26 post on the X platform. 

Restaking will eventually become mainstream, but yields are still speculative and risks are uncertain, Mike Silagadze, CEO of liquid restaking protocol Ether.fi, said on Aug. 13.

“The only way this makes sense long term is if restaking networks get customers, and those customers, directly or indirectly, pay money for the services that these other restaking networks provide,” Silagadze said. “But on the flip side, I think it’s inevitable.”

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