Crypto Staking is the act of holding a specific number of supported tokens for a period of time in the hope of earning rewards and, at the same time, contributing to the tokens’ governance. As the term implies, it only applies to tokens that employ the Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus algorithm, such as EOS, Tezos, Cosmos and VSYS.
What is the Bitfinex Staking Program
Bitfinex offers a soft staking program allowing you to earn rewards by holding specific digital tokens. Weekly rewards can be earned by holding the staking supported tokens on the Bitfinex platform.
Important: You can continue trading, offering Margin Funding, and using the tokens normally inside the platform while still receiving your rewards.
For information on what staking is and how it works, please feel free to read our blog article Bitfinex guide to cryptocurrency staking.
Staking Rewards on Bitfinex — Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
— How can I start staking my tokens at Bitfinex?
If your tokens are not Ethereum and are among the staking-enabled tokens, every week, we’ll distribute the staking rewards we collect to users who held the tokens in their Bitfinex account. You don’t have to do anything in particular.
Note: If you want to stake Ethereum, you’d need to convert your ETH into ETH2 first. Please refer to our guide Ethereum 2.0 Staking for detailed information on how to start staking your Ethereum holdings
— How frequently will I receive staking rewards?
Staking rewards are paid out weekly.
We take a mid-week account balance snapshot and distribute the rewards based on the number of tokens being held at that time.
Important: Staking rewards are calculated and distributed to Bitfinex by the token network. There is no set reward distribution timeframe or policy that determines who receives rewards. As a result, Bitfinex cannot guarantee that you will get staking rewards every week or on a constant basis.
— Is there a minimum/maximum digital token holdings requirement to start staking?
There is no minimum to begin staking with us. However, to avoid unnecessary stress on our system, we do set a minimum amount of staking rewards before you become eligible to receive a staking reward. That threshold is generally set at a number of tokens that is valued at around $0.50 (Minimum Reward) per token per week.
If, based on the number of tokens you have staked, the amount of the staking reward is less than the Minimum Reward, you will not receive a staking reward for that week.
— Do I have to pay fees to use this service?
No. We keep a small portion of the staking rewards we collect and deposit the rest into the accounts of our users. In some cases, our staking service provider also retains a portion of rewards collected by the digital tokens we stake.
— Is it safe, and how does Bitfinex stake my digital tokens?
Yes, the staked digital tokens never leave our cold wallets.
To further minimise risk (e.g., from slashing and to ensure we can accommodate withdrawals), we only stake a portion of the digital tokens we hold.
Every digital token has its own way of implementing the staking mechanic, but the process usually begins with us using our cold wallet funds in order to delegate votes to a chosen validator node.
Note: Staking provides a layer of governance to its network participants that help to make the network more secure, and for that, network participants are rewarded.
— Who makes the governance decisions with my tokens?
For chains that implement governance mechanisms into their protocol, Bitfinex will not actively take part in any governance events using your tokens other than delegating to a trusted node of our choosing. Where we have partnered with a staking service provider, we will generally allow that service provider to make decisions regarding governance without our input.
— How do I stake Ethereum (ETH2)?
In order to stake ETH2, you must opt-in.
ETH2 staking is highly experimental and risky. Please ensure you independently assess, understand and accept the related risks before deciding to stake.
Please refer to our guide Ethereum 2.0 Staking for detailed information on how to stake ETH2.
— Will I still be able to trade or withdraw my staked tokens?
It depends on the tokens you’re staking. For tokens other than Ethereum, you are able to trade your staked tokens. However, some staked tokens are locked for a period of time, depending on the protocol.
We stake only a portion of the digital tokens we own to facilitate withdrawals. If withdrawals by other users exceed the amount of un-staked tokens held by us, withdrawals may be delayed until the staked tokens are released. The duration of any potential delay would be determined by the protocol in use.
If you are staking Ethereum (ETH2), you will not be able to withdraw your staked ETH2 because of the way the Ethereum protocol works, but there is a market for trading ETH2 on Bitfinex. Once you choose to stake ETH2, that decision is final and irreversible. Rewards earned on staked ETH2 will be reflected as a balance of ETH2 Rewards in your account.
Note: You can refer to our token specific terms for ETH2 and ETH2 Rewards for more detailed information.
— Where can I see the rewards on my Reports?
You can see your weekly accredited staking rewards in your Reports under Staking Earnings or in your Ledger Reports with a description of Staking Reward.
Important: For more information on the Bitfinex Staking Program, please refer here.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Bitfinex Support. We are happy to help!
