Digital asset exchange Bitstamp recently announced it will cease its Ethereum staking rewards program for U.S. customers starting September 25th, citing uncertain and increasingly strict regulations around crypto staking.
Staking has become a very popular way for cryptocurrency holders to earn passive income by pledging their assets to help validate and secure blockchain networks. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleges this constitutes an unregistered securities offering, aggressively targeting exchanges offering staking services to American users. The SEC has already fined platforms like Kraken $30 million and sued oinbase">Coinbase over their staking programs.
Facing this heightened regulatory scrutiny and legal threats in the United States, Bitstamp decided the risks and potential liabilities outweighed the benefits of continuing to offer Ethereum staking for its American user base. While customers will still earn staking rewards as normal until September 25th, after that date all staked Ethereum assets will be automatically unstaked by Bitstamp. The unstaked crypto will then be credited back to users’ Bitstamp wallets.
Bitstamp’s difficult decision highlights the legal gray area around cryptocurrency staking that digital asset exchanges must carefully navigate in the U.S. market. With the SEC ramping up enforcement and repeatedly declaring staking an unregistered securities sale, platforms like Bitstamp face growing pressure to halt these reward-earning services until clearer regulations emerge. For now, the climate of uncertainty and fear around staking regulations is greatly restricting American user access to popular staking programs.
