Binance Announces Launch Of Ether-Based Liquid Staking Product

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has announced a new and significant upgrade to its ETH 2.0 staking service, which will be rebranded to ETH staking. 

From the 27th of April 2023, Binance will introduce the Wrapped Beacon ETH (WBETH) on the ETH staking platform. 

The WBETH Solution 

Binance unveiled its latest staking offering through a Twitter post on its official handle. 

“Introducing Wrapped Beacon ETH (WBETH) on #Binance ETH Staking, available from the 27th of April at 8 am UTC. WBETH allows you to use DeFi while continuing to receive your $ETH staking rewards.”

The latest staking solution from Binance is built on the Ethereum Network and puts Binance in the company of other liquid staking products such as Coinbase, Lido, Frax, and Rocket Pool. The new WBETH tokens will allow users to participate in DeFi initiatives outside the Binance exchange. In an official announcement, Binance stated, 

“Binance is rebranding ETH 2.0 Staking to ETH Staking and introducing Wrapped Beacon ETH (WBETH) on the ETH Staking service, effective from 2023-04-27 08:00 (UTC). WBETH is a new liquid staking token, where 1 WBETH represents 1 BETH and the total staking rewards accrued by the BETH token on ETH Staking after 2023-04-27 08:00 (UTC).”

A Few Details 

Following the launch, 1 WBETH token will be the equivalent of 1 BETH. According to Binance, users will be able to create WBETH by depositing 1 ETH and vice versa. Binance stated, 

“Each WBETH token will accrue ETH Staking rewards daily, in accordance with the daily APR on ETH Staking.”

Furthermore, to support the daily updates when it comes to the BETH/WBETH conversion rates, the “wrap” and “unwrap” functions will be paused each day at a predefined time. Binance will also continue to support its BETH/BUSD, BETH/USDT, and BETH/ETH spot trading pairings. However, users can also keep their BETH tokens in their spot wallets and receive daily staking rewards, and utilize the WBETH tokens to participate in DeFi projects. 

Adding WBETH to Binance’s ETH staking service also gives users greater control over how they receive their staking payouts. The new token will allow users to access DeFi projects on other networks besides Binance. As a result, users can expand and diversify their crypto portfolios. Binance has stated that it has also created two smart contracts for the WBETH token, one for Ethereum and the other for the Binance Smart Chain. 

The Growing Popularity Of Liquid Staking Products

Liquid staking products have gained significant popularity on Ethereum over the past couple of years. According to data from DeFillama, over 8 million ETH worth over $15 billion is locked into liquid staking derivatives. A majority of these assets, nearly 75%, are held by Lido Finance. Next in line is Coinbase’s wrapped ETG product, which has just over $2 billion locked. These are followed by Rocket Pool, which has just over $980 million locked; Frax, with nearly $300 million; and Stakewise, with over $160 million. 

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.