My name is Heorhii, and over the past few years I’ve been deep into building and experimenting with privacy-preserving blockchain networks. One of the most important security backbones in these networks is staking. On Aleo, staking isn’t just about earning rewards, it’s about actively contributing to the network’s security and stability.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through how staking works on Aleo, the differences between native and liquid staking, and most importantly, how to perform each staking action, from becoming a validator to withdrawing your stake, using Leo CLI and on-chain functions.

1. What is staking on Aleo? Staking is the process of locking Aleo Credits (ACs) to help secure the network and participate in consensus. Aleo uses Proof of Stake (PoS) rather than Proof of Work (PoW), meaning that instead of racing to solve cryptographic puzzles, validators are randomly chosen to propose and validate blocks based on the amount of ACs they have locked.

https://developer.aleo.org/concepts/network/staking

Key points:

• Validators. Run nodes, propose blocks, and validate transactions.

• Delegators. Support validators by delegating their ACs, earning a share of rewards without running a node.

• Minimum requirements:

  • Validator: 10,000,000 AC total stake (including delegation)

  • Delegator: 10,000 AC minimum delegation

2. Native staking: how it works. All native staking logic is inside the credits.aleo program. This program enforces:

• Validator self-bond. ≥ 100 ACs

• Delegation minimum. ≥ 10,000 ACs

• Automatic removal. Validators below 10M AC total stake are removed from the committee

• Unbonding delay. 360 blocks before funds can be reclaimed

On-chain Functions in credits.aleo

leo execute credits.aleo/bond_validator <withdrawal_address> <amount> <commission_percentage> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• <withdrawal_address>: where rewards/unbonded ACs will go

• <amount>: amount to bond (in microcredits, 1 AC = 1,000,000 microcredits)

• <commission_percentage>: 0–100% validator fee

Bond as delegator:

leo execute credits.aleo/bond_public <validator_address> <withdrawal_address> <amount> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• Validator must be is_open = true

• Minimum delegation: 10,000 AC

leo execute credits.aleo/unbond_public <staker_address> <amount> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• Starts a 360-block countdown

• Partial unbonding allowed if ≥ 10,000 AC remains bonded

leo execute credits.aleo/claim_unbond_public <staker_address> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• Can be triggered by anyone after the cooldown expires

• Sends ACs to the withdrawal address

3. Understanding mappings. Here are some important mappings inside credits.aleo:

• committee – Active validators and their commission rates

• delegated – Total stake (self + delegation) for each validator

• bonded – Each staker’s bonded amount and target validator

• unbonding – Stake in cooldown before withdrawal

• withdraw – Withdrawal addresses for rewards

Example committee mapping:

mapping committee:
    key as address.public;
    value as committee_state.public;

struct committee_state:
    is_open as boolean;
    commission as u8;

More about staking you can find here:

https://developer.aleo.org/concepts/network/staking

4. Liquid staking on Aleo. If you don’t want your ACs fully locked or don’t meet the minimum 10,000 AC requirement, liquid staking lets you delegate via platforms and receive stTokens that represent your staked position. You can then use these in DeFi while still earning staking rewards.

Popular liquid staking platforms:

Liquid staking lets you stake your Aleo Credits (ACs) without losing access to liquidity. Instead of locking your ACs for the full staking period, you receive a liquid staking token (such as stALEO) that represents your position. This token continues to accrue rewards and can also be used in DeFi applications, giving you both staking income and flexibility.

Here’s a deeper look at the main platforms in the Aleo ecosystem:

1. Beta Staking

Best for: Stakers who want a straightforward, audited, and widely trusted liquid staking option.

https://betastaking.com/

Beta Staking is one of the most established liquid staking protocols for Aleo. When you stake your ALEO, you receive stALEO—a token that represents your staked position.Key benefits:

• Daily rewards: Rewards are distributed automatically and accrue in real-time.

• No lock-up on trading: You can freely trade stALEO or use it in DeFi without affecting your reward stream.

• Security-focused: Beta Staking has completed a full security audit, ensuring that user funds remain non-custodial and safe.

• Yield optimization: The platform intelligently allocates stake to multiple high-performing validators to maximize APR.

2. Staking.xyz

Best for: New stakers who don’t want to manually research or manage validators.

https://docs.staking.xyz/basics-of-staking/intro-to-staking

Staking.xyz is designed to make staking accessible for everyone, regardless of technical background.Key benefits:

• Validator auto-selection: No need to pick validators manually—the platform optimizes delegation automatically.

• Simple user flow: Stake any amount of ACs, even below the native 10,000 AC minimum.

