Upbit’s staking deposits exceed $2.2 bn

The staking deposits of Upbit, South Korea's leading crypto exchange, surged past 3 trillion won ($2.2 billion) by the end of April, according to Upbit's operator Dunamu on Wednesday.

In staking, cryptocurrency holders deposit their assets on an exchange to earn rewards.

Upbit offers staking for five major cryptocurrencies: Ethereum, Cosmos, Cardano, Solana, and Polygon.

Unlike traditional bank deposits, these deposited cryptocurrencies aren't used for daily operations. Instead, they contribute to verifying the security of their respective blockchain networks.

However, staking provides a way to generate income even if the value of the held cryptocurrencies fluctuates.

Upbit estimates that staking Ethereum could yield an annual reward of 3.1%, while Solana could offer a higher return of 6.7%.

Upbit safeguards user assets by storing them in cold wallets, offline digital wallets that immune to hacking attempts.

Write to Mi-Hyun Jo at mwise@hankyung.com