Kelp rsETH is a liquid restaking token, not a liquid staking token, and the distinction is the whole story. Roughly 68 percent of its backing is a claim on other issuers' staking tokens, mostly Lido stETH at 55.6 percent plus Stader ETHx, with only about 32 percent held as native ETH through EigenPods. That stack is restaked into EigenLayer through just two node operators, one of which opts into every available AVS and therefore carries the maximum possible slashing surface. rsETH scores 42/100 (Tier 4) on the RWTS Trust Score. On 18 April 2026 an attacker exploited a single-verifier LayerZero bridge configuration and took roughly $292m, the largest crypto exploit of that year, attributed to DPRK-linked actors. Ethereum mainnet reserves held; the loss fell on holders of bridged rsETH across more than twenty chains. Backing was restored about five weeks later by an Aave-led industry coalition rather than by Kelp's own resources, which is a solvency outcome no rating should assume is repeatable. Note also that rsETH pays 2.32 percent against 2.26 percent for plain Lido staking, so the restaking layer is currently adding about six basis points for a materially larger risk surface.
- Issuer / protocol
- Kelp (Kernel DAO)
- Backing
- 55.6% Lido stETH, 32.1% native ETH via EigenPods, 12.3% Stader ETHx, restaked into EigenLayer
- Redemption / lock-up
- Roughly 15 to 17 days for LST exits (14-day EigenLayer escrow plus processing), longer for the native ETH portion
- Audit & proof of reserves
- Independently audited
- Availability
- kerneldao.com is geo-blocked in the United States.
- Chain
- Ethereum
- Tier
- Tier 4 — Synthetic & Structured
- Contract
- 0xA129…e5A7
Scored on the published RWTS methodology (v1.1), reviewed quarterly and on material events. Ratings are independent and never pay-influenced.
Calculations are indicative. Actual yields may vary.
Price data from CoinGecko. Not financial advice.
Current yield of 2.26% sits at 7% of the observed range. There may be room for rates to improve.
Projections assume constant APY of 2.26%. Actual returns may vary. Not financial advice.
Beyond rsETH's own score, two structural questions matter: what is it built on, and what has broken before in this part of the market. A high score in isolation can still carry hidden, shared exposure.
What this and similar assets are built on, and where contagion could spread.
The depegs, defaults, and exploits that inform the Track Record dimension.
Liquidity read: TVL of $1.03B indicates deep on-chain liquidity. Lock-up: Roughly 15 to 17 days for LST exits (14-day EigenLayer escrow plus processing), longer for the native ETH portion.
Is rsETH safe?
rsETH (Kelp Restaked ETH) scores 42/100 on the independent RWTS Trust Score, which places it in Synthetic & Structured (Tier 4). Tier 4 is the highest-risk tier: synthetic or structured backing where the yield comes with genuine structural risk, not a hard claim. Backing: 55.6% Lido stETH, 32.1% native ETH via EigenPods, 12.3% Stader ETHx, restaked into EigenLayer. It is independently audited. The score reflects backing, verification, redeemability, audit, regulatory standing, and track record, not headline yield. We rate. You decide.
Exit routes
10/15 · right 5/8 · routes 5/7If the issuer stopped cooperating tomorrow, could you get out?
Yes, by more than one independent route
- independent
Kelp withdrawal
Contract-based, with a delay.
- independent
Uniswap V4, Ethereum
84.4% of volume, $67.6k of pool liquidity. Above the capacity floor.
Route 5. Six venues carry volume but only one pool could be verified above the $10k capacity floor, so the market counts as one route, not five.
This is the redeemability component of the Trust Score above, which stands at 42/100 (D). Until 1 September 2026 redeemability was a single figure measuring the right to redeem while ignoring how many routes existed to exercise it. Splitting it moved this asset’s score. How the score works
Assessed 2026-09-01. Route independence asks how many ways out the issuer cannot close, not how much the asset trades.
Compare rsETH
Head to head on the Trust Score with similar assets.