Lido Staked SOL (STSOL)

Staking and Rewards

Lido Staked SOL lets users stake their SOL tokens on the Solana blockchain and receive stSOL tokens in return. These tokens represent the staked SOL plus any earned rewards, allowing users to earn staking rewards passively without running their own validator nodes.

Liquidity and Trading

Unlike traditional staking, Lido Staked SOL tokens are liquid. This means users can trade, transfer, or use stSOL as collateral in decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms while still earning staking rewards. There is no lock-up period, so users maintain flexibility with their assets.

DeFi Integration

stSOL can be used in various DeFi activities on Solana, such as farming, lending, or providing liquidity on platforms like Raydium and Orca. This expands the use cases beyond just staking rewards, enabling users to maximize their crypto holdings.

Network Security

By staking SOL through Lido, users help secure the Solana network. Lido distributes staked tokens across multiple professional validators to maintain network health and decentralization.

Summary

Lido Staked SOL provides a way to earn staking rewards on Solana while keeping tokens liquid and usable in DeFi, combining passive income with flexibility and broader utility.

Pros of Lido Staked SOL

• Liquidity: You receive stSOL tokens that represent your staked SOL, allowing you to trade or use them in DeFi while still earning staking rewards.
• Accessibility: You can stake any amount of SOL without minimum limits or lock-up periods.
• User-Friendly: The staking process is simple and supports popular wallets like Phantom and Ledger.
• Automatic Compounding: Rewards are paid in stSOL tokens, which increase your balance over time automatically.
• Validator Diversity: Lido spreads staked SOL across multiple validators to reduce risk and improve decentralization.

Cons of Lido Staked SOL

• Service Discontinued: Lido stopped accepting new SOL stakes and shut down its Solana staking service in early 2024.
• Unstaking Complexity: After shutdown, unstaking requires using command-line tools rather than a simple interface.
• Fees: Lido takes a commission (around 10%) from staking rewards before distributing them to users.
• Dependence on Smart Contracts: Staking relies on smart contracts, which may have vulnerabilities despite audits.
• Validator Risks: Validators could face penalties that might affect rewards, though Lido manages this risk by spreading stakes.

In summary, Lido Staked SOL offered easy, liquid staking with automatic rewards but is no longer active for new stakes on Solana, and unstaking is less straightforward now.

Founders of Lido Staked SOL

Lido Staked SOL is part of the Lido liquid staking platform, which was co-founded by Konstantin Lomashuk, along with other experienced professionals in blockchain and finance. The founding team includes experts dedicated to creating decentralized staking solutions across multiple blockchains, including Ethereum and Solana.

Investors in Lido Staked SOL

• Institutional Investors: Large crypto firms and infrastructure providers like Chorus One have been major investors. Chorus One, for example, is known as one of the largest SOL stakers and has proposed partnerships with Lido to expand staking on Solana.

• Node Operators: Professional node operators and solo stakers participate by running validator nodes that help secure the network and earn rewards.

• Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) Members: Lido DAO governs the protocol and includes various stakeholders who invest in and support the project’s development and governance.

• Retail Investors: Individual crypto users who stake their SOL tokens through Lido to earn staking rewards and gain liquidity via stSOL tokens.

• Venture Capital and Crypto Funds: Early backers of Lido include well-known crypto investment groups such as Semantic Ventures, ParaFi Capital, and others who helped launch and grow the protocol.

For more details, visit the official Lido website: https://lido.fi/

Halal Status of Lido Staked SOL

• Yes, Lido Staked SOL is generally considered halal by many Islamic finance perspectives.
• This is because it involves staking, which is seen as earning rewards through participation in network security rather than interest (riba).
• The token represents a liquid staking position on the Solana blockchain, allowing users to earn rewards without engaging in interest-based lending or gambling.
• Some community discussions note it as "grey but leaning towards halal" due to its nature as a staking service rather than a traditional financial product involving riba.

For more detailed guidance, consulting a qualified Islamic finance scholar is recommended.