Stader Labs

Stader Labs is a leading Web3 platform specializing in liquid staking and decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions. The company enables users to stake crypto assets such as Ethereum, Polygon, BNB, and Hedera while retaining liquidity through tokenized representations of their staked holdings. Its platform integrates with more than 40 DeFi protocols across six major blockchains, offering seamless access to staking rewards, yield optimization and flexible DeFi participation. Renowned for its robust security audits and innovative staking model, Stader Labs is recognized as one of the most accessible and scalable staking solutions in the crypto ecosystem

Core Products and Services

• Liquid Staking: Users stake tokens (ETH, MATIC, BNB, HBAR, etc.) and receive liquid staking tokens (ETHx, MaticX, BNBx, etc.) that can be used across 40+ DeFi protocols, enabling yield farming, lending and more.

• Stake Pools: Pre-defined validator baskets grouped by performance, allowing users to diversify risk and optimize rewards.

• DeFi Integrations: Seamless participation in lending, borrowing and liquidity provision across leading DeFi platforms.

• Cross-Chain Staking: Single interface for staking across multiple blockchains, with automated compounding and real-time dashboards.

• Security & Auditing: Non-custodial smart contracts, multi-signature mechanisms, and regular audits by top security firms.

Key Milestones

• Raised over $40 million in equity and token sales, with major rounds led by Pantera Capital, Three Arrows Capital and participation from Coinbase Ventures, Accel, and others.

• Surpassed $1 billion in total value locked (TVL) at its peak, with 96,000+ users and 21,000+ stakers on Ethereum alone as of Q1 2024.

• Strategic partnerships with Aave, Balancer, Beefy Finance, Swissborg and Haven1.

• Recognized for security, with audits by Sigma Prime and Halborn and a $1 million bug bounty program.

Business Model & Revenue Streams

• Protocol Fees: Stader charges a percentage of staking rewards as protocol fees, typically ranging from 5–10% depending on the blockchain and product.

• SD Token Utility: The native SD token is used for governance and staking, with a portion of protocol revenue distributed to SD stakers.

• Ecosystem Partnerships: Revenue from DeFi integrations, validator partnerships and custom solutions for exchanges and custodians.

Customer Segmentation

• B2C: Retail crypto holders seeking yield and liquidity.

• B2B: Exchanges, custodians and DeFi protocols integrating Stader’s staking infrastructure.

Top Clients & Partnerships

• DeFi Protocols & Exchanges: Aave, Balancer, Beefy Finance, Swissborg, Haven1, Quickswap, Anchorage, BitGo, OKX, Gate.io, Bybit, Kucoin, Crypto.com.

• Institutional Backers: Pantera Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Jump Crypto, Accel, Three Arrows Capital, Blockchain.com, True Ventures, Huobi Ventures, Valar Ventures and others.

• Strategic Blockchain Partners: Supported natively on Ethereum, Polygon, BNB Chain, Hedera and Fantom.

• Client Concentration Risk: Stader’s multi-chain, multi-protocol approach and broad DeFi integrations significantly reduce dependency on any single client or ecosystem.

Future Outlook & Strategic Priorities

• Continued expansion into new blockchains (e.g., Solana, Avalanche, Aptos) and real-world asset (RWA) integrations.

• Launch of new DeFi products, including cross-chain liquidity strategies and staking-based ETFs.

• Strengthening partnerships with DeFi protocols and institutional custodians to drive adoption and TVL.

• Regulatory uncertainty around staking and DeFi in major jurisdictions.