On-chain data shows a surge in redemptions of Coinbase's staked ether token following the SEC's lawsuit against the exchange. Since June 6, a total of 39,550 Coinbase Staked Ether (cbETH) worth $75 million have been burned for redemption, while about 9,600 cbETH have been minted during this time, resulting in a net outflow of approximately 29,900 cbETH ($56.8 million). Despite this, Coinbase remains the second-largest entity in terms of staked ether, having staked 2.3 million ether ($4.2 billion) on behalf of its customers. Coinbase's CEO has reaffirmed the exchange's commitment to continuing staking services.
Ether and other alternative cryptocurrencies, including Dogecoin, saw gains as the "alt season" narrative heats up on Crypto Twitter. The successful Shapella upgrade on Ethereum allowed users to stake and unstake tokens from the network at will, improving the network's overall outlook. Governance tokens of liquid staking protocols, such as Lido's LDO and Rocket Pool's RPL, saw outsized gains. Lido's staked ether tokens (STETH) climbed into the top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization of $12 billion.
QCP Capital predicts a deeper decline in the ETH/BTC ratio after the Shapella hard fork, citing sustained spot selling pressure in thin markets. The ratio has already declined 13.7% this year amid fears of investors liquidating coins after the upgrade. QCP Capital suggests that those at the front of the queue for withdrawals are likely to sell spot, while those further back will hedge via perps/futures. Troubled entities like Celsius might sell their staked ether balance to recover at least a portion of creditors' funds.
Analysts have differing opinions on the amount of selling pressure that could result from Ethereum's Shanghai upgrade, which will allow validators to withdraw staked ether and rewards that have been locked up. JPMorgan expects ether to face selling pressure as more than one million ether staking rewards become instantly available this week, while Bank of America expects increased volatility around the event. Coinbase believes that a sell-off in ether should be relatively limited. ETH performance around the Shanghai Fork will be less dependent on technicals and more contingent on what "risk" is doing at the time.
Ethereum's latest software upgrade, Shapella, will allow investors to redeem over $30 billion worth of staked ether tokens that they have deposited in return for interest on the blockchain network over the past three years. The upgrade is expected to lead to heightened volatility for ether, with some investors predicting that widespread redemptions could lead to a wave of selling, in turn weighing on the price of ether. Despite its popularity in decentralized finance applications, Ethereum remains little used in mainstream commerce or finance.
