Stride Labs

What Stride Labs does

Stride Labs is the development entity behind Stride, a multichain liquid staking protocol operating within the Cosmos and broader modular-blockchain ecosystems. The protocol enables users to stake 17+ native Cosmos tokens — including TIA, ATOM, OSMO, DYM, SAGA, DYDX, STARS, JUNO, LUNA, EVMOS, INJ, and others — and receive non-rebasing liquid staked tokens (stTokens) that appreciate in value against the underlying asset while remaining usable as collateral, LP positions, or trading pairs across 30+ DeFi protocols and 12+ exchanges. Stride's core technology is a minimalist Cosmos appchain that leverages Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) and Interchain Accounts (ICA) for cross-chain staking operations, and inherits approximately $3B of economic security from Cosmos Hub via Interchain Security, placing it in the top 20 PoS chains by economic security.

Stride generates revenue by charging a flat 10% commission on all staking rewards earned by liquid staked tokens; 8.5 percentage points are distributed to staked STRD token holders and 1.5 percentage points are redirected to Cosmos Hub staked ATOM as part of the interchain security arrangement, with approximately 80% of protocol revenue subsequently used to buy back and burn STRD. The protocol has expanded beyond pure liquid staking with stBGT, a liquid wrapper for Berachain's non-transferable BGT governance token (launched January 2025), and Echos, an experimental AI agent platform on a Celestia L2 rollup (launched November 2024). Stride Labs is a private, venture-backed company founded around 2021-2022, based in New York, with a lean team of 1-10 employees and approximately $10.7M raised across a $6.7M seed round (May/August 2022) led by North Island Ventures, Distributed Global, and Pantera Capital, a $1.5M incentive diversification sale (March 2023), and a $4M strategic round (February 2024) led by DBA to fund Celestia ecosystem expansion.

Name

Stride Labs

Legal name

Stride Labs

Website

https://stride.zone

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Stride Labs operates the Stride protocol, a multichain liquid staking appchain serving Cosmos token holders across 17+ chains by issuing liquid staked tokens that earn staking rewards while remaining usable across DeFi, generating revenue via a 10% take rate on rewards.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Decentralized Liquid Staking Protocol

akta.pro primary industry

Liquid Staking Protocols & Liquid Staking Tokens (LST) (FSADAOAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Liquid Staking Tokens (LST) & Liquid Restaking Tokens (LRT) Issuers (FSADAHAI)

Keywords

• Liquid staking protocol
• Cosmos DeFi
• Staked token issuance
• Blockchain appchain
• Cross-chain staking

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Liquid Staking Protocol Fees: Stride collects 10% of all staking rewards earned by liquid staked tokens. Of this 10%, 8.5 percentage points is rewarded to staked STRD holders, while the remaining 1.5 percentage points is directed to staked ATOM on Cosmos Hub as part of interchain security arrangement. Approximately 80% of protocol revenue is used to buy back and burn STRD tokens.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Stride Labs operates the Stride Protocol, a multichain liquid staking appchain in the Cosmos ecosystem. Users deposit native Cosmos tokens (TIA, ATOM, OSMO, DYDX, DYM, SAGA, and others) and receive non-rebasing liquid staked tokens (stTokens) that accrue staking rewards while remaining usable as collateral, liquidity, or tradeable assets across 30+ DeFi protocols. The protocol charges a 10% fee on staking rewards and supports cross-chain staking via IBC and Interchain Accounts.

Product overview

Stride Labs operates as a multichain liquid staking protocol for the Cosmos ecosystem, offering a single unified product platform with multiple token support. The core product is the Liquid Staking Protocol, which enables users to stake native tokens (TIA, ATOM, DYM, SAGA, DYDX, OSMO, STARS, JUNO, LUNA, EVMOS, INJ, UMEE, CMDX, SOMM, BAND, ISLM, and BGT) and receive liquid staked tokens (stTokens) that can be deployed across DeFi while earning staking rewards. Supporting products include STRD governance token for protocol governance, stBGT liquid wrapper for Berachain, Echos experimental AI agent platform, an Airdrop Program for distributing tokens to stToken holders, an Ambassador Program for community growth, and a Bridge feature for cross-chain token movement. The protocol maintains security through 10 audits, interchain security from Cosmos Hub, and rate-limiting mechanisms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Liquid Staking Protocol Core protocol enabling users to stake native Cosmos tokens and receive liquid staked tokens (stTokens) that accrue staking rewards while remaining usable in DeFi. Supports 17+ tokens including TIA, ATOM, OSMO, DYDX, DYM, SAGA, JUNO, LUNA, EVMOS, INJ, and others.
• stBGT (Berachain Liquid Wrapper) Liquid wrapper for Berachain's non-transferable BGT governance token that converts it into a tradable, collateralizable, and LP-able asset across Berachain DeFi protocols.
• Echos Experimental AI agent platform built on a Celestia L2 rollup that lets users create autonomous AI agents controlling crypto wallets and X social accounts, including memecoin launch and trading capabilities.
• STRD Token Governance token for the Stride blockchain enabling holders to vote on protocol decisions, stake to earn staking rewards from protocol fees, and participate in network security.
• Stride Bridge Cross-chain bridge enabling users to move tokens between Stride and other blockchains via Squid Router, Hyperlane, and IBC.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10% protocol fee on all staking rewards from liquid staked tokens
• +4 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration58 records

