Ethereum's staking exit queue reached its longest point of 2026 after MetaMask began withdrawing validators in response to a security incident, pushing ether waiting to leave staking to roughly 851,000 ETH on October 2.
About 786,000 ETH, worth just over $2 billion, remained in the exit queue as of Monday, with an estimated wait of nearly 14 days. The surge represented a more than fivefold increase from approximately 166,000 ETH waiting to exit on September 29, well above the roughly 476,000 ETH peak reached during a spike in May.
Staking allows ether holders to earn rewards by committing their coins to validators, the computers that process Ethereum transactions. The network imposes limits on how quickly validators can enter or exit to prevent sudden changes to network security. At current limits, approximately 57,600 ETH can enter and exit daily, creating queues during periods of high activity.
MetaMask, which operates validators for Lido, a staking service that pools user ether, disclosed a security incident on September 30 and began removing affected validators from service. An October 1 update stated the investigation found no indication that wallets or customer funds were affected. Ethereum security researcher Kaden estimated the precautionary exits covered roughly 17,000 validators holding about 523,000 ETH, though MetaMask has not confirmed these figures.
Lido expects the withdrawn ether to return gradually as affected validators complete the exit and withdrawal process, then re-enter staking. The company estimated the entire process could take up to approximately 45 days, during which affected validators will miss staking rewards.
Meanwhile, demand to enter staking has cooled separately. About 1.5 million ETH, worth roughly $4 billion, was waiting to stake as of Monday with an estimated wait of approximately 25 days, down from about 2 million ETH and a 35-day wait in early September.
