Anchorage Digital launches institutional staking for Starknet

Anchorage Digital, the only federally chartered crypto bank in the U.S., has rolled out custody and staking services for Starknet’s native token, STRK.

The move makes Anchorage the first qualified custodian to offer institutional-grade staking for the Layer 2 network, a milestone in the adoption of Starknet’s ecosystem.

According to a Sept. 3 announcement, the new service allows institutions to securely stake STRK through Anchorage Digital Bank in the U.S., Anchorage Digital Singapore, or the platform’s self-custody Porto wallet.

Participants can earn yield while also assisting in network security, with the current estimated 7.28% APR offered by the staking program.

Institutional access to Starknet

Starknet (STRK), the Layer 2 scaling network developed by StarkWare, lowers fees and boosts throughput for Ethereum (ETH) and Bitcoin (BTC) applications by utilizing zero-knowledge proofs. By adding staking to its custody services, Anchorage is giving institutions a controlled way to join the network without sacrificing security or compliance standards.

Anchorage CEO Nathan McCauley said the goal is to “give institutions safe and seamless access to growing crypto ecosystems.” At the same time, StarkWare co-founder Eli Ben-Sasson highlighted the partnership as a sign of “growing demand for robust, secure staking options” from both developers and financial institutions.

Growth of the Starknet ecosystem

The launch comes after several recent milestones in Starknet’s staking ecosystem. SNIP-31, which added Bitcoin staking to the network and enabled wrapped BTC assets to receive STRK rewards, was approved by the community in August. The update positioned Starknet as a competitor in the growing BTCfi market and brought it closer to Bitcoin’s liquidity.

Other major developments include the migration of Extended, a perpetual DEX, onto Starknet with support for liquid staking tokens and the launch of new validator programs to encourage decentralization. As of this writing, more than 480 million STRK have been staked on the network, and more delegation programs are being rolled out to increase the number of validators. 

Anchorage’s help has added an institutional layer to this growth by providing large investors with a safe and regulated way to engage in STRK staking. For Starknet, it is another step in integrating its technology with major financial players, while for institutions, it offers a direct path to staking rewards on one of Ethereum’s most advanced scaling networks.