Jito releases open-source restaking service for Solana

Jito Foundation has launched an open-source restaking service for Solana, allowing any asset to be used for economic security.
Restaking is set to enhance Solana’s DeFi ecosystem and expand security functionality.

The Jito Foundation has made a significant advancement in Solana’s blockchain capabilities by releasing the code for its staking and restaking program. This development is an important step for the Solana network, introducing its first-ever restaking service and expanding the economic security options for on-chain applications.

The Restaking Revolution

Restaking is a process where blockchain networks utilize the value of other staked assets as collateral, ensuring honesty and security across the network. Jito’s open-source code allows protocols on Solana to set up mechanisms that provide economic security for actively validated services (AVSs) using any crypto asset, a notable difference from EigenLayer’s Ethereum-based model, which limits collateral to ETH, ETH derivatives, and EIGEN tokens.

Lucas Bruder, a Jito Network contributor, emphasized the flexibility of this architecture. “The flexibility and customization allowed in this architecture will be especially useful for the most important customer of these systems – the AVSs,” Bruder stated.

What Restaking Has Done for Ethereum

Restaking has already proven its potential on the Ethereum network, primarily through EigenLayer. Since its mainnet launch in June 2023, EigenLayer has become the second-largest protocol in DeFi, with a total value locked (TVL) of $15 billion. EigenLayer‘s restaking services have provided a robust security framework for Ethereum, using staked ETH and its derivatives as collateral to secure various applications.

This success on Ethereum highlights the potential benefits for Solana. With Jito’s open-source restaking code, Solana can now offer similar, if not more versatile, security options for its protocols. This move will likely attract more developers and projects to Solana, enhancing its DeFi ecosystem and overall network security.

Jito’s Restaking Components

Jito’s restaking service consists of two primary components: the vault program and the restaking program.

The vault program is responsible for minting, burning, and delegating Jito’s liquid restaking tokens (LRTs). It supports any Solana Program Library (SPL) tokens as underlying assets, similar to Ethereum’s ERC-20 tokens.

The restaking program Manages Jito’s Actively Validated Services (AVS) and handles rewards distribution and slashing penalties. AVSs can borrow economic security from restaked tokens, making the network more secure and rewarding users with additional yield.

Jito’s approach to restaking also leverages maximal extractable value (MEV) boosted staking rewards. Validators on Jito can earn higher returns from staking rewards and MEV, potentially increasing validator revenue by 15% or more as adoption grows.

Market Response and Future Outlook

Jito’s JTO token rallied after the announcement, rising 22.69% to $3.21 on Friday. Solana’s SOL also rose 6.34% on Friday, although that could be because of a general uptick in the market. Jito’s restaking code is currently open-source and pending mainnet implementation, slated for later this year. While the code is yet to be audited, its release has positioned Jito as a leader in Solana’s restaking race, ahead of other projects like Solayer.