Symbiotic Reports 80% of Deposits Shift to Private Vaults as Tailored Staking Gains Popularity: Interview

As offchain cryptocurrency offerings capture attention and substantial investments flow into ETFs, Symbiotic is discreetly laying the groundwork for a distinct future across decentralized networks.

The Web3 protocol, established less than two years ago, aims to serve as the core of the next infrastructure layer in cryptocurrency. It is positioning itself as a universal staking framework that any decentralized network can integrate.

Whether the requirement is for oracles, rollups, or data availability chains, Symbiotic seeks to deliver the infrastructure that allows networks to prioritize users over servers.

“We are a universal staking framework,” stated Misha Putiatin, the cofounder of the company. “Any type of network that requires decentralization and incentive alignment falls within our expertise.”

Why Symbiotic’s ‘Uniswap for Staking’ Concept Is Gaining Popularity

Symbiotic launched its mainnet earlier this year. In the subsequent months, it has quietly garnered over 200 staking vaults and assisted more than a dozen networks in going live.

However, its broader ambition is even more significant. Rather than having each protocol construct its own staking infrastructure from the ground up, Symbiotic intends to provide a permissionless base layer — something Putiatin refers to as “Uniswap for staking.”

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This design philosophy clarifies why over 80% of deposits have been directed into private permissioned vaults. These vaults, managed by liquidity managers and protocols, provide complete customization while adhering to Symbiotic’s guidelines.

Each vault can implement its own strategy, whether centered on native tokens, liquid staking assets, or even pre-token projects. They have control over the sources of funds, their management, and the creation of their own reward systems, as explained by Putiatin.

More LRTs Are Opting for Flexibility Over Custom Code

This adaptability is what makes Symbiotic particularly attractive to liquid restaking token (LRT) protocols. These initiatives, which depend on intricate capital deployment strategies, have turned to Symbiotic to avoid the need to build and audit their own staking infrastructure. “Our motto is, don’t build — use us,” Putiatin remarked.

The appeal goes deeper. While traditional models bind users to a single token and protocol, Symbiotic’s vaults enable a single dollar to support multiple networks simultaneously. This facilitates advanced risk-reward strategies, fundamentally altering how DeFi liquidity is distributed, according to Putiatin.

The company is already observing indications of this transition. Numerous vaults now function like mini hedge funds, distributing assets across various risk profiles.

Some opt for slashing-free roles such as governance voting, while others stake with rollups or oracles, accepting higher risks for potentially greater rewards.

Symbiotic Views Modular Infrastructure as DeFi’s Internet Moment

Symbiotic collaborates with analytics firms like Gauntlet and Chaos Labs to inform vault operators about risk, lockups, and slashing.

This modularity contrasts with custodial products like BlackRock’s Ethereum ETF, which holds ETH but does not secure the network. “They merely hoard the asset,” Putiatin stated.

He believes that staking ETFs represent the next phase, followed by more intelligent allocation platforms that stake across chains based on protocol traction and yield potential.

Institutional adoption remains cautious but is on the rise. Putiatin notes a change in regulatory sentiment following recent clarifications in US laws. Legal teams are becoming more at ease, and institutions are increasingly receptive to discussions about onchain staking.

“My lawyers are significantly more relaxed,” he mentioned. Previously, even minor decisions could take months. Now they are resolved in days.

Symbiotic itself has a team of 30 and a strong sense of purpose. Putiatin envisions the emergence of shared infrastructure as inevitable. He likens this shift to the early days of the internet, stating that projects no longer need to construct the entire stack from the ground up. The current objective is simply to launch swiftly and connect with users.

This transition, from an obsession with infrastructure to a focus on users, is what Symbiotic is counting on. If Putiatin’s vision holds true, the next wave of DeFi will rely on who collaborates most effectively with its foundational layer, rather than who develops the fastest blockchain.

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