Key takeaways:
Ether awaiting unstaking reaches a record $12 billion, with a 44-day waiting period.
Strategic reserves and ETF holdings have increased by 116% since July 1, easing concerns over a possible ETH sell-off.
The total amount of Ether (ETH) in the queue for unstaking has risen to its highest ever, as investors may be aiming to realize annual profits.
Ether’s exit queue reaches record $12B ETH
Ethereum’s exit queue exceeded 2.6 million ETH valued at $12 billion last week, with a 44-day waiting time.
This represents the largest volume of Ether ever designated for withdrawal by the network’s validators, who play a crucial role in adding new blocks and verifying transactions on the Ethereum blockchain.
Related: What’s the potential for Ethereum price after a Fed rate cut?
According to ValidatorQueue reported, the active validator count is over 1.05 million, with approximately 29.4% of the total ETH supply staked, which translates to around 35.6 million ETH.
“Ethereum staking exit queue is skyrocketing,” macro analyst MartyPary noted about the biggest validator exodus in crypto history.
While this doesn’t imply that all validators intend to sell their holdings, a substantial fraction of the $12 billion may be released to secure profits, particularly given the 97% increase in Ether’s price over the last year.
“The Ethereum exit queue is at an all-time high, with large amounts of $ETH now queued to exit staking,” mentioned crypto YouTuber Lark Davis in a post on X, adding:
“Significant sell pressure approaching.”
At the same time, the Ethereum staking entry queue has dwindled to its lowest in four weeks, intensifying concerns that a jump in the exit queue might lead to a substantial sell-off.
Currently, more than 512,755 ETH, valued at about $2.3 billion, are pending staking, a decrease from 959,717 ETH on September 5, indicating a drop in demand for staking Ether.
Strong institutional demand eases ETF sell-off concerns
Increased accumulation and buying activity from Ether treasury companies and spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are effectively absorbing much of the selling pressure.
Data from strategicethreserve.xyz shows that combined holdings of strategic reserves and ETFs have surged 116% since July 1, rising from 5,445,458 ETH to 11,762,594 ETH.
This significant increase underscores a rapid influx of Ether supply into the hands of large institutional and corporate investors.
Most of these entities have plans to stake the asset for additional yields, which may enhance the entry queue in the upcoming weeks.
Another positive aspect relates to the potential launch of ETH staking ETFs. This suggests that some investors might be unlocking liquidity to reinvest in these products later, thus effectively restructuring their exposure without exiting the ETH market.
While the SEC’s final approval deadline is set for April 2026, prominent analyst Axel Bitblaze stated that the green light could come earlier, potentially in October 2025.
“While we have been anticipating the approval of ETH ETFs, it is merely a matter of time now,” the analyst posted on X on Tuesday, adding:
“The next deadline for BlackRock’s ETH staking approval is in October, and I believe it is likely to be approved.”
Capital flows continued into crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) last week, with Ethereum investment products drawing $646 million in inflows, indicating a resurgence of institutional investor interest in ETH.
This article does not offer investment advice or recommendations. All investment and trading actions carry risks, and readers should perform their own research before making decisions.
