Strategic Updates on Staking in Lido: Focus on Ethereum and Treasury Management

Lido Ends Staking Operations on Polygon and Reorients its Focus towards Ethereum

Lido Finance, one of the most prominent players in the decentralized finance sector, has officially announced the cessation of its staking services on the Polygon network. This strategic decision aims to concentrate resources and efforts on strengthening and expanding within the Ethereum ecosystem. The shift in direction, resulting from a thorough community-driven process, reflects the complex dynamics between blockchain interoperability and service specialization.

The initial integration with Polygon was part of a strategy to diversify the staking options available for Lido users. However, according to the statement published on December 16, the initiative faced significant obstacles that limited its growth and adoption on the Polygon platform. Key determining factors include:

• Limited adoption by users
• Insufficient rewards to maintain competitiveness
• High technical maintenance requirements
• Changes in the dynamics of the DeFi ecosystem

The evolution of the decentralized financial ecosystem has posed a significant challenge, especially with the growing emphasis on zkEVM solutions. This shift has reduced the demand for liquid staking solutions on Polygon, directly affecting the potential of Lido as a fundamental component of DeFi on that network.

Transition Timeline and Procedures for Users

As part of this transition process, Lido has established a clear timeline for the affected users:

• stMATIC holders immediately stopped receiving rewards from the network.
• Users can withdraw their MATIC through the Lido interface on Polygon until June 16, 2025.
• After June 16, 2025, withdrawals will still be possible, but only through explorer tools.

This timeline provides a broad transition period, allowing users to adapt their investment strategies. It is essential that current stMATIC users are informed about these deadlines to properly manage their assets.

NEST: A New Proposal for Treasury Management

At the same time as these changes, Lido DAO is developing the next evolution of its treasury management with the innovative NEST proposal. The community is voting on the launch of NEST, a modular system designed to use the fees from the protocol ( in stETH) to autonomously repurchase LDO for the treasury, with overwhelming support.

Current voting statistics:

• Support rate: 100% (at the time of writing)
• Voting period: September 30, 2025

NEST simplifies the exchange of stETH for LDO, automatically channeling the LDO directly to the treasury of Lido DAO. This mechanism represents a fundamental step towards a sustainable and automated buyback system for the future of the protocol.

A "yes" vote authorizes the development phase. If approved, the first practical version is projected to be ready by December 2025, requiring a separate on-chain vote for its subsequent activation.

This proposal reflects Lido's ongoing commitment to optimizing its financial operations and creating sustainable value for ecosystem participants, consolidating its position as a leader in liquid staking solutions on Ethereum.