Lido and Ethena Jump as Traders Rotate Back into Ethereum Staking Tokens
Ethereum staking tokens Lido (LDO) and Ethena (ENA) rallied sharply on Friday, climbing 14% and 15% respectively, as traders rotated back into the sector after a brief pullback earlier in the week.
The rebound follows a stretch of declining prices and shifting sentiment, which many interpreted as a contrarian signal to re-enter. Both LDO and ENA are now eyeing a return to the highs set in early August, when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that liquid staking protocols do not qualify as securities—a major regulatory boost for Ethereum’s staking ecosystem.
That clarity helped reignite interest across decentralized finance (DeFi), particularly among Ethereum-based platforms that rely on staking to generate yield. Institutional inflows have followed, with Figment emerging as a leader in liquid staking dominance, signaling growing adoption among traditional players.
ENA trading volume surged to $1 billion in the past 24 hours, doubling compared to the day prior, while LDO saw an 83% jump to $256 million, according to CoinMarketCap data.
Broader market conditions also supported the rally, as bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) held key support levels following dovish remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Powell’s comments, which opened the door to a potential rate cut in September, boosted appetite for risk assets.
However, risks remain. Ethereum’s validator exit queue has swelled to over 825,000 ETH (roughly $3.8 billion), raising the possibility of future sell pressure if large amounts of unstaked tokens hit the open market.
Despite that overhang, momentum in the staking sector appears to be recovering, with institutional activity and renewed retail participation pointing to further upside—at least in the short term.
