Ethereum, you’ve officially done it—congratulations! The combined value of all staked Ether (ETH) is up to an all-time high of 35 million tokens. This new wave is indicative of increasing investor confidence and a tightening on the liquid supply of Ethereum.

More than 500,000 ETH has been staked just in the first half of June, lending even more credence to this trend. This increase in staking activity comes amid a more favorable regulatory environment in the U.S.

At present, more than 28.3% of Ethereum’s total supply is locked into smart contracts. This lock-up period effectively renders staked ETH unsellable for a predetermined amount of time. Investors are incentivized to stake their assets as it is a means of earning passive income.

Liquid staking protocols have played a major role in this increase. Lido by itself makes up more than 25% of the total staked Ether—which is a huge chunk of that 35 million ETH. Retail investor influence Binance and Coinbase together make up a comfortable 14.9% — 7.5% and 7.4% of the current staked Ether supply, respectively. Coinbase exchange has recently grown into Ethereum’s largest node operator. Its validators now control over 11.4% of the staked Ether supply, an enormous amount.

Ether accumulation addresses have recently reached an all-time high, holding 22.8 million ETH. These 6 million addresses are attributed to holders that have never sold any of their holdings. This indicates a high level of confidence in the long term value of Ethereum.

"strongest crypto assets in terms of long-term fundamentals and investor conviction" - Onchainschool

As you may already know, one of the key drivers bringing institutional adoption to Ethereum has been the creation of liquid staking infrastructure.

"significant percentage of [Lido’s TVL already comes from institutions" - Konstantin Lomashuk

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently issued enforcement guidance targeting cryptocurrency staking. Most in the crypto sphere greeted this development as a major step in the right direction on the regulatory front. According to the SEC, Ethereum's staking activities.

"don't need to register with the Commission transactions under the Securities Act" - SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance

"rising confidence and a continued drop in liquid supply" - Onchainschool

Industry insiders are counting the days until we see approval of the first Ether staking ETFs. This approval can be the catalyst for a wave of institutional investment and increased staking activity.