Lido solved the biggest problem in Ethereum staking: you had to lock up 32 ETH (worth $100K+) and could not touch it. Lido lets you stake any amount and gives you stETH — a token you can trade, lend, or use anywhere in DeFi while still earning staking rewards. It worked so well that Lido now controls 28% of all staked ETH, managing $35 billion+. That dominance has the Ethereum community worried: if one protocol controls too much staked ETH, is Ethereum really decentralized? Lido is the victim of its own success — too popular for the ecosystem it was built to support.
Founded
2020
HQ
Decentralized (team distributed globally)
Total Raised
$73 million
Founder
Konstantin Lomashuk, Vasiliy Shapovalov, Jordan Fish
Status
Decentralized protocol (LDO token on major exchanges)
Website
lido.fiTHE ORIGIN STORY
Lido launched in December 2020, just as Ethereum was preparing to transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake. The founders saw a problem: staking ETH required 32 ETH minimum (worth $50,000+) and locked your funds indefinitely.
Most ETH holders could not or would not stake under those conditions. Lido created a liquid staking solution — deposit any amount of ETH, receive stETH (a token representing your staked ETH plus rewards), and use stETH across DeFi.
The timing was perfect: as Ethereum moved to proof-of-stake, demand for liquid staking exploded.
WHAT THEY ACTUALLY DO
Lido lets you stake your Ethereum and get a liquid token (stETH) in return that you can use across DeFi while still earning staking rewards. Before Lido, staking ETH meant locking it up with no access.
Lido solved the liquidity problem. Revenue comes from a 10% fee on staking rewards.
Lido controls over 28% of all staked ETH — making it the single largest staking provider. Total value locked has exceeded $35 billion.
THE PRODUCTS
Lido Staked ETH (stETH — liquid staking token), Lido DAO (governance), wstETH (wrapped stETH for DeFi composability)
HOW THEY GREW
Expand to more blockchains and push for decentralization. Lido has launched staking on Polygon and Solana (though Solana staking was later sunset).
The protocol is investing in distributed validator technology (DVT) to reduce reliance on any single node operator. The goal: be the liquidity layer for all proof-of-stake blockchains.
THE HARD PART
Centralization risk. Lido controls 28%+ of all staked ETH.
If one entity controls too much staked ETH, it could theoretically influence Ethereum's consensus mechanism. The Ethereum community has raised alarms about Lido's dominance.
Lido has taken steps toward decentralization (distributed validator technology, more node operators) but the tension between growth and decentralization principles remains real.
MONEY TRAIL
Seed
2020 · Led by
$2M raised
Series A
2021 · Led by
$73M raised
WHO BACKED THEM
Paradigm, a16z Crypto, Dragonfly Capital, Jump Crypto, Coinbase Ventures
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