From Niche to Mass Adoption: Taking Native Staking Mainstream

Native staking is the process of using an amount of native token as a collateral in a blockchain’s Proof of Stake mechanism. Ensuring accessibility to every kind of user, regardless of their wealth or knowledge, is favourable for the blockchain network and its users. However, the inherent constraints of native staking in different blockchains limit access primarily to users with substantial funds and specialist technical expertise. Additionally, existing staking pools designed to address this issue often impose fees, independent of the deposit amount, that render it infeasible to stake or unstake small amounts. In this paper, we propose a novel protocol aimed at mitigating the gas fees associated with native staking. The aim of the protocol is to combine the potential and the capabilities of both retail and whale users, in a mutually beneficial way. Moreover, we outline the design principles for another three new gas-efficient protocols and present ideas to reduce gas fees in established staking pools. As a proof of concept, we have developed a fully functional full-stack prototype for a staking pool on the Polygon network.