Utonic Secures $100M in Institutional Commitment for TON-Based Restaking Protocol
Utonic, a new restaking protocol on The Open Network (TON), has secured a substantial $100 million in institutional commitments ahead of its official launch.
The funding, which comes from notable firms including Mirana Ventures and Foresight Ventures, underscores significant institutional interest in Utonic’s potential. The protocol is designed to enhance both the security and decentralization of the TON network, according to co-founder Lemon Lin.
Inspired by EigenLayer’s Success
Utonic’s development follows the success of Ethereum-based EigenLayer, which has set a benchmark in the industry. EigenLayer, which surpassed $1 billion in total value locked (TVL) by December 28, 2023, grew to nearly $7 billion in TVL by February 15, 2024, establishing itself as a leading restaking protocol.
Restaking protocols, such as EigenLayer, allow validators and stakers to restake liquid staking derivatives—like Lido’s Staked ETH (STETH) and RocketPool’s rETH—across multiple networks. These assets can also be utilized in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols to generate additional yield.
Utonic’s Promising Yields
Utonic is poised to launch with an impressive annual percentage yield (APY) of up to 30%. However, in the event of a market downturn, Lin anticipates maintaining yields above 20%. He detailed that Utonic’s protocol offers yield from three primary sources: native validator yield, Actively Validated Services (AVS) yield, and farming incentives.
The protocol allows users to stake TON tokens while reallocation into additional applications, such as securing AVS, can yield further passive returns.
Growing Interest in Restaking and Liquid Staking
The rising interest in restaking and liquid staking solutions is evident across major blockchains. EigenLayer’s growth is a testament to this trend. Bybit Research predicts that liquid staking on Solana could surge nearly five-fold, reaching $18 billion, driven by retail investor adoption and enhanced liquidity.
Liquid staking enhances capital efficiency by providing an equivalent of the staked token that can be redeployed in various DeFi applications, thus maximizing investment returns.
Utonic is set to officially launch at the end of September, marking a significant development in the evolving landscape of restaking and liquid staking solutions.
