“The majority of today’s ETH staking protocols – which, even after Shanghai, will require node operators to voluntarily return stakers’ assets upon request – could pose a serious threat to the ETH ecosystem if they were to fail,” Hayes said in a statement to CoinDesk, referring to Ethereum’s Shanghai upgrade that’s due next month. “[Ether.fi] will enable stakers to maintain true custody of their own assets as part of its mission to eliminate staker, node operator, counterparty, and ecosystem risks across proof-of-stake networks.”