Restaking
A mechanism that allows already-staked assets (like staked ETH) to be used as security for additional protocols and services simultaneously, extending the economic trust of the base layer to new applications. Pioneered by EigenLayer on Ethereum, restaking lets validators opt-in to secure additional 'actively validated services' (AVSs) like oracles, bridges, and data availability layers, earning extra rewards but also accepting additional slashing risk.
“Through EigenLayer, Ethereum validators can restake their ETH to also secure oracle networks and bridges, earning yields from multiple services simultaneously while putting their stake at additional slashing risk.”
Staking
The process of locking up cryptocurrency as collateral to support blockchain network operations — specifically validating transactions and producing blocks — in exchange for rewards. Staking is the core economic mechanism of Proof of Stake blockchains. Stakers earn yield from block rewards and transaction fees but risk slashing (losing a portion of their stake) for misbehavior or extended downtime.
Liquid Staking
A DeFi mechanism that allows users to stake their tokens and simultaneously receive a liquid derivative token representing their staked position. This derivative (e.g., stETH for staked ETH) can be freely traded, used as collateral in DeFi, or deposited in liquidity pools — solving the capital inefficiency of traditional staking where tokens are locked and illiquid.
Validator
A network participant in a Proof of Stake blockchain that is responsible for proposing new blocks, attesting to the validity of blocks proposed by others, and maintaining the integrity of the network. Validators must stake a minimum amount of the native token as collateral and run node software continuously. They earn rewards for honest participation and face slashing penalties for misbehavior.
Proof of Stake (PoS)
A consensus mechanism where validators are selected to propose and attest to new blocks based on the amount of cryptocurrency they have staked as collateral. PoS replaces energy-intensive computational competition (PoW) with economic stake as the security mechanism — validators risk losing their staked tokens (slashing) if they act maliciously. PoS is significantly more energy-efficient than PoW and is used by Ethereum, Solana, Cardano, and most modern blockchains.