• Non-custodial: You retain control over your private keys, and funds are never held by the platform itself.

• Beginner-friendly: Ideal for those new to Aleo staking who want a “set it and forget it” approach.

3. Pondo

Best for: Yield maximizers who want dynamic validator rebalancing.

https://docs.pondo.xyz/how-it-works/aleo-delegated-staking

Pondo is a fully decentralized liquid staking protocol on Aleo that actively rebalances your stake to the validators with the highest yield.Key benefits:

• Automatic rebalancing: Your stake is moved between validators without any manual action.

• Permissionless participation: Any validator can join the Pondo validator set.

• Lower entry barrier: You can stake smaller amounts without needing to meet validator thresholds.

• Decentralization-first: There’s no central governance—rebalancing is programmatic and transparent.

4. LSP.Finance

Best for: Multi-chain DeFi users looking for cross-blockchain liquidity staking.

https://docs.lsp.finance/

LSP.Finance is not just an Aleo staking platform—it’s a multi-chain DeFi hub built on Arbitrum that uses LayerZero cross-chain messaging.Key benefits:

• Cross-chain staking: Stake Aleo Credits while also accessing liquidity on other chains.

• Wallet abstraction: User experience feels like a centralized app—no complicated setups.

• Tokenized receipts: Issues f/sAssets that represent your staked position, which can be used in various yield strategies.

• High-yield strategies: Integrates early-stage DeFi opportunities alongside staking rewards.

5. Best practices for stakers:

• Choose validators wisely. Low commission + high uptime

• Monitor validator status. Dropping below 10M ACs = no rewards

• Plan withdrawals. Remember the 360-block unbond delay

• Diversify with liquid staking. Flexibility for DeFi participation

Conclusion. Staking on Aleo isn’t just a way to earn passive income, it’s how you help secure the network and push forward private, decentralized applications. Whether you’re running a validator, delegating directly, or experimenting with liquid staking, Aleo’s credits.aleo program gives you the flexibility to choose how you participate.

With the commands and structures in this guide, you now have everything you need to start staking like a pro.

To know more about Aleo, join now!

• Aleo Twitter

• Aleo Discord

• Aleo Website

• List of Aleo and Leo code and resourses

Prepared by Colliseum

My name is Heorhii, and over the past few years I’ve been deep into building and experimenting with privacy-preserving blockchain networks. One of the most important security backbones in these networks is staking. On Aleo, staking isn’t just about earning rewards, it’s about actively contributing to the network’s security and stability.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through how staking works on Aleo, the differences between native and liquid staking, and most importantly, how to perform each staking action, from becoming a validator to withdrawing your stake, using Leo CLI and on-chain functions.

1. What is staking on Aleo? Staking is the process of locking Aleo Credits (ACs) to help secure the network and participate in consensus. Aleo uses Proof of Stake (PoS) rather than Proof of Work (PoW), meaning that instead of racing to solve cryptographic puzzles, validators are randomly chosen to propose and validate blocks based on the amount of ACs they have locked.

https://developer.aleo.org/concepts/network/staking

Key points:

• Validators. Run nodes, propose blocks, and validate transactions.

• Delegators. Support validators by delegating their ACs, earning a share of rewards without running a node.

• Minimum requirements:

  • Validator: 10,000,000 AC total stake (including delegation)

  • Delegator: 10,000 AC minimum delegation

2. Native staking: how it works. All native staking logic is inside the credits.aleo program. This program enforces:

• Validator self-bond. ≥ 100 ACs

• Delegation minimum. ≥ 10,000 ACs

• Automatic removal. Validators below 10M AC total stake are removed from the committee

• Unbonding delay. 360 blocks before funds can be reclaimed

On-chain Functions in credits.aleo

leo execute credits.aleo/bond_validator <withdrawal_address> <amount> <commission_percentage> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• <withdrawal_address>: where rewards/unbonded ACs will go

• <amount>: amount to bond (in microcredits, 1 AC = 1,000,000 microcredits)

• <commission_percentage>: 0–100% validator fee

Bond as delegator:

leo execute credits.aleo/bond_public <validator_address> <withdrawal_address> <amount> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• Validator must be is_open = true

• Minimum delegation: 10,000 AC

leo execute credits.aleo/unbond_public <staker_address> <amount> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• Starts a 360-block countdown

• Partial unbonding allowed if ≥ 10,000 AC remains bonded

leo execute credits.aleo/claim_unbond_public <staker_address> \
  --network mainnet \
  --endpoint https://api.explorer.provable.com/v1 \
  --broadcast

