Staked NEARPrice

(STNEAR)

stNEAR (Staked NEAR) is a yield-bearing asset that represents your staked NEAR tokens on a liquid staking platform. It accrues value over time as staking rewards from the underlying NEAR Protocol are added. This tokenized representation allows users to benefit from staking rewards while retaining liquidity, making it a flexible asset within the ecosystem.

When you participate in liquid staking for NEAR, you deposit your NEAR tokens into a smart contract. In return, you receive an equivalent value in stNEAR tokens. These stNEAR tokens automatically increase in value as the underlying staked NEAR generates rewards. This mechanism allows you to earn staking yield on your NEAR without locking it up. The stNEAR tokens can then be utilized in various decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols across compatible networks for additional opportunities, maintaining capital efficiency.

Traditional NEAR staking typically locks your tokens for a specific period, requiring a waiting time of several days (e.g., 48-72 hours) to unstake and access your funds. With stNEAR, you receive a tokenized representation of your staked NEAR, which maintains liquidity. This means you can trade, transfer, or use your stNEAR in DeFi without waiting for an unstaking period, while still earning staking rewards. Furthermore, liquid staking services often delegate NEAR across multiple validators, enhancing network decentralization compared to direct staking with a single validator.

There are two primary methods to acquire stNEAR. First, you can liquid stake your NEAR tokens directly through a dedicated liquid staking platform designed for NEAR. By depositing your NEAR, you will receive stNEAR in exchange. Second, you can swap for stNEAR on various decentralized exchanges (DEXs) that support the NEAR and Aurora ecosystems. Examples of such platforms include Ref Finance, Burrow, Bastion, Trisolaris, and Jumbo, where stNEAR is traded against NEAR or other tokens.

The value of stNEAR in relation to NEAR consistently increases over time. This is because stNEAR inherently accrues staking rewards generated from the underlying NEAR tokens it represents. As these rewards are continuously added to the liquid staking pool, the value of each stNEAR token grows. Consequently, stNEAR is designed to always be worth more than a single NEAR token due to the embedded and accumulating staking yield, making it a yield-bearing asset.

When you decide to convert your stNEAR back to NEAR, you generally have two options. The first is a "liquid unstake" or "fast unstake," which allows you to receive your NEAR tokens almost instantly by paying a small fee. This option leverages liquidity pools on decentralized exchanges. The second is a "delayed unstake," which is typically free but requires a waiting period, often around 2-4 days, for your NEAR tokens to become available after the unbonding process. This mirrors the native NEAR unbonding period.