- Bitwise reported Ethereum reached a record 40.2 million ETH staked as institutional investors continued increasing participation.
- Solana led staking participation at 68%, while Hyperliquid, Near, and Avalanche also recorded strong staking activity.
- Network usage increased across major blockchains even as protocol fee revenue declined due to lower transaction costs.
Bitwise has released its first quarterly Staking Report, showing record staking participation and rising blockchain activity despite lower fee revenue across major proof-of-stake networks. Published on July 23, the report covers Ethereum, Solana, Hyperliquid, Avalanche, Near, and Tempo. According to Bitwise, institutional participation continued growing even as digital asset prices and protocol revenue moved lower.
Ethereum Staking Climbs To New High
According to Bitwise, Ethereum reached a record 40.2 million ETH staked during the quarter. That total represents 33% of the network’s circulating supply.
The report said institutional investors drove much of the recent growth. Staking exchange-traded funds, corporate treasuries, and other large holders continued adding ETH despite weaker market prices.
Meanwhile, Ethereum’s transaction activity increased sharply. Quarterly transactions rose from 121.1 million to 203.9 million, while throughput climbed from 15 to 26 transactions per second.
However, Ethereum’s fee revenue declined 51% year over year to about $64 million. According to Bitwise, lower fees reflected intentionally cheaper and more abundant blockspace rather than weaker demand.
Solana Leads Staking Participation
Beyond Ethereum, Bitwise found consistently high staking participation across the networks it analyzed. Solana recorded the highest staking ratio at 68%, followed by Near at 45%, Hyperliquid at 44%, and Avalanche at 41%.
The report also highlighted growing institutional participation on newer networks. According to Bitwise, Coinbase and Circle each recently staked 500,000 HYPE tokens on Hyperliquid.
Additionally, Solana maintained heavy network usage with 9.8 billion non-vote transactions during the reporting period. Bitwise also reported that tokenized equities trading volume on Solana increased from $1.34 million to $3.32 billion over the previous 12 months.
Activity Rose While Fees Declined
Bitwise said a clear pattern emerged across the networks. Activity and staking continued increasing while protocol fee revenue generally declined.
According to the report, Avalanche processed four times more transactions than a year earlier, reaching 236 million on its C-Chain. The firm attributed the broader revenue decline to protocol upgrades that intentionally lowered transaction costs.
The inaugural report, authored by Bitwise Head of Onchain Research Kam Benbrik and Protocol Researcher Rafal Klich, said institutional staking continued expanding across established and emerging proof-of-stake networks while network usage remained resilient.