• Can be triggered by anyone after the cooldown expires

• Sends ACs to the withdrawal address

3. Understanding mappings. Here are some important mappings inside credits.aleo:

• committee – Active validators and their commission rates

• delegated – Total stake (self + delegation) for each validator

• bonded – Each staker’s bonded amount and target validator

• unbonding – Stake in cooldown before withdrawal

• withdraw – Withdrawal addresses for rewards

Example committee mapping:

mapping committee:
    key as address.public;
    value as committee_state.public;

struct committee_state:
    is_open as boolean;
    commission as u8;

More about staking you can find here:

https://developer.aleo.org/concepts/network/staking

4. Liquid staking on Aleo. If you don’t want your ACs fully locked or don’t meet the minimum 10,000 AC requirement, liquid staking lets you delegate via platforms and receive stTokens that represent your staked position. You can then use these in DeFi while still earning staking rewards.

Popular liquid staking platforms:

Liquid staking lets you stake your Aleo Credits (ACs) without losing access to liquidity. Instead of locking your ACs for the full staking period, you receive a liquid staking token (such as stALEO) that represents your position. This token continues to accrue rewards and can also be used in DeFi applications, giving you both staking income and flexibility.

Here’s a deeper look at the main platforms in the Aleo ecosystem:

1. Beta Staking

Best for: Stakers who want a straightforward, audited, and widely trusted liquid staking option.

https://betastaking.com/

Beta Staking is one of the most established liquid staking protocols for Aleo. When you stake your ALEO, you receive stALEO—a token that represents your staked position.Key benefits:

• Daily rewards: Rewards are distributed automatically and accrue in real-time.

• No lock-up on trading: You can freely trade stALEO or use it in DeFi without affecting your reward stream.

• Security-focused: Beta Staking has completed a full security audit, ensuring that user funds remain non-custodial and safe.

• Yield optimization: The platform intelligently allocates stake to multiple high-performing validators to maximize APR.

2. Staking.xyz

Best for: New stakers who don’t want to manually research or manage validators.

https://docs.staking.xyz/basics-of-staking/intro-to-staking

Staking.xyz is designed to make staking accessible for everyone, regardless of technical background.Key benefits:

• Validator auto-selection: No need to pick validators manually—the platform optimizes delegation automatically.

• Simple user flow: Stake any amount of ACs, even below the native 10,000 AC minimum.

• Non-custodial: You retain control over your private keys, and funds are never held by the platform itself.

• Beginner-friendly: Ideal for those new to Aleo staking who want a “set it and forget it” approach.

3. Pondo

Best for: Yield maximizers who want dynamic validator rebalancing.

https://docs.pondo.xyz/how-it-works/aleo-delegated-staking

Pondo is a fully decentralized liquid staking protocol on Aleo that actively rebalances your stake to the validators with the highest yield.Key benefits:

• Automatic rebalancing: Your stake is moved between validators without any manual action.

• Permissionless participation: Any validator can join the Pondo validator set.

• Lower entry barrier: You can stake smaller amounts without needing to meet validator thresholds.

• Decentralization-first: There’s no central governance—rebalancing is programmatic and transparent.

4. LSP.Finance

Best for: Multi-chain DeFi users looking for cross-blockchain liquidity staking.

https://docs.lsp.finance/

LSP.Finance is not just an Aleo staking platform—it’s a multi-chain DeFi hub built on Arbitrum that uses LayerZero cross-chain messaging.Key benefits:

• Cross-chain staking: Stake Aleo Credits while also accessing liquidity on other chains.

• Wallet abstraction: User experience feels like a centralized app—no complicated setups.

• Tokenized receipts: Issues f/sAssets that represent your staked position, which can be used in various yield strategies.

• High-yield strategies: Integrates early-stage DeFi opportunities alongside staking rewards.

5. Best practices for stakers:

• Choose validators wisely. Low commission + high uptime

• Monitor validator status. Dropping below 10M ACs = no rewards

• Plan withdrawals. Remember the 360-block unbond delay

• Diversify with liquid staking. Flexibility for DeFi participation

Conclusion. Staking on Aleo isn’t just a way to earn passive income, it’s how you help secure the network and push forward private, decentralized applications. Whether you’re running a validator, delegating directly, or experimenting with liquid staking, Aleo’s credits.aleo program gives you the flexibility to choose how you participate.

With the commands and structures in this guide, you now have everything you need to start staking like a pro.

To know more about Aleo, join now!

• Aleo Twitter

• Aleo Discord

• Aleo Website

• List of Aleo and Leo code and resourses

Prepared by Colliseum