The Ethereum Foundation has significantly expanded its staking activity, locking more than 45,000 Ether (ETH) on Friday and bringing its total staked holdings to approximately 69,500 ETH, just under its stated target of 70,000 coins.

The latest allocation was executed through a series of transactions, each consisting of 2,047 ETH. According to Arkham Intelligence, the total value of the Friday deposits exceeded $92.2 million. This move continues the Foundation’s shift toward a staking-focused treasury strategy, which began earlier this year.

Treasury strategy shifts toward yield generation

The Ethereum Foundation initiated staking in February as part of a broader treasury policy update introduced in June 2025. The strategy is designed to generate yield that can be reinvested into protocol research, development and ecosystem grants.

“We are now increasingly moving into staking and DeFi, both to enhance financial sustainability and to support a key application category that is delivering on the promise of permissionless, secure access to base civilizational infrastructure for millions of people today.”

The Foundation first staked 2,016 ETH in February, valued at around $4.1 million, followed by a larger deposit of 22,517 ETH worth approximately $46.1 million in March. With the latest addition, more than $143 million worth of ETH has now been committed to the Ethereum Beacon Deposit Contract.

The shift toward yield-generating strategies comes after ongoing pressure from the Ethereum community, which has encouraged the Foundation to reduce reliance on token sales for operational funding.

Governance concerns around staking influence

The expansion of staking activity has also raised governance considerations within the Ethereum ecosystem. Validators, who lock tokens to secure proof-of-stake networks, can influence which chain is recognized as valid in the event of a network split. “If EF stakes, ourselves, this de facto forces us to take a position on any future contentious hard fork,” Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said in January 2025.

In response, the Foundation is exploring ways to address potential centralization risks that could arise from its growing staking position, particularly in scenarios involving disputed network upgrades or forks.

Sources:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/ethereum-foundation-nearly-reaches-70000-staked-eth-goal

https://x.com/VitalikButerin/status/1881298926650929415

https://intel.arkm.com/explorer/entity/ethereum-foundation