Ethereum 2.0 Beacon and Institutions Lock 60% of ETH Supply
New Arkham Intelligence data shows the Ethereum 2.0 Beacon Deposit Contract now holds 72.4 million ETH, locking nearly 60% of the Ethereum supply in staking. This large stake secures the PoS network and highlights shifts in Ethereum distribution. Major holders include Binance (4.09 M ETH), BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (3.94 M ETH) and Coinbase’s staking reserves (3.5 M ETH), followed by Upbit, Robinhood, Kraken, OKX and Bitfinex. Independent wallets feature Rain Lohmus (250 k ETH, lost access) and Vitalik Buterin (240 k ETH). Government seizure wallets hold 60 k ETH, while hacker addresses retain 156 k ETH. Wrapped Ether contracts lock 2.2 M ETH, and Layer-2 bridges on Arbitrum and Base hold 833 k and 723 k ETH respectively. This staking trend reshapes Ethereum supply dynamics and reduces circulating supply, tightening liquidity and influencing market impact. Traders should watch locked tokens and institutional activity for trading signals.
Bullish
Locking 60% of ETH supply in the Beacon Deposit Contract and major institutional wallets significantly reduces circulating supply. This concentrated staking by exchanges, ETFs and bridges signals strong institutional confidence and tightens market liquidity, likely driving upward price pressure. In the short term, reduced float may cause volatility spikes; in the long term, sustained demand and lower available supply support a bullish outlook for ETH.