Hex Trust, a regulated provider of institutional digital-asset services, has added custody and staking support for stETH, the liquid staking token issued by the Lido protocol. stETH now represents roughly a quarter of all staked ETH, and Hex Trust’s move makes that exposure easier for institutional investors to access, without the need to run validator infrastructure themselves.
By adding stETH to its platform, Hex Trust is combining Lido’s liquid staking model with institutional-grade custody. Clients can stake ETH inside Hex Trust and receive stETH, collecting staking rewards while still being able to use that token across DeFi for lending, collateral, restaking, and other strategies. In short: institutions get the yield and liquidity of staking, with less operational complexity.
“For institutional investors, efficiency and security are not just preferences—they are necessities,” said Calvin Shen, Chief Commercial Officer at Hex Trust. “Our clients need to generate rewards without compromising on their risk framework. Our solution provides that critical combination: a secure custody platform that enables a seamless one-click staking experience. This eliminates the operational friction and counterparty risks associated with managing on-chain activities, allowing them to focus on portfolio strategy, not infrastructure.”
Streamlining Institutional Staking
Hex Trust frames this as a practical answer to the barriers that have held some institutions back, things like liquidity management, clunky workflows, and the lack of trusted, compliant infrastructure. By offering custody and staking in one place, the firm says it’s simplifying on-chain participation and making staking rewards more straightforward to access.
Highlights of the integration include a one-click staking flow to mint stETH, no minimums so a variety of portfolio sizes can participate, and the ability to put stETH to work across DeFi. “Hex Trust’s integration extends access to stETH, issued via the Lido protocol. This is another step toward making Ethereum staking accessible to institutions in a way that balances security, scale, and liquidity,” said Kean Gilbert, Head of Institutional Relations at the Lido Ecosystem Foundation.
This rollout shows a broader trend. As the market matures, infrastructure providers and protocols are building safer, more familiar rails for institutional capital. For many firms, staking is moving from an operational headache to a core portfolio strategy, provided it’s delivered through trusted, compliant channels.
The integration is live now. Institutional clients can access the service through the Hex Trust platform; for enquiries, Hex Trust directs interested parties to partnerships@hextrust.com. Founded in 2018, Hex Trust provides regulated custody, staking, and market services to builders, investors, and service providers. Lido Institutional focuses on promoting Lido’s open-source liquid staking middleware to non-retail users, letting participants earn staking rewards and connect with node operators without maintaining hardware themselves.
