Ether.fi removes EigenLayer restaking from weETH, shifts exposure to weETHs

Ether.fi has stripped restaking exposure from weETH, turning its flagship token into a standard liquid staking token and moving restaking into weETHs, a separate token built on Symbiotic. The split gives users a choice between standard staking rewards through weETH and higher-yield, higher-risk restaking exposure through weETHs, ending the structure that had bundled Ethereum staking and restaking into one product. The change comes as Ethereum researchers discuss a proposal that would reduce staking rewards to zero once participation exceeds a threshold. Ether.fi's founder said the idea would affect smaller stakers and products built around staking. The timing adds a policy backdrop to Ether.fi's move, which also follows a sharp drawdown in liquid restaking activity since incentives such as points and airdrops faded. According to Ether.fi's slashing risk documentation, less than 1% of the protocol's assets remained restaked with EigenLayer as of August 2026, down from about half in early 2026. The same documentation says that share is expected to fall to zero in the third quarter of 2026, and that Ether.fi plans to remove EigenPod withdrawal credentials from its validators by Q4 2026, cutting its last structural link to EigenLayer. Ether.fi, which holds about $3.55 billion of customer deposits, has captured roughly $223 million in annualized fees and about $51 million in annualized revenue. In the second quarter, it generated $41 million in gross revenue and nearly $10 million in earnings after rewards and other costs, while distributing only $30,000 of value to ETHFI holders through buybacks.