Lido V3 Launches on Ethereum Mainnet With Game-Changing stVaults

Lido Finance has officially activated Lido V3 on the Ethereum mainnet, introducing a powerful new staking primitive called stVaults designed to redefine how participants, builders, institutions, and platforms engage with Ethereum staking.

The rollout marks a major evolution in liquid staking infrastructure, one that bridges the long-standing trade-off between flexibility and liquidity that has shaped Ethereum‘s staking landscape.

The launch announcement from Lido confirmed that stVaults are now live, bringing modularity, customization, and access to shared liquid staking benefits powered by stETH. In a bold move to encourage early adoption, Lido has also rolled out a temporary fee reduction campaign that significantly lowers infrastructure fees for qualifying participants through March 31, 2026.

Since the early days of Ethereum’s proof-of-stake era, staking participants have faced a choice between two imperfect options:

Pooled liquid staking solutions offered simplicity, strong liquidity, and integration with DeFi, but limited configurability for tailored staking needs.

Bespoke staking setups allowed participants to design custom validator logic and policies, but suffered from illiquidity and operational complexity.

stVaults are designed to resolve this fundamental dilemma by enabling teams to build bespoke staking products without losing access to stETH’s liquidity and composability across decentralized finance.

Under the new model, stVault operators can fine-tune crucial parameters such as operator selection, reward logic, risk policies, fees, and validator rules, while still contributing to and leveraging the shared stETH liquidity layer. The result is a more dynamic ecosystem where multiple staking models can coexist without fragmenting liquidity or forcing participants into rigid frameworks.

This innovation could unlock a new class of staking businesses, each tailored to different customer segments, while maintaining a cohesive, liquid staking backbone.

For institutional actors, stVaults offer something that was previously out of reach: segregated staking infrastructure with the operational assurance and visibility institutions demand, without sacrificing liquid staking exposure.

Under the new framework, institutions can deploy vaults that maintain dedicated validator infrastructure, fully auditable configurations, and known counterparty relationships. At the same time, they retain access to the stETH liquidity layer, allowing them to integrate with DeFi protocols, manage treasury risk more effectively, and participate in markets with greater flexibility.

According to industry observers, this could be a turning point for institutional participation in Ethereum staking, enabling compliance-focused entities to steward staked assets while still benefiting from liquid staking returns and composability.

The ability to toggle operational and policy settings, from who can run validators to how risk is allocated, introduces a level of transparency and control that traditional pooled staking has been unable to deliver.

Node operators, the entities that actually run and maintain blockchain validator infrastructure, also stand to benefit from stVaults. Historically, many operators have been constrained by one-size-fits-all delegated staking models that limit differentiation and margin creation.

With the new modular stVaults architecture, operators can now offer customized service tiers, design flexible fee structures, and establish differentiated economic profiles based on APR expectations, operational setups, and service commitments.

For example, an operator might create a vault with a premium fee structure tied to high-performance validators, while another might design low-fee vaults tailored to long-term holders seeking consistent yield. This flexibility enables node operators to match their offerings to specific market niches, creating greater competition and better alignment between users and service providers.

The outcome could be a more vibrant staking ecosystem where operators innovate not just on uptime and performance, but on product design and customer experience.

One of the most anticipated aspects of the stVaults launch is the suite of tools and frameworks available to builders who want to design custom staking strategies and products.

Through a DeFi Wrapper toolkit, developers can rapidly build end-user products that integrate stVaults’ modular logic with familiar DeFi interfaces. This toolkit allows builders to abstract staking mechanics, experiment with yield-enhancement techniques, and plug staking liquidity into a wider range of financial products.

In addition to rapid-launch tools, stVaults also support full custom integrations, enabling advanced strategies such as looped staking, where staked assets are recursively put to work across DeFi protocols, or curated strategy vaults that implement bespoke logic for yield, risk management, or exposure.

This level of programmability and composability positions stVaults as not just a staking primitive, but a comprehensive platform for financial engineering on Ethereum.

Builders can also leverage smart contract integrations to embed stVault functionality into wallets, dashboards, and decentralized applications, creating a more interconnected DeFi experience with staking as a core building block.

Layer-2 networks and broader platform ecosystems now have a straightforward pathway to embed staking directly into existing user flows, without forcing users into separate, confusing journeys.

By integrating stVaults, platforms can allow users to turn bridged ETH into productive staked assets within the same interface they already use for transactions and DeFi activity. This eliminates an often-cited barrier to staking adoption: the disjointed process that forces users to leave a platform, stake elsewhere, and then return to continue using their assets.

With embedded staking, users can remain within a single, seamless experience, encouraging greater participation and reducing friction.

To bolster early engagement with stVaults, Lido has introduced a limited-time infrastructure fee reduction. From now until March 31 2026, the standard Lido Infrastructure fee on stVaults will drop from 1 % to 0 % for identified vaults with a Total Value Locked (TVL) exceeding 250 ETH.

This early adopter campaign is designed to attract launch partners, validators, institutions, and strategic builders seeking to experiment with customized staking products without paying the typical fee burden during the initial growth phase.

Industry participants have already signaled strong interest, suggesting that the fee waiver, combined with the flexibility and liquidity of stVaults, could drive accelerated adoption from a diverse range of staking stakeholders.

With the launch of Lido V3 and stVaults, the Ethereum staking ecosystem is entering an era marked by modularity, customization, and liquidity cohesion. Builders, operators, institutions, and platforms now have tools to create differentiated products that align with specific goals, all while participating in the shared economic and liquidity benefits of stETH.

This development is poised to push staking beyond simple yield generation into a full-featured financial primitive, deeply embedded in DeFi and accessible to a broader set of market participants.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

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