Kraken has launched AVAX staking and yield products in multiple global markets, including tagged staking, flexible staking, and Auto Earn, which allows for automatic reinvestment of rewards. Foreign media believe this is not just a routine new product launch, but reflects the exchange's efforts to further standardize staking services into yield products to attract long-term retained funds within the platform.
Revenue level and coverage area
According to Kraken's disclosure, the initial annualized yield for staking can reach up to 10%, which will be adjusted to 7% later; the annualized yield for flexible staking and Auto Earn is up to 3.5%. These products are already available in several major markets, including the United States (excluding New York and Maine), the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada, and Australia.
From a product design perspective, Kraken emphasizes ease of use. Users can directly participate in AVAX staking and earn rewards without having to run validator nodes or deal with complex technical settings.
Avalanche's staking participation is already quite mature.
According to Avalanche's staking dashboard data, there are currently approximately 210.6 million AVAX tokens staked across the network, representing a staking ratio of about 44.67%. The network currently has 679 validators, and the native staking yield is approximately 6.7%.
These data indicate that Avalanche's staking participation is not low, and its infrastructure is relatively mature. Against this backdrop, Kraken's launch of this product seems more like an attempt to capture unstakinged AVAX balances within the exchange system, rather than simply expanding access for new users.
Exchanges vie for revenue-generating access points
Foreign media commentators believe that as staking, lending, and passive income products are gradually integrated into exchange account systems, centralized platforms are reinforcing their "yield platform" positioning. For ordinary users, convenience is becoming a key selling point, especially as asset management tools and yield products become increasingly integrated.
However, the expansion of such custodial staking services may also lead to more entrusted assets concentrating on large exchanges rather than being distributed among independent validators. This phenomenon continues to spark discussion in PoS networks: lower barriers to entry help expand staking scale, but may also increase the ecosystem's dependence on centralized infrastructure.
In terms of geographical coverage, Kraken's launch is quite extensive. Foreign media outlets believe this indicates that after years of regulatory pressure surrounding staking-as-a-service, major exchanges are becoming more proactive in expanding their staking businesses. Staking products are still seen as an important tool for platforms to retain user assets and compete for long-term crypto funding.
