Early signs show that Ethereum’s seamless Shanghai upgrade has spurred institutional investors’ interest in staking.

Top institutional-grade ether (ETH) staking service providers have already recorded about three times larger inflows in April compared to all of last month, Michiel Milanovic, analyst of Ethereum blockchain developer firm ConsenSys, told CoinDesk. Some 80% of the inflows happened after the Shanghai upgrade went live on April 12, he added.

Ethereum’s highly anticipated tech update, often referred to as the Shanghai or Shapella upgrade, enabled withdrawals of some 18 million tokens, worth $35 billion, previously locked up in staking contracts starting April 12. After the upgrade, ETH’s price rallied to $2,100, its highest level in 11 months, defying earlier concerns that the unlocking could lead to significant selling pressure and a price crash. The token recently has dropped below $1,900, aligning with a broader crypto market decline.

(By Krisztian Sandor)