Rocket Pool: rETH Activity Slips as Upgrades Advance
Rocket Pool’s July and September 2026 bi-weekly updates show modestly weaker network participation alongside continued protocol development. In July, rETH supply fell 0.2% to 322,373, while active and pending minipools declined 0.2% to 18,504 and node operators fell 0.5% to 1,473. By 8 September, rETH supply had dropped a further 0.9% over two weeks to 316,997. Minipools fell 0.8% to 18,211, and node operators decreased 1.0% to 1,428.
Rocket Pool continued work on governance and scaling. RPIP-81 proposed trustless on-chain signalling, while RPIP-83 addressed higher temporary MEGAPOOL validator bonds. Research into Saturn progressed, followed by governance polls related to the Saturn 2 upgrade. GMC funding rounds and pDAO and GMC treasury reporting also continued.
The latest Rocket Pool update added important operational changes. Smart Node versions 1.22.1 and 1.23.0 were released. Besu operators face high-priority upgrades, while Reth, Erigon and Nimbus users may need medium-priority updates. The bloXroute Max Profit relay was deprecated, and operators should review relay settings. The oDAO also proposed a hotfix for a bug bounty issue.
Rocket Pool expanded DeFi and market access during the period. The IMC worked with KyberSwap on a boosted-APR rETH liquidity opportunity, while RPL gained a new perpetual futures listing. For traders, the decline in rETH and node metrics suggests softer short-term activity, but it is not enough to confirm a major shift in Ethereum liquid staking demand. Rocket Pool remains active in governance, infrastructure and liquidity development, which may support longer-term adoption while increasing short-term RPL trading liquidity.
Neutral
The combined news is neutral for RPL and rETH prices. The decline in rETH supply, minipools and node operators is modest but directionally negative for short-term network activity. However, the figures do not establish a broad contraction in Ethereum liquid staking demand, and the operational changes are mainly maintenance and security updates rather than evidence of a protocol failure.
In the short term, traders may focus on the lower participation metrics and create mild selling pressure, particularly if broader crypto markets are weak. The new RPL perpetual futures listing may increase access and trading volume, but it can also raise volatility and liquidation risk without creating sustained buying demand.
Over the longer term, governance improvements, Saturn-related development, upgraded node software, boosted rETH liquidity incentives and continued treasury activity could support Rocket Pool adoption. These positives are offset by the need for urgent client upgrades and the continued decline in network metrics. Historical reactions to similar protocol updates are usually limited unless participation data deteriorates sharply or an upgrade causes an outage. Therefore, the immediate price impact is likely to remain limited and neutral.