Staking overview

Staking in TON enables earning rewards by locking Toncoin to support network security and validation. TON supports several staking solutions, each designed for different use cases and operational models.

Staking secures the network through proof-of-stake. Depending on technical ability, stake size, and participation goals, users may choose between single nominator, nominator pools, or liquid staking. Some solutions are suitable only for technically experienced operators, while others are intended for businesses providing staking as a service. However, all solutions require non-trivial setup, and there are limited number of support tools.

Overview of staking solutions

The following smart contracts are commonly used in the TON ecosystem:

Liquid staking

The liquid staking contract enables staking services to issue liquid staking tokens (LSTs) that represent the underlying staking position. LSTs can be used in DeFi while the underlying TON earns rewards.

Key characteristics

• Users deposit TON and receive wrapped tokens, e.g. tsTON, that can be used in DeFi.
• Liquidity remains accessible even when underlying funds are staked.
• Flexible staker-validator connections without centralized pools.
• Low minimum deposits for broader participation.
• Some protocols allow governance influence.
• Reduced slashing risks using diversification.
• Easy fund spreading across validators.

Recommended use

• Staking providers serving retail users.
• Projects building liquid staking products or yield-bearing tokens.
• Operators who want to run staking services without committing significant personal funds.

Single nominator pools

Single nominator pool contract is the standard solution designed for large holders who want to stake their own funds while delegating validator operations to a trusted operator.

Key characteristics

• Supports exactly one nominator.
• Separates the owner's cold wallet from the validator's hot wallet to prevent theft if the validator node is compromised.
• The owner can recover stakes even in extreme scenarios, such as elector contract upgrades.
• Any modification would require a professional audit, which is costly and time-consuming; therefore, the contract remains intentionally unchanged.

Recommended use

This solution is suitable for:

• Large TON holders who stake only their own funds.
• Setups that require separation between fund custody (owner wallet) and validator node operations.

Nominator pools

Nominator pools are smart contracts that allow a small group of nominators to combine their funds and delegate to a validator for staking collectively. However, it has limitations and safety concerns.

Limitations

• Only the owner can withdraw funds from the pool.
• Supports up to approximately 40 nominators, which is not suitable for large pools.
• Not designed for small deposits or retail participation.
• Sending a message to the pool without a bounce flag may result in funds becoming locked.

Notes

• The contract is not deprecated, but it is rarely an appropriate choice in practice.
• For large holders, the single nominator contract is preferred.
• This solution is not recommended for new staking services.

Differences from standard nominator pools

• Lower minimum stake of 50 TON, compared to 10,000 TON in standard pools.
• Custom contract architecture with separate owner, controller, proxy, and pool contracts.
• Fee model where deposit and withdrawal fees vary by pool; users should check pool details before staking.

Recommendations for staking solutions

For large holders staking only their own funds:

• Use a single nominator contract for direct self-staking, or
• Stake through a reputable third-party staking provider.

For operators intending to run staking services for others:

• Use liquid staking contracts, which are appropriate when accepting deposits from retail users or when building DeFi-compatible staking tokens.

For small holders:

• Use a third-party staking service rather than running contracts directly.

The following recommendations are mapped onto the Cartesian plane below. The horizontal axis represents legal restrictions and setup complexity, while the vertical axis represents the operational model.

Staking providers

Third-party staking providers who use a liquidity pool for staking:

Tonstakers offers automated compounding and decentralized validation.

All validators participating in these third-party protocols use MyTonCtrl for validation. For validator setup instructions, see:

• Tonstakers setup
• Nominator pool setup
• Single nominator pool setup