What is Restaking?
Restaking through EigenLayer lets Ethereum stakers seek additional rewards by securing third-party Actively Validated Services (AVSs), while the underlying ETH continues to secure Ethereum. Users can participate through native restaking or by depositing supported liquid staking tokens (LSTs), such as Lido’s stETH. Additional restaking rewards come from other services, not from Ethereum’s staking protocol, and bring additional risks.
Staking, restaking and the token you hold
This reuse of staked ETH can improve capital efficiency: services can draw on existing stake and operators rather than build an entirely separate stake base. Liquid staking supplies an LST representing staked ETH; restaking adds security commitments; a liquid restaking token (LRT) represents a provider-managed restaked position. The routes overlap rather than representing independent pools of ETH.
Ethereum staking-to-restaking flow, using EigenLayer as an example:
• Native route: ETH → Ethereum validator configured to send withdrawals to an EigenPod smart contract → delegation to an operator → AVS security commitments.
• LST route: ETH → liquid staking pool → LST → deposit into EigenLayer contracts → delegation to an operator → AVS security commitments.
Providers such as Renzo can accept ETH or stETH, manage restaking and issue ezETH, a transferable receipt. Depositing an LST moves it from the wallet into contracts; the same token cannot also remain available for spending.
Route comparison: implementations and fees vary by provider.
| Route | Control and claim | Rewards | Slashing and loss exposure | Exit dependencies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct solo staking | Staker holds signing and withdrawal keys; no pool receipt needed | Ethereum validator rewards, including transaction fees | Ethereum consensus penalties and slashing | Ethereum exit and withdrawal processing |
| Liquid staking | Pool contracts/operators manage validators; holder owns an LST representing pooled ETH and rewards or penalties | Underlying Ethereum staking rewards, less provider fees | Underlying validator losses plus pool-contract risk | Market sale, or pool redemption subject to liquidity and withdrawals |
| Native restaking | User-managed EigenPod receives validator withdrawals; operator receives delegation | Ethereum staking plus applicable AVS rewards | Ethereum risk plus AVS slashing of allocated stake; added contract risk | EigenLayer escrow and checkpoint proofs; Ethereum withdrawals if validator funds are needed |
| Liquid-token restaking | Contracts hold deposited LSTs; depositor has accounting shares | LST staking accrual plus applicable AVS rewards | LST risks plus AVS slashing of allocated stake and restaking-contract risk | EigenLayer queue to recover LST; issuer redemption to obtain ETH |
| Liquid restaking receipt | Holder owns an LRT representing the provider’s restaked position | Underlying staking and applicable restaking rewards, subject to product terms | Underlying staking/restaking losses plus provider and receipt-contract risks | Market sale if liquid, or provider redemption with underlying exit dependencies |
Product labels can change
Liquid restaking providers issue receipts that can be used elsewhere in DeFi. The original February 2024 edition listed Ether.fi, Swell and Restake Finance. Those names are historical examples, not permanent product classifications. The Defiant’s August 2026 report on ether.fi’s separation of staking and restaking describes the change: weETH became a plain liquid staking token, while separate weETHs offered Symbiotic restaking exposure. Ether.fi’s documentation says eETH/weETH do not bundle additional restaking rewards or EigenLayer AVS slashing exposure. Its weETHs documentation also describes a credit allocation with counterparty and liquidity risks, so the LRT label alone does not identify every source of yield or loss.
Selling a receipt is different from redeeming it
Liquidity is not the same as redemption. A market sale transfers a receipt to a buyer or liquidity pool at the available price; it does not require the underlying validator to exit. Redemption asks the protocol to return underlying assets and may depend on restaking escrow, available liquidity and Ethereum withdrawals. The Defiant’s October 2026 report on Lighter accepting weETH as trading collateral explains ether.fi’s redemption dependencies and the additional liquidation risks of using a staking receipt to back trades.
Hypothetical example, not a live quote: suppose a receipt represents a protocol claim worth 1 ETH, but a buyer offers 0.97 ETH. Selling realizes 0.97 ETH before fees and transfers the claim. Requesting redemption instead waits for the protocol’s exit process; neither the completion time nor the final recoverable amount is guaranteed. With Lido specifically, stETH submitted to its withdrawal queue stops earning rewards and can still bear losses before finalization.
Where losses can arise
Capital efficiency does not make these risks independent. Ethereum’s protocol can penalize or slash the underlying validator. Under EigenLayer’s Unique Stake model, operators allocate portions of delegated stake to AVS operator sets, and each allocation is slashable only by the AVS responsible for that set. Delegating therefore exposes funds to the operator’s allocation choices. Losses can reduce the assets recoverable from a restaked position or its receipt; holding a liquid token does not remove the underlying risk.
Correction (2026-11-01): Restaked ETH is not uniformly controlled by a single entity, EIGEN claims opened on May 10, 2024, and Ethereum consensus does not depend on EigenLayer as the original diagram could imply.
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