Ethereum Stakers Face Extended Exit Delays Amid Growing Withdrawal Demand

Ethereum’s staking exit queue expanded to roughly 851,000 ETH on Oct. 2, producing the longest estimated withdrawal wait of 2026. The increase followed MetaMask’s precautionary decision to withdraw validators after a security incident involving part of its infrastructure.

On Sept. 29, only about 166,000 ETH was waiting to leave staking, according to CoinDesk’s data analysis. The figure rose more than fivefold within three days, reaching around 851,000 ETH on Oct. 2. That amount equaled about 2% of Ethereum’s 43.6 million staked ETH and surpassed the roughly 476,000 ETH queue recorded during the surge in May.

The backlog had eased to about 786,000 ETH, worth just over $2 billion, by Monday morning in Asia. At the network’s current exit capacity, stakers faced an estimated wait of nearly 14 days.

Ethereum’s staking mechanism allows ETH holders to earn rewards by committing their coins to validators, which verify transactions and help maintain the blockchain. The protocol limits how quickly validators can enter or leave staking to prevent rapid changes that could affect network security.

At current rates, approximately 57,600 ETH can enter staking and another 57,600 ETH can leave each day. Large validator movements can therefore create significant backlogs. After completing the staking exit, ETH must also pass through a separate withdrawal stage before reaching the owner’s wallet.

MetaMask Triggers Most of the Recent Exits

MetaMask accounts for most of the recent withdrawal activity. The crypto wallet provider also operates validators on behalf of Lido, a service that combines users’ ETH for staking.

Ethereum security researcher Kaden estimated that roughly 17,000 validators holding about 523,000 ETH were included in the precautionary withdrawals. MetaMask has not confirmed those estimates.

MetaMask announced the security incident on Sept. 30 and began taking the affected validators offline. The company said in an Oct. 1 update that its investigation had found no evidence that customer wallets or funds were impacted.

Lido expects the bulk of the ETH associated with the affected validators to eventually return to staking. The coins must first complete the validator exit and withdrawal processes before they can be redeployed.

The entire sequence could take up to about 45 days, Lido estimated. During the period they remain out of service, the affected validators will not generate staking rewards.

“No action is required from stETH holders,” Lido said last week, referring to its token representing users’ staked ETH.

Lido expects the remaining affected MetaMask validators to cease staking by Oct. 7. Their balances will then enter the withdrawal process and could eventually be returned to staking.

ETH Staking Entry Queue Shrinks

Meanwhile, fewer ETH is waiting to enter the staking system. Approximately 1.5 million ETH, valued at around $4 billion, was queued for entry on Monday, with an estimated waiting period of about 25 days.

In early September, the entry queue stood near 2 million ETH, with an estimated wait of roughly 35 days. That means the amount waiting to enter staking has dropped by more than a quarter, even as the temporary MetaMask-related withdrawals have pushed the exit queue sharply higher.