Coin columns · Ethereum City (Capital)
Lido DAO (LDO): The Vote Behind Ethereum’s Liquid Staking Service
Governance coin of the protocol that issues stETH
LDO is the voting coin of Lido DAO (a decentralized autonomous organization), which runs Lido, a liquid staking service on Ethereum. Users deposit ETH and receive stETH, a tradable receipt token.
1. Making ETH staking easier
Staking means locking coins to help run a blockchain and earn rewards. Running an Ethereum validator (a participant that checks blocks) yourself takes 32 ETH and a server that never sleeps, and until April 2023 staked ETH could not be withdrawn. Lido, started in late 2020 by Konstantin Lomashuk and others, lets people stake any amount and trade the receipt.
LDO is Lido’s governance coin (a coin that carries votes), with a total supply of 1 billion. Holders vote on proposals such as fee rates and new node operators. On the Crypto Nation map, LDO stands in Ethereum City (the capital), because it was first issued on Ethereum.
2. stETH and the node operators
Depositors receive stETH, a token for the same amount plus rewards. It is rebasing, so each holder’s balance grows daily; a wrapped version, wstETH, keeps the balance fixed while its value rises and is popular in other finance apps. The deposited ETH is spread among professional node operators (companies that run servers) approved by the DAO.
Ten percent of staking rewards is taken as a fee, split equally between node operators and the DAO treasury. Ethereum’s withdrawal upgrade in April 2023 and Lido V2 in May 2023 made redeeming stETH for ETH possible. A Community Staking Module later let smaller operators join by posting a bond.
3. From DeFi collateral to dual governance
stETH and wstETH are widely used as collateral in lending apps, in trading pools and on many layer-2 networks (chains running on top of Ethereum at lower cost). Staked ETH stays usable instead of sitting locked away.
In June 2025 LDO holders voted to adopt ‘dual governance’, letting stETH holders signal opposition to DAO decisions by depositing stETH into an escrow; enough dissent delays a proposal, and more can freeze it. In January 2026 Lido V3 went live on Ethereum, adding ‘stVaults’, which let builders choose their own operators, fees and risk settings.
4. Things to know
The most common concern is concentration. Too much staked ETH with one service strains Ethereum’s security, and a single party holding over one third of the stake could block finality (the point where blocks become irreversible). In 2022, before withdrawals existed, stETH traded below ETH during market turmoil. Contract bugs or operator misconduct, which can cause slashing (a penalty cut from staked ETH), are further risks.
Governance has limits too: voting power can pile up with large LDO holders, and in 2024 a US court ruled in a lawsuit that Lido DAO could be treated as a general partnership, a form in which members can share liability. How DAOs are treated in law remains unsettled.
Written from information public up to October 2026. It does not recommend or rate any coin and is not investment advice. If something is wrong, please tell us through the contact page.