<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">ConsenSys is launching a new staking-as-a-service platform aimed at institutions including exchanges, custodians, and wallet services. The first order of business will be to work with several industry partners to build a staking API for Ethereum 2.0, the first phase of which is supposed to launch this year.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The initial class of pilot participants will be Binance, Crypto.com, DARMA Capital, Huobi Wallet, Matrixport, and Trustology, according to </span><a href="https://consensys.net/blog/press-release/consensys-codefi-announces-ethereum-2-0-staking-pilot-program-with-six-members/?utm_campaign=Codefi&amp;utm_content=131950148&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter&amp;hss_channel=tw-3129477561"><span style="font-weight: 400;">a news release</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A cornerstone of the much-anticipated upgrade to Ethereum’s network is a transition from its proof-of-work based consensus mechanism to one based on proof-of-stake. Instead of expending computing power, validators in a proof-of-stake network lock up a cryptocurrency deposit — for Ethereum 2.0 it will take 32 ETH — and risk losing it if they don’t follow the network’s rules.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But the staking process can be technically complicated, and staking-as-a-service platforms have arisen to simplify the experience for investors who don’t want to run their own validator node.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Part of ConsenSys's goal is to help pave the way to Ethereum 2.0's long-awaited launch. There must be a minimum of 16,384 validators staking 524,288 ETH before the network can go live, according to the release.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> “We know the importance of onboarding as many validators to Ethereum 2.0, and for that reason have built a turnkey solution for enabling large exchanges and institutional crypto funds to have an always-on and dependable access point to stake the ETH they hold for their customers,” said ConsenSys’s staking product lead Tim Lowe.</span></p>