Key Takeaways
- • Ethereum staking reached an all-time high of 43.80 million ETH, or 35.9% of supply, with net inflows of 1.99 million ETH marking a sixth consecutive quarter of growth, according to Bitwise's Q4 2026 Staking Report.
- • Staking yields declined across major networks even as stake rose: Solana's gross yield fell to 5.99% from 6.38%, and Ethereum's fell to 2.63% from 2.81%, while Hyperliquid's held broadly flat at 2.24%.
- • Validator counts fell on Ethereum (about 1.1 million to 881,000) due to operator consolidation under Pectra, and on Solana (696 to 659), which Bitwise attributes to cost pressure.
- • Tokenized equity volume on Solana reached $6.93 billion, up 45%, while non-crypto markets accounted for 36.5% of Hyperliquid's perpetuals volume.
- • Robinhood Chain generated over $50 million in fees in its first quarter, and its average daily Stock Token volume rose 22x from July to September.
Summary
Bitwise Asset Management's Q4 2026 Staking Report finds that proof-of-stake networks are growing in capacity and in the range of assets and services built on them, even as the cost of securing them declines. Q3 2026 saw a major market upturn alongside the continued emergence of tokenized stocks, perpetuals, and cross-chain settlement, along with new entrants such as Robinhood, whose chain generated over $50 million in fees in its first quarter.
At the protocol level, total stake is rising while costs and rewards fall. Ethereum ended the quarter with more stake securing it than at any point in its history: 43.80 million ETH, or 35.9% of supply, after net inflows of 1.99 million ETH. That marks a sixth consecutive quarter of growth. Both Ethereum and Solana are substantially cheaper to use than a year ago, but the reward for securing them fell again this quarter. Bitwise characterizes the trend as "growth got cheaper" and notes that this was largely by design.
Yields compressed across the networks covered. Solana ended the quarter with 69% of supply staked at a 5.99% gross yield, down from 6.38%. NEAR had 46% of supply staked at a 4.87% yield. Ethereum's yield was 2.63%, down from 2.81%. Hyperliquid had 436 million HYPE staked at 2.24%, broadly unchanged.
Validator counts moved in opposite directions for different reasons. Ethereum's validator count dropped from about 1.1 million to 881,000 as operators consolidated under the Pectra upgrade, meaning fewer validator records with the same ETH behind them. Solana's validator count fell from 696 to 659, roughly 30% lower than a year earlier, which Bitwise attributes to cost pressure.
Onchain traditional markets are expanding quickly. Tokenized equity volume on Solana reached $6.93 billion, up 45%. Non-crypto markets made up 36.5% of Hyperliquid's perpetuals volume. On Robinhood Chain, average daily Stock Token volume rose 22x from July to September. The full report covers Ethereum, Solana, Hyperliquid, Robinhood Chain, and NEAR. Bitwise Asset Management, which reports $9 billion in client assets and over 70 investment products, published the report.
At the protocol level, total stake is rising while costs and rewards fall. Ethereum ended the quarter with more stake securing it than at any point in its history: 43.80 million ETH, or 35.9% of supply, after net inflows of 1.99 million ETH. That marks a sixth consecutive quarter of growth. Both Ethereum and Solana are substantially cheaper to use than a year ago, but the reward for securing them fell again this quarter. Bitwise characterizes the trend as "growth got cheaper" and notes that this was largely by design.
Yields compressed across the networks covered. Solana ended the quarter with 69% of supply staked at a 5.99% gross yield, down from 6.38%. NEAR had 46% of supply staked at a 4.87% yield. Ethereum's yield was 2.63%, down from 2.81%. Hyperliquid had 436 million HYPE staked at 2.24%, broadly unchanged.
Validator counts moved in opposite directions for different reasons. Ethereum's validator count dropped from about 1.1 million to 881,000 as operators consolidated under the Pectra upgrade, meaning fewer validator records with the same ETH behind them. Solana's validator count fell from 696 to 659, roughly 30% lower than a year earlier, which Bitwise attributes to cost pressure.
Onchain traditional markets are expanding quickly. Tokenized equity volume on Solana reached $6.93 billion, up 45%. Non-crypto markets made up 36.5% of Hyperliquid's perpetuals volume. On Robinhood Chain, average daily Stock Token volume rose 22x from July to September. The full report covers Ethereum, Solana, Hyperliquid, Robinhood Chain, and NEAR. Bitwise Asset Management, which reports $9 billion in client assets and over 70 investment products, published the report.
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