Ethereum Exit Queue Hits 18-Month High with $2.3bn Awaiting Unstaking

Validator Exit Queue Hits 18-Month High

The queue of Ethereum validators lining up to unstake Ether has surged to its largest size in nearly two years, with 644,330 ETH—around $2.3 billion—now awaiting release. This development comes at a time when ETH retraced more than 7 percent from its 2025 peak, fuelling debate: is this a wave of profit taking, or a calculated reshuffle by industry insiders?

Ethereum’s proof-of-stake architecture requires validators to lock their ETH to secure the network. Any departure from staking must pass through the validator exit queue, which has ballooned over the past few days. Data from ValidatorQueue shows an 11-day wait for those hoping to exit, a level not seen since January 2024.

Key Staking Metrics at a Glance

Exit queue: 644,330 ETH (≈$2.34 billion)
Entry queue: 390,000 ETH (≈$1.2 billion)
Net unstaked: ~255,000 ETH
Active validators: just below 1.1 million (all-time high)
Total staked supply: 35.7 million ETH (≈30 percent of total supply; ≈$130 billion)

Profit Taking or Strategic Rotation?

Staking protocol Everstake has downplayed fears of a looming collapse, suggesting instead a shift in operational strategy. “Validators aren’t fleeing Ethereum,” the team told Spectrum Search. “They’re repositioning—restaking, optimising node operators or rotating service providers. Exits are not departures.”

That said, some participants are likely locking in gains. After a seven-month peak of $3,844 earlier this week, ETH dipped below $3,550 before recovering to around $3,643 at the time of writing. With prices up more than 50 percent over the past month, it’s unsurprising some stakers are cashing out.

Entry Queue Reflects Institutional Appetite

Amid the exit surge, the entry queue has also expanded. A rising 390,000 ETH has queued for staking, driven largely by corporate treasury initiatives. Firms such as SharpLink and Bitmine began aggressive accumulation in early June, locking ETH to earn protocol yields.

For crypto headhunters and blockchain recruitment agencies, this dual movement underscores a growing demand for talent in staking infrastructure, validator management and related DeFi services. Specialists in uptime monitoring, node provisioning and cross-chain staking bridges are now hot commodities.

On-Chain Flows and ETF Momentum

Ethereum has attracted roughly $8 billion in net inflows through DeFi bridges over the past three months, according to Apollo Capital’s CIO Henrik Andersson. “Institutions and on-chain natives show sustained interest,” he told us. Meanwhile, US spot Ether ETFs have pulled in over $2.5 billion in just six trading days, despite the absence of a staking ETF.

$8 billion via DeFi bridges into mainnet
$2.5 billion spot ETF inflows in six days
BTC spot ETFs experiencing mild outflows

This dynamic market has immediate implications for web3 talent acquisition. Teams building ETF-related tooling, compliance modules and liquidity management systems are expanding rapidly. Blockchain recruitment agencies are advising clients to lock in senior DeFi strategists and on-chain analysts now, before competition intensifies.

Liquid Staking Under Pressure

Tron founder Justin Sun’s recent withdrawal of roughly $600 million in ETH from Aave caused a brief depeg in stETH, Lido’s liquid staking token. Liquidity on Aave plunged as yield farmers scrambled to convert stETH back to ETH or sell on secondary markets, notes Marcin Kazmierczak, co-founder of RedStone.

Such events highlight the importance of robust risk-management protocols in DeFi platforms. Demand for defi recruitment has surged, particularly for roles focused on smart-contract auditing, liquidity orchestration and slippage mitigation.

Opportunities for Crypto Talent

In an environment of rapid staking turnover and ETF inflows, organisations are hunting for individuals who can:

Architect resilient validator clusters and failover strategies
Design capital-efficient staking products for institutional clients
Implement compliance frameworks for spot and staking ETFs
Optimise on-chain treasury operations and roll-up bridge integrations

Seasoned crypto recruiters and web3 headhunters are being called upon to source blockchain developers with Go-Lang or Rust expertise, as well as cryptocurrency recruiters specialising in risk analytics, node engineering and DeFi treasury management.

Lessons for Blockchain Headhunters

The recent validator queue spike is a reminder that staking is no longer a niche. It’s a cornerstone of Ethereum’s security model and a substantial source of yield. Teams that build and maintain staking infrastructure are the backbone of network growth, making blockchain talent with validator expertise particularly valuable.

Spectrum Search has placed dozens of senior professionals in staking-protocol roles over the past 12 months. From operations leads at major liquid staking providers to software engineers building MEV-resistant clients, the demand shows no sign of slowing.