EigenLayer, an Ethereum restaking protocol boasting over $13 billion in assets, has officially launched on the blockchain’s mainnet. However, some key features, including in-protocol payments to operators from actively validated services (AVS) and a slashing mechanism for validators, are yet to be implemented and are expected to go live sometime in 2024.
The protocol announced its mainnet launch in an April 9 blog post, indicating that while restakers can now delegate their restaked ETH balance to EigenLayer operators, features like in-protocol payments and slashing will be introduced later this year, after the EigenLayer marketplace has developed and stabilized.
Galaxy Digital‘s vice president of research, Christine Kim, expressed skepticism about the absence of restaking rewards, highlighting the promise of restaking protocols to allow users to earn rewards for restaking their already-staked ETH tokens.
So there’s still no restaking rewards ? https://t.co/zryQxpv5JF
— Christine Kim (@christine_dkim) April 10, 2024
Coinbase analysts cautioned about the potential risks associated with restaking, noting that while it could increase earnings, it could also compound risks as funds are transferred among multiple protocols, potentially leading to complex security and financial issues.
In addition to its mainnet launch, EigenLayer introduced a data availability service called EigenDA, the first AVS to launch on the protocol. However, other AVS will need to register with EigenLayer and cannot deploy fully at this time.
Despite the launch, Kim expressed doubts about the significance of EigenDA, emphasizing that the success of restaking protocols depends heavily on economics and risk-reward balance, which are yet to be fully implemented in EigenLayer.
i don’t get why everyone’s hyped about this @eigen_da news, 99% of getting restaking right depends on the economics, balancing risk with reward, there’s still no risk (ie slashing) or reward (ie AVS payouts) live on @eigenlayer, SO there’s no restaking really happening yet imo
— Christine Kim (@christine_dkim) April 10, 2024
EigenLayer currently boasts a total value locked of $13.33 billion, making it one of the largest decentralized finance protocols, according to DeFiLlama.
It surpassed Aave in early March to become the second-largest protocol behind Lido, which has $33 billion in locked value.
