Bitget App
Trade smarter
Buy cryptoMarketsTradeFuturesEarnSquareMore
What’s Behind the Massive $2.6 Billion in Ethereum Unstaking?

What’s Behind the Massive $2.6 Billion in Ethereum Unstaking?

CoinspeakerCoinspeaker2025/07/25 16:00
By:By Bhushan Akolkar Editor Kirsten Thijssen

The Ethereum network is experiencing its largest validator exit wave to date, with nearly 693,000 ETH, worth a massive $2.6 billion.

Key Notes

  • The recent ETH unstaking surpassed the January 2024 Celsius-driven spike and has exit wait times as high as 12 days.
  • Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood attributes part of the withdrawals to institutional reallocation of staked ETH into digital asset treasury firms, such as SharpLink Gaming and Bitmine Technologies.
  • According to staking provider Everstake, the surge in exits reflects a shift in validator strategies, such as restaking and optimizing returns.

The Ethereum blockchain network is seeing massive unstaking activity from validators and long-term holders, which was partially the reason behind the ETH price pullback earlier this week. The ETH unstaking requests have surged to an 18-month high, hitting a whopping $2.6 billion. Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood explains the key reason behind these massive withdrawal requests.

Ethereum Unstaking Requests Hit Record $2.6 Billion

Ethereum’s validator exit queue has surged to a record high, with nearly 693,000 ETH, worth $2.6 billion, now awaiting withdrawal. This marks the largest exit wave since the network’s staking mechanism went live.

According to on-chain data, exit wait times have extended to 12 days, underscoring the magnitude of the current exodus. In contrast, staking demand remains significantly lower, with only 296,000 ETH currently queued for entry.

The last time the exit queue was anywhere near this high was on January 5, 2024 at ~518K $ETH .

That spike was triggered by Celsius mass-unstaking ~206K $ETH to repay creditors, which clogged the queue for almost a week.

Today’s wave has already surpassed that record. pic.twitter.com/RDbOXfhVeZ

— CryptoRank.io (@CryptoRank_io) July 25, 2025

The previous peak in exit activity occurred on January 5, 2024, when the queue reached around 518,000 ETH. That spike was driven by Celsius, which initiated the mass-unstaking of roughly 206,000 ETH to meet creditor obligations.

Amid these huge unstaking requests, the ETH price saw a pullback to $3,550 earlier this week. However, it has recovered since and is trading higher amid strong inflows into spot Ether ETFs. As of press time, the ETH price is trading 3% higher at $3,761, with its market cap surpassing $454 billion.

Cathie Wood, Experts Share No Cause of Concern

Crypto industry veterans and experts view this ETH unstaking activity as a normal occurrence. Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood shared a few plausible reasons behind this development.

Wood attributes some of the ETH unstaking to Robinhood, introducing a new incentive by offering a 2% match on crypto transfers to its platform, to attract more digital asset investors.

But she added that at the same time, venture capitalists and institutional investors are reportedly reallocating staked Ethereum (ETH) into digital asset treasury (DAT) firms. Players like SharpLink Gaming and Bitmine Technologies have been on aggressive ETH accumulation over the past month. This, coupled with strong Ethereum ETF inflows from BlackRock, shows that the institutional demand stays intact.

Staking platform Everstake said the recent spike in Ethereum’s validator exit queue should not be seen as a sign of fear or network instability, but rather a “shift” in strategy. According to the protocol, many validators are likely to restake, rotate operators, or optimize their positions.

0

Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.

PoolX: Earn new token airdrops
Lock your assets and earn 10%+ APR
Lock now!

You may also like

After bitcoin returns to $90,000, is Christmas or a Christmas crash coming next?

This Thanksgiving, we are grateful for bitcoin returning to $90,000.

BlockBeats2025/11/28 08:43
After bitcoin returns to $90,000, is Christmas or a Christmas crash coming next?

Bitcoin security reaches a historic high, but miner revenue drops to a historic low. Where will mining companies find new sources of income?

The current paradox of the Bitcoin network is particularly striking: while the protocol layer has never been more secure due to high hash power, the underlying mining industry is facing pressure from capital liquidation and consolidation.

区块链骑士2025/11/28 08:23
Bitcoin security reaches a historic high, but miner revenue drops to a historic low. Where will mining companies find new sources of income?

What are the privacy messaging apps Session and SimpleX donated by Vitalik?

Why did Vitalik take action? From content encryption to metadata privacy.

ForesightNews 速递2025/11/28 08:23
What are the privacy messaging apps Session and SimpleX donated by Vitalik?

The covert war escalates: Hyperliquid faces a "kamikaze" attack, but the real battle may have just begun

The attacker incurred a loss of 3 million in a "suicidal" attack, but may have achieved breakeven through external hedging. This appears more like a low-cost "stress test" targeting the protocol's defensive capabilities.

ForesightNews 速递2025/11/28 08:23
The covert war escalates: Hyperliquid faces a "kamikaze" attack, but the real battle may have just begun