ConsenSys, Securosys launch secure ETH 2.0 staking system

Ethereum-focused blockchain firm ConsenSys has partnered with Securosys to develop a solution that they say allows users to stake ether on the Ethereum 2.0 beacon chain more safely.

By combining Switzerland-based Securosys’s Hardware Security Modules with ConsenSys Codefi’s staking technology, the companies said on Feb. 2 they can generate Ethereum 2.0 withdrawal keys that can safely be stored and managed to protect staked ether during the transition from the Ethereum to Eth 2.0 blockchain.

The keys are held in Securosys modules, and will never be exposed to either company, the two firms said. 

“Together with Securosys we can provide an end-to-end solution for Ethereum 2.0 staking,” Codefi Staking project lead Kuhan Tharmananthar explained. “By combining Codefi with Securosys Hardware Security Modules our customers achieve the highest level of security and convenience when moving from Eth1 to Eth2.”

The new solution leverages Securosys Hardware Security Modules—which can be installed on the customer’s premises or used via the cloud — to validate transactions on Ethereum 2.0 in an environment that the companies say is more secure than a computer connected to the internet. 

“Securosys has focused on blockchain applications from the beginning and is committed to extending its lead in providing hardware security for the crypto sector,” Securosys CEO Robert Rogenmoser said in a statement. “The recognition by the leading developer of the Ethereum platform is not only a great acknowledgement of these efforts, but also a strong motivation to continue providing the best services to our customers.”

Ethereum 2.0 is based on a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus protocol and enables its users to stake Ether to obtain more coins. The staking mechanism is central to the security of PoS blockchains and can be seen as an equivalent of the mining on proof-of-work blockchains.

Ethereum’s ETH 2.0 project will move the dominant DApp blockchain from an energy-hogging and often expensive proof-of-work consensus protocol to a faster and cheaper proof-of-stake. Though long-delayed, the ETH 2.0 beacon chain launched on Dec 1. By Dec. 4, more than one million ETH—worth $1,520 each at press time, after breaking its all-time high today—had been staked.

While solutions such as this are clearly aimed at institutional customers, there are alternatives that are more accessible for retail customers. As Modern Consensus reported at the end of November, China’s top cryptocurrency exchange Huobi announced support for ether staking even before the beacon chain actually launched.