Stkr [derived from staker] (Noun)
🔈 stei·kr
One who stakes something.
The highly anticipated transition of the Ethereum network to a proof-of-stake model, scheduled for November 2020, is set to make it the largest PoS blockchain in the game. As a result, ETH holders will be able to stake their tokens, essentially earning a passive income.
However, there are some important conditions that prevent the lion’s share of ETH investors from partaking in the PoS protocol.
- First of all, there is a required fixed amount of 32 ETH (or roughly $12,000 at the time of writing) for stakers.
- Secondly, even if you own the required amount of ETH, the funds will be locked and become illiquid once you stake them!
In other words, you won’t be able to transfer the tokens until transactions are enabled in the network, which can take up to several years.
As a result, thousands of holders are barred from actively participating in Ethereum 2.0. Although the “32 ETH club” has been growing in population, there were 120,000 wallets ready for staking as of June 2020 — or, ironically, just 1% of the total amount of unique ETH addresses.
Ankr presents: Stkr
The Stkr platform enables ETH 2.0 staking for all parties — including those who don’t have the required amount of ETH. Moreover, Stkr addresses the illiquidity issue with a synthetic asset called aETH.
Stkr is not a token!
Stkr is a DeFi protocol for Ethereum 2.0 staking and liquidity.
Built by Ankr and powered by ANKR token.
Below we will explain the different roles in the Stkr system:
- Stakers (we call them “requesters”): earning staking rewards
- Providers; running Ethereum 2.0 nodes and earning from staking rewards and platform fees
- Governors; ensuring long-term sustainability of the platform
Sign up here if you are interested to become an early node provider, requester, staker or governor!
Stkr introduces Micropools and staking liquidity!
To democratize access to Ethereum 2.0 for users who are unable to invest 32 ETH, Stkr introduces Micropools — a proprietary solution that enables all ETH stakers to enjoy benefits of staking directly from their MetaMask (or other Ethereum based) wallet.
To stake ETH via Stkr, simply choose the amount you want to delegate (the minimum amount is 0.5 ETH), and the system will automatically assign it to the best providers (it will also be possible to choose the providers manually).
So, how does my stake become liquid and tradable?
Once staking is introduced on Ethereum 2.0, those who lock up their ETH won’t be able to move them until transactions are enabled — which can take up to several years. They won’t be able to spend it, send it elsewhere, etc. — in other words, their assets will become illiquid for an unknown amount of time.
Why is this important?
Because you will be able stake your ETH to earn staking rewards, but if you want, you can sell your stake at any point in time.How does this work?
When you stake your ETH in Stkr, your will receive the same amount of aETH to 1:1 represent your stake. The aETH:ETH ratio will change over time.
aETH is a synthetic asset that acts as a liquidity bridge between staked Ethereum 2.0 and the regular Ethereum network. You can also think of it as a DeFi future contract for ETH2 tokens that deals with the illiquidity issue.
With aETH, you can sell or spend your staked assets at any time, without having to wait until transactions are enabled on Ethereum 2.0, basically creating a tokenized staking position.
So, if you have 10 ETH staked, you will get 10 aETH representing your stake. The aETH can be sold, traded, held, or used in DeFi applications.
Please be advised that staking rewards are not transferable until phase 2 comes out. Users will not get aETH for their staking rewards due to slashing risk.
aETH can be redeemed for real ETH on Stkr. Additionally, we will facilitate and incentivize liquidity for the following Uniswap trading pairs:
- ANKR/aETH
- ETH/aETH
- ANKR/ETH
Staking ETH made easy for large holders
To enjoy even simpler and more efficient staking. With Stkr, if you have more than the required 32 ETH, you can stake all your tokens at once, without having to allocate them to multiple nodes.
You could stake 1,000 ETH in just one click! While you will also receive aETH in accordance with your stake, to enable you to manage your funds until phase 2 is released.
Earn staking rewards as a provider
You can become a provider and run your own node, collecting staking rewards. And if you don’t own or want to rent any hardware, or don’t have the technical knowledge to set up a node, you can always use Ankr and deploy your Ethereum 2.0 node is one click!
To become a provider in Stkr and earn platform fees, you need to set up an Ethereum 2.0 node with a minimum “insurance” stake of 4 ETH to compensate users in case of slashing events.
Providers can also opt-in to stake ANKR tokens, to provide additional insurance funds and get a higher ranking.
Stkr adopts a rating system which is based on performance and insurance stake when allocating ETH stakes. The larger your ANKR is, the higher you’re positioned in providers ranking.
ANKR is the in-house ERC-20 utility token that enables Stkr users to participate in governance duties.
Please be aware that in case of multiple slashing events, your insurance fund can get depleted and your node will become unavailable. Any staked ETH from your node will be automatically allocated to other nodes.
Next steps: decentralized governance
Stkr is a DeFi protocol and will have a decentralized governance board to ensure the long term sustainability of the platform.
We will invite experienced professionals to help govern Stkr for the long term, these individuals are obliged to hold a certain (large) amount of ANKR tokens. The amount will be decided when V1 of decentralized governance kicks in.
Rewards distribution for all stakeholders
Depending on your role in the system (requester, provider, governor), you will be eligible to earn rewards according to the below distribution schedule:
- Requesters will receive 85% of all staking rewards, proportionally to their stake
- 15% of staking rewards will be distributed to providers
What’s next?
The Stkr internal testnet has been launched this week and we are heavily testing the protocol. The Stkr landing page is nearly finished and will be released very soon.
Next up is the public testnet, which might come with an incentivized testnet campaign! So stay tuned on our social channels to make sure you won’t miss anything!
And don’t forget to fill the interest form if you want to be among the early participants!
Useful Stkr links
- Stkr teaser page
- Read the Stkr whitepaper here
- Stkr announcement article
- Interest form for providers, early requesters, stakers and governors
Follow Ankr on social media
- Ankr official website
- Ankr Twitter
- Ankr Telegram announcements
- Ankr Telegram English chat
- Ankr Telegram Node Support group
- Ankr LinkedIn profile
- Ankr Instagram
