Without a doubt, blockchain staking has leaped with restaking—a mechanism that allows users to extend the utility of their already staked assets to secure smaller protocols and earn rewards. Before now, restaking was mostly synonymous with the Ethereum blockchain, but that's changing. Jito is actively working to bring restaking to the Solana ecosystem.

In this guide, we'll explore how Jito’s (Re)staking service works and walk you through its ecosystem and the steps to get started.

What is Jito?

Jito is a leading project in the Solana ecosystem, primarily known for its Maximum Extractable Value (MEV)-powered liquid staking solution. MEV refers to the additional rewards earned by reordering transactions within a block, typically captured by validators and MEV bots. Jito ensures these MEV rewards are redistributed to users who stake their SOL tokens.

In essence, Jito allows users to stake their SOL tokens and receive JitoSOL, a liquid staking derivative. This way, JitoSOL holders benefit from regular staking rewards, use their liquid derivative assets as collateral, and gain MEV rewards from high-frequency transactions executed through Jito’s proprietary systems.

Source: Jito | Defillama

As of writing, Jito has secured over $2 billion in total value locked (TVL), with 200 validators in its network and more than 100,000 stakers in its pool, and has helped users earn over 3,000 SOL in MEV rewards.

Understanding Jito (Re)staking

Jito (Re)staking is a relatively new multi-asset protocol designed to unlock additional value from staked assets like SOL and liquid staking derivatives such as JitoSOL.It allows users to restake their tokens to secure multiple services, known as Node Consensus Networks (NCNs), while continuing to earn staking rewards. These AVSs are on-chain applications or decentralized services that require enhanced economic security through validation.Behind the scenes, Jito (Re)staking operates through two main components:

• Vault Program: This manages the operation of Liquid Restaking Tokens and supports multiple SPL tokens with customizable slashing and delegation strategies​.
• Restaking Program: Facilitates the management of Node Consensus Networks (NCNs), coordinates with operators, and handles reward distribution and slashing penalties.

Both components work together to provide a solution that manages staked assets, ensures economic security, and allows for decentralized consensus across several services.​

What’s Ahead for Restaking in Solana

Restaking has already made a significant presence on Ethereum with EigenLayer, which saw its Total Value Locked (TVL) reach over $20 billion before stabilizing at around $12 billion; this growth demonstrates the potential of restaking to boost security and yield across many decentralized services.

Data source: Restaking | Defillama

With Solana's high throughput and lower transaction costs, it is well-positioned to replicate and expand on this model. Restaking on Solana could soon see similar growth as Ethereum, with projects like Jito leading the charge in bringing advanced restaking solutions. Early Solana restaking projects, such as Solayer, already demonstrate the potential of this approach to add billions more in value and secure decentralized services across the network.

InfStones Becomes Jito's Early Node Operators

We’re equally excited to announce our collaboration with Jito as one of their early node operators. InfStones will help operate the validator nodes powering Jito's restaking infrastructure and ensure these nodes maintain the availability and performance required to secure both the core Solana network and the NCNs supported by Jito’s framework.

Furthermore, this collaboration will let InfStones users position their assets for higher rewards, maintain liquidity through liquid restaked tokens, and help strengthen decentralization within the Solana network.

Conclusion

Jito Restaking allows users to maximize their staked assets by securing additional services and earning higher rewards, all while maintaining liquidity through liquid restaked tokens.

We’re excited to invite our users to restake with InfStones on Jito. Join us in exploring Jito (Re)staking and take advantage of the opportunities it brings to optimize your assets and contribute to the growth of decentralized finance.