Restaking Trends in 2024

Restaking (or cross-staking) emerged as a breakthrough DeFi sector in 2024, representing a novel approach to rehypothecating collateral to economically secure multiple decentralized infrastructures simultaneously via proof-of-stake consensus.

While the concept has been enshrined in Avalanche and Cosmos ecosystems, emerging protocols are now enabling restaking on Ethereum and Bitcoin. Restaking protocols facilitate the utilization of exogenous collateral with higher market cap and lower volatility — such as BTC, ETH, and stablecoins — mitigating the systemic risk arising from endogenous collateral.