Bitget Wallet's Infrastructure Play: A New Model for Staking Security

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador – November 27, 2025 – In a significant move to reshape the user experience in decentralized finance (DeFi), Bitget Wallet has launched a native staking framework, beginning with the Solana network. The innovation, however, lies not just in the feature itself but in the foundation it's built upon: the company's own self-operated validator infrastructure. This strategic decision signals a deeper push by wallet providers to move beyond being simple interfaces and become core participants in network security and yield generation, offering users a more direct, transparent, and self-custodial path to earning on-chain rewards.

Redefining Security and Control with In-House Infrastructure

The introduction of a self-operated validator marks a critical pivot in how users interact with proof-of-stake networks. Traditionally, users wanting to stake assets like Solana (SOL) through a non-custodial wallet would delegate their holdings to a third-party validator. While this model supports decentralization, it introduces a layer of counterparty risk; users must trust the operational reliability, security, and fee structure of an external entity. A poorly performing or malicious validator can lead to reduced rewards or even "slashing" penalties, where a portion of the staked assets is forfeited.

By building and managing its own validator, Bitget Wallet vertically integrates the staking process. This allows for complete oversight of node performance, uptime, and system continuity, directly addressing concerns about reliance on unknown third parties. For the user, the experience is streamlined into a single-tap action within the wallet's "Earn" section, but the underlying mechanics represent a substantial enhancement in security. Assets remain entirely under user control through Solana's native staking architecture, meaning the wallet provider never takes custody of the funds.

"Users increasingly want straightforward, transparent access to protocol rewards," noted Jamie Elkaleh, CMO of Bitget Wallet, in the announcement. "Launching our own validator — starting with Solana — allows us to deliver a safer, self-custodial staking experience while laying the foundation for a unified native staking ecosystem."

This move also taps into a powerful market trend. In the wake of several high-profile collapses of centralized platforms, the demand for self-custody has surged. Market data from 2025 indicates that self-custody wallets are the primary driver of new user growth in the crypto space, with a significant migration from custodial exchanges. Bitget Wallet's strategy directly caters to this security-conscious user base, offering the benefits of yield generation without forcing them to relinquish control of their private keys. Furthermore, by adding a new, independent validator to the network, the initiative contributes positively to the overall decentralization and resilience of the Solana blockchain.

Navigating Market Volatility with Predictable Yield

The launch is timed strategically amidst a period of "softer market activity," where speculative trading has moderated from the frenetic peaks seen earlier in the year. In such environments, investors, particularly long-term holders, shift their focus from short-term price appreciation to sustainable, asset-denominated yield. Native staking offers precisely this: a predictable return paid in the underlying asset, allowing holders to accumulate more of their chosen token over time.

Bitget Wallet's offering promises an annualized on-chain yield of over 6% for SOL stakers. Rewards are distributed in line with Solana's network epochs, typically every two to three days, and are automatically compounded back into the user's stake account. This auto-compounding feature is a powerful wealth-building tool, as it ensures that earnings immediately start generating their own returns without requiring manual intervention.

A comparative analysis shows this yield is highly competitive within the self-custodial staking landscape. While some centralized exchanges may advertise higher headline rates, these often come with trade-offs, such as lock-up periods or custodial risk. Bitget Wallet's rate is in line with or slightly above what is offered by other popular Solana wallets like Phantom and Solflare, which typically see yields between 6% and 7.2% APY depending on the validator chosen. With a low entry barrier of just 0.01 SOL and no additional platform fees beyond standard network gas, the service is accessible to a broad range of users.

The strong demand for such a product is underscored by on-chain metrics. Over 67% of the eligible SOL supply is currently staked, demonstrating a robust and persistent appetite for base-layer yield on the Solana network. By providing a secure and user-friendly gateway to this yield, Bitget Wallet is positioning itself as a key facilitator for long-term value accumulation.

A Foundation for a Broader Ecosystem Strategy

This Solana validator is not an isolated product but a foundational piece of a much larger strategic vision. The company has explicitly stated its intent to expand this self-operated validator model to other major blockchains, creating a unified, multi-chain native staking hub within a single application. This ambition aims to solve a major fragmentation problem in DeFi, where earning yield across different ecosystems often requires navigating multiple platforms and user interfaces.

The roadmap reveals a plan to transform the wallet into an all-encompassing "everyday finance app." Beyond multi-chain staking, future updates are set to include a "Simple Yield Vault," which will allow idle balances to automatically earn interest while remaining instantly spendable. This feature, combined with planned support for tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) like stocks and bonds, points toward a future where users can manage a diversified, yield-generating portfolio of both digital and traditional assets from a single self-custodial platform.

This expansion builds on an existing foundation of yield products, including ETH staking via the Lido protocol and a fixed-rate staking option for its native BGB token. By taking the more complex step of running its own infrastructure, Bitget Wallet is moving up the value chain, signaling its commitment to becoming a core technology provider, not just a service aggregator. This infrastructure play could provide a significant competitive advantage, enabling greater control over product quality, security, and future innovation.

Underpinned by a Substantial Safety Net

Reinforcing its security-first approach, Bitget Wallet is supported by the broader Bitget ecosystem's $700 million User Protection Fund. This substantial reserve, which has seen its value fluctuate with market conditions and reached an all-time high of over $779 million, is entirely self-funded and operates with a high degree of transparency, with wallet addresses publicly available for verification.

The fund is designed to act as a crucial safety net, safeguarding user assets against losses resulting from platform-level issues, such as security breaches or other unforeseen events that could compromise asset integrity. For users of Bitget Wallet, this means that any losses incurred due to a fault of the platform itself are eligible for coverage, providing a layer of assurance rarely seen in the self-custodial space. While staking through a native, non-custodial mechanism already minimizes many risks, this additional protection offers peace of mind and demonstrates a deep financial commitment to user security. This combination of self-custodial architecture and a robust protection fund creates a compelling value proposition for users weighing the risks and rewards of participating in the digital asset economy.