Bitmex now lets you bet on Ethereum's daily staking rewards

Crypto derivatives exchange Bitmex is now letting traders bet on the daily value of staking rewards on the Ethereum blockchain.

The exchange has introduced a derivative called the ETH staking yield swap (ETHYLD), according to a blog post. It lets traders go long or short on the daily staking yield emitted by the liquid staking protocol Lido Finance. Traders can take positions with up to 2x leverage.

The Ethereum staking yield is the number of tokens paid out to validators in exchange for running the blockchain. Lido Finance is a liquid staking solution that allows immediate access to this liquidity through its derivative token.

Bitmex said the derivative could be useful on both sides of the trade. It said that people running validators might want to short the asset — taking a receiving position — in order to lock in future yields. Those expecting to pay large fees might want to long the asset, known as taking a payer position.