Is Stader Safe?
Risk Grade: B (27/100)
Stader is rated as moderate risk — some novel mechanisms, generally well-understood.
Moderate risk — well-audited liquid staking with standard mechanics, balanced by permissioned operator set and multi-chain complexity.
Stader is a multi-chain liquid staking platform with $323M TVL, offering ETHx on Ethereum and LSTs on BNB Chain, Polygon, and Hedera. Its B grade reflects standard liquid staking patterns with no novel mechanisms, backed by multiple audits from Sigma Prime, Halborn, and PeckShield, though the permissioned operator set and multi-chain complexity add moderate risk.
TVL
$316M
Mechanisms
5
Interactions
4
Value Grade
C-
Key Risks for Stader Users
ETHx relies on oracle price feeds when used as collateral in other DeFi protocols. If these feeds lag during volatile markets, positions backed by ETHx could be incorrectly liquidated.
Stader uses a permissioned set of node operators rather than allowing anyone to run validators, which means the team controls validator selection.
During market stress, many users trying to unstake simultaneously could create redemption queue delays, potentially causing ETHx to trade below its fair value temporarily.
Top Risk Factors
- •ETHx exchange rate depends on oracle feeds for accurate pricing; a stale or manipulated oracle could cause incorrect liquidations when ETHx is used as collateral in external lending protocols.
- •Multi-chain deployment across Ethereum, BNB Chain, Polygon, and Hedera increases attack surface, as each chain integration introduces bridge dependencies and chain-specific risks.
- •Permissioned node operator set means Stader currently controls which validators run ETHx-backed nodes, creating centralization risk in validator selection.
How Stader Compares to Peers
Stader ranks #21 of 86 Liquid Staking protocols (top quartile — safer than most). At a risk score of 27/100, it's 5 points safer than the sector average of 32/100.
Adjacent peers: Thala LSD (B, 26/100) is ranked just safer, and BlazeStake (B, 27/100) is ranked just riskier.
See the full Liquid Staking sector leaderboard or the Stader vs BlazeStake comparison.
Common Questions about Stader
Plain-English answers based on Stader's scores across Hindenrank's 8 risk dimensions. The highest-scoring (riskiest) dimension is Vitality Risk (6/10).
Has Stader ever been hacked or exploited?
Stader has a fairly clean operational history. The track record dimension scored 3/15, indicating minor or no significant incidents on record. A clean track record is a positive signal but it does not guarantee future safety, especially as protocol complexity grows.
How much money is at stake in Stader?
Stader currently holds more than $316M in user deposits. A protocol of this size typically has deeper liquidity, more eyes on the code, and more attention from auditors — but it also means a single failure has a much larger blast radius.
What's the worst-case scenario for Stader?
Hindenrank has identified specific collapse scenarios for Stader. The most prominent: "ETHx Depeg During Mass Unstaking Event". The trigger condition is ETH price drops 30%+ in 24 hours while major lending protocols liquidate ETHx-collateralized positions, triggering redemption queue delays exceeding 7 days. Reading through the full scenario list on the protocol page is the single best way to understand the actual failure modes — generic "smart contract risk" is rarely the thing that takes a protocol down.
Is Stader regulated or insured?
Stader has low regulatory exposure on Hindenrank's framework (3/10). The protocol is structured in a way that minimizes counterparty and jurisdiction concentration, though regulatory risk in crypto can change rapidly. No DeFi protocol carries FDIC-style insurance — even with low regulatory risk, depositors are not protected in the way bank customers are.
What are the biggest red flags for Stader?
Hindenrank's retail-focused risk audit flagged: ETHx relies on oracle price feeds when used as collateral in other DeFi protocols. If these feeds lag during volatile markets, positions backed by ETHx could be incorrectly liquidated. Stader uses a permissioned set of node operators rather than allowing anyone to run validators, which means the team controls validator selection. During market stress, many users trying to unstake simultaneously could create redemption queue delays, potentially causing ETHx to trade below its fair value temporarily.
Should beginners deposit into Stader?
Stader is rated B, which is acceptable for users who understand the protocol's mechanism. Beginners should read the full risk breakdown and only deposit after they can articulate the top three failure modes. If you cannot explain how the protocol works, do not deposit.
How does Stader compare to safer Liquid Staking alternatives?
Stader is one protocol in Hindenrank's Liquid Staking coverage. The safest Liquid Staking protocols on the leaderboard tend to share three traits: a long incident-free track record, conservative mechanism design, and high-quality public documentation. Compare Stader against the full Liquid Staking ranking before committing capital.
For the full 8-dimension score breakdown, the radar chart, and dependency graph, see the Stader risk report.
Read the Full Stader Risk Report
This protocol has 2 collapse scenarios. 1 high-severity interaction risks identified. See the full mechanism classification, interaction matrix, and deep-dive recommendations.
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