Binance Introduces Ether Staking in US as It Steps Up Competition With Rivals

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance is introducing ether (ETH) staking in the U.S. ahead of the Ethereum "Merge."

Binance will start offering a 6% annual percentage yield (APY) to its U.S. customers for as low as 0.001 ETH ($1.51) staked, the exchange announced Wednesday.

Staking involves users locking up their digital assets to support the running of proof-of-stake (PoS) networks.

The Merge is the Ethereum's transition from a proof-of-work (PoW) network to PoS and is expected to take place around Sept. 13-15. The hope is that the transition away from the energy-intensive PoW mechanism will improve the efficiency and scalability of Ethereum and attract more mainstream adoption.

Binance first started offering staking to U.S. customers in June and now supports the tokens of blockchains Cardano (ADA), Polkadot (DOT) and Polygon (MATIC), among several others. At the time, CEO of Binance.US Brian Shroder said the aim was to outdo the staking APYs offered by rivals such as Coinbase (COIN) and Gemini.

The timing of extending support to Ethereum suggests Binance.US sees ETH as a major staking battleground in the months ahead.

Read more: What the Merge Could Mean for Ethereum and Its Developers