Ethereum News
Figment vs Kiln: The institutional staking winner post-Pectra
Pectra changes the math
The May 2025 Pectra upgrade combines the Prague and Electra updates. This upgrade introduces the 0x02 validator type to Ethereum. It allows up to 2,048 ETH per validator through EIP-7251. This capacity enables auto-compounding rewards that increase the validator balance over time. This mechanism provides a ~1.5% relative APR uplift. You can also add ETH to a position or perform partial withdrawals. Legacy 0x01 validators still work, but they require new validators to add more ETH. Pectra also reduces validator activation time to approximately 45 minutes via EIP-6110. The protocol also reduces the initial slashing penalty to 1/4096 of the effective balance. EIP-7002 allows users to trigger withdrawals independently of the validator operator. These changes arrived on the mainnet on May 7, 2025. Consolidation of multiple 0x01 validators into a single 0x02 validator improves efficiency. For balances of 512 ETH or more, the APR boost repays gas costs within one day.
Comparing Figment and Kiln
Figment and Kiln control 61% of the Ethereum staking market. Figment holds a 34% share of the staking-as-a-service market. Kiln manages approximately $4 billion in staked ETH.
Figment leads in market share.
Figment provides broad protocol support for Ethereum, Solana, and Cosmos. It leads liquid staking through Liquid Collective. Figment also provides DataHub for governance and rewards reporting.
Kiln targets developers.
Kiln focuses on embedded staking. It uses the Kiln Connect API to help platforms integrate staking while keeping assets with existing custodians. The Transaction Crafting API allows users to craft staking and unstaking transactions across protocols. This helps wallets and exchanges add staking to their user experience. If you manage a treasury, you know that infrastructure must match your specific custody model. While Kiln provides deep integration for developers wanting to build staking into wallets or exchanges, Figment targets asset managers needing broad protocol coverage and mature institutional reporting tools. Kiln users criticize its fee structure because claiming rewards incurs transaction fees. Kiln also supports 10+ protocols including Solana and TON. Kiln provides a dashboard for real-time ETA on consolidation requests and works with Zodia Custody and Ledger Live.
| Feature | Figment | Kiln |
|---|---|---|
| Market Share | 34% | 27% |
| Max ETH per Validator | 2,048 | 2,048 |
| Staking Type | Non-custodial | Non-custodial |
| Primary Use Case | Broad Infrastructure | Embedded APIs |
Figment wins for institutional breadth
Figment maintains a 99.9% participation rate. It holds a 5.8% share of all staked ETH. The provider recorded zero double-sign slashing events in Q1 2026. Its median consensus layer reward reached 0.002003 ETH per validator per day. This performance slightly exceeded the network median of 0.002002 ETH. Its average staking reward rate reached 2.92% for the same period. Its median execution layer rewards reached 0.010827 ETH, which sits 7% above the network median of 0.010017 ETH. Figment supports both Lighthouse and Prysm clients to reduce dependency on a single codebase. Its infrastructure is designed around minimizing risk exposure and maintaining consistent validator performance. Its multi-zone, 24/7 high-performance blockchain infrastructure supports massive scale for large token holders.
Which provider offers better slashing coverage?
Kiln excels for product teams building embedded staking features via APIs.
