According to data on the blockchain, the once-crowded new validator queue on the Ethereum blockchain has almost completely cleared, with only 598 validators waiting to enter the network, down from a peak of over 96,000 in early June. This means that as of today, the expected wait time to add new validators to the Ethereum network has been reduced to less than five hours, a significant decrease compared to the peak of a 45-day wait period in early June. David Lawant, the head of research at institutional crypto exchange FalconX, said that since the Ethereum merger and Shapella upgrade, ETH staking growth has been "exceptionally strong," but the initial enthusiasm has started to cool off, and an empty activation queue means that ETH staking growth is slowing down.