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• Keplr WalletmajorTechnology or IntegrationPrimary wallet integration for Stride liquid staking. Also listed as investor. Users connect via Keplr to access Stride app and stake tokens.
• CosmostationmajorTechnology or IntegrationWallet and validator partner. Cosmostation provides wallet infrastructure and validation services for Stride.
• OsmosismajorTechnology or IntegrationPrimary DEX for stToken and STRD trading. Multiple liquidity pools incentivized with STRD rewards. Also a Layer 1 chain supported for liquid staking.
• AstroportmajorTechnology or IntegrationDEX on Terra ecosystem for stToken trading (stLUNA, stDYDX, stINJ, stTIA liquidity pools).
• Mars ProtocolmajorTechnology or IntegrationMoney market on Mars that uses Stride LSTs (stATOM) as collateral for borrowing. Mars has explicitly recognized Stride's importance for their protocol.
• QuasarmajorTechnology or IntegrationDeFi protocol on IBC offering vaults that accept stTIA and stATOM for concentrated liquidity provision.
• KujiramajorTechnology or IntegrationBlue platform enables minting USK stablecoin using stATOM and stOSMO as collateral. Also provides FIN DEX for stToken trading.
• Shade ProtocolmajorTechnology or IntegrationSecret Network DeFi suite allowing users to mint SILK stablecoin using stATOM as collateral, with privacy features.
• Cosmos HubcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides Interchain Security to Stride, giving ~$3B economic security. Stride redirects 1.5% of protocol fees to Cosmos Hub stakers as part of this arrangement.
• CelestiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStride is expanding to become the primary liquid staking provider for Celestia. $4M strategic round specifically to fund Celestia ecosystem development. stTIA is a flagship use case.
• Informal SystemscoreTechnology or IntegrationAudited Stride 7 times, covering all features and security measures. IBC experts providing ongoing security review.
• Oak SecuritycoreTechnology or IntegrationConducted 2 security audits covering core functionality and ICA oracle contracts.
• CertikcoreTechnology or IntegrationAudited Stride's MVP architecture at launch in 2022.
• StrangelovemajorTechnology or IntegrationContributor organization providing tooling and infrastructure support for Stride blockchain.
• PolkachumajorTechnology or IntegrationValidator and contributor providing infrastructure and tooling support for Stride.
• HyperlanemajorTechnology or IntegrationInteroperability protocol enabling Stride to bridge TIA and stTIA across the modular ecosystem (Eclipse, Forma).
• Skip ProtocolmajorTechnology or IntegrationCross-chain bridging infrastructure making it easier to move LSTs across chains.
• BerachainmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStride expanded to Berachain to provide liquid wrapper for BGT (stBGT). BGT is non-transferable, requiring liquid staking to become usable in DeFi.
• BakerDAOmajorTechnology or IntegrationBakerDAO integrated stBGT into Berachain ecosystem, enabling users to earn yield on stBGT through LP vaults and liquidity provision.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Lido: The largest liquid staking protocol in crypto ($20B+ TVL across Ethereum and several L2s/alt-L1s). Lido is the dominant cross-chain LST player that Stride competes against on a per-chain basis. While Lido operates stETH on Ethereum, it has expanded to Cosmos-adjacent networks, making it a broad incumbent in the same liquid staking category.
• Coinbase (cbETH / Liquid Staking): Coinbase's liquid staking product (cbETH on Ethereum, plus other LSTs on Base). Functions as a centralized incumbent in the same liquid staking category, leveraging institutional-grade compliance and exchange distribution that Stride lacks.

Direct peers

• Quicksilver: A Cosmos-ecosystem liquid staking protocol built on its own appchain, similar to Stride. Quicksilver offers qAssets for multiple IBC tokens and uses Interchain Security from Cosmos Hub. Direct competitor for Cosmos LST market share with overlapping target tokens.
• Persistence: Cosmos liquid staking protocol offering stkATOM and pSTAKE for multiple PoS assets. Operates in the same IBC liquid staking category as Stride, targeting the same Cosmos token holder base with similar liquid staking derivatives.
• Rocket Pool: Ethereum-native decentralized liquid staking protocol issuing rETH. While Ethereum-focused, Rocket Pool is the closest analog in protocol design (non-custodial, validator-distributed, LST-based) and competes for the same conceptual liquid staking market.
• Marinade Finance: Solana's leading liquid staking protocol issuing mSOL. Direct category peer offering liquid staking derivatives with auto-compounding rewards and DeFi composability—same core value proposition as Stride, adapted for the Solana validator set.
• Jito Labs: Solana-based liquid staking protocol that combines MEV-optimized validation with LST issuance (jitoSOL). A direct liquid staking peer to Stride in a different ecosystem, demonstrating the standard LST + DeFi utility model.

Emerging players

• EigenLayer: Ethereum restaking protocol that extends staked ETH security to AVSs. While focused on restaking rather than liquid staking, EigenLayer overlaps with Stride via LRT issuance (e.g., ezETH, pzETH) and is a conceptual competitor for capital-efficient staking yield.
• Stride / Stride Labs competitors in modular ecosystem (e.g., MilkyWay, MilkyWay Zone): MilkyWay is a liquid staking and restaking protocol in the Celestia ecosystem, directly overlapping with Stride's Celestia expansion (stTIA). Emerging peer competing for the same modular-chain LST market that Stride is aggressively expanding into.

Others

• Cosmos Hub: The Layer 1 blockchain that provides Interchain Security to Stride's appchain. Cosmos Hub is both a critical infrastructure partner (~$3B security) and a stakeholder that receives 1.5% of Stride's protocol fees, making it a strategically adjacent entity rather than a competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/stride_zone
• GitHubgithub.com/Stride-Labs/stride
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stride-zone

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors17 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Stride Labs