Vitalik Buterin, announcing institutional staking services... Ethereum Foundation applies 72,000 ETH

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin announced a new staking method called “DVT-lite,” aimed at lowering the participation barrier for institutional investors.

On March 10, Vitalik Buterin posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the Ethereum Foundation had used “DVT-lite” technology to stake 72,000 ETH into a staking project in February this year. He explained, “The goal of this project is to enable institutions to perform distributed staking as easily as possible, with a one-click process.”

According to Buterin, DVT-lite is a simplified version of Distributed Validator Technology (DVT). Users can choose a computer to run a node, create a configuration file using the same key, and then the system will automatically complete the setup.

Traditional solo staking involves all operations running on a single computer. If the system crashes, is hacked, or experiences network disconnection, it could trigger penalties known as “slashing.”

Full DVT architecture distributes the private key across multiple computers for operation. This approach offers higher security but is more complex to configure.

DVT-lite is designed to use the same validator key across multiple computers. Even if one computer stops working, others can immediately take over its role, resulting in almost no downtime and lower slashing risk.

Since late February, the Ethereum Foundation has been using this technology to launch staking, and related assets have entered the validator registration queue. Actual staking is scheduled for March 19.

Buterin pointed out that viewing staking infrastructure operation as a task only experts can handle is detrimental to decentralization. He stated, “The idea that every participant must become a professional infrastructure operator is not good; we need to address this directly.”

The Ethereum Foundation is using DVT-lite to stake 72,000 ETH:

My hope for this project is that in the process, we can make it maximally easy and one-click to do distributed staking for institutions. Choose which computers run your nodes, make a config…

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) March 9, 2026

Additionally, he emphasized the need for a “one-click” operating environment, such as automatically running staking containers via Docker or Nix images on each node.

Buterin said he plans to adopt DVT-lite himself in the future and hopes more ETH holders will participate in staking through this method. He explained, “It’s very important to fully decentralize the authority of staking nodes, and the first step to achieve this is to lower the participation barrier.”

In January this year, he proposed integrating “Native DVT,” emphasizing the need for an architecture that allows stakers to participate without relying entirely on a single node.

Meanwhile, despite recent weakness in Ethereum’s price, staking demand remains strong. Currently, about 3.2 million ETH are in the validator queue waiting to be activated, with an average wait time of around 55 days.

Only about 29,000 ETH are in the withdrawal queue, with an average wait time of about 12 hours.

The total staked amount now reaches 37.5 million ETH, worth approximately $76.5 billion at current prices. This accounts for about 31% of Ethereum’s total supply.