Puffer Finance
Staking · Liquid Restaking · pufETH
Puffer is a native liquid restaking protocol issuing pufETH; its Secure-Signer / RAVe anti-slashing technology lets node operators run with reduced bond while restaking on EigenLayer.
Native liquid restaking with anti-slashing.
pufETH price
$1878.91
+4.5% 24h
Latest data · 15 min delay
Research
Components, facts, FAQ, timeline, and tokenomics in one place
Main components (5)
pufETH (native Liquid Restaking Token)
The protocol's reward-bearing nLRT. Users deposit ETH (or stETH, wstETH, WETH) into the Puffer vault and receive pufETH, which appreciates against ETH as it accrues Ethereum PoS staking rewards plus EigenLayer restaking rewards. Withdrawals and DeFi composability keep the staked capital liquid.
Secure-Signer
A remote-signing tool that runs inside a Trusted Execution Environment (Intel SGX enclave). It keeps validator keys in encrypted memory and hardware-enforces that only non-slashable messages can be signed, maintaining an EIP-3076 integrity-protected database of prior signatures to prevent slashing from accidents or compromised/buggy clients. Funded by an Ethereum Foundation grant.
RAVe (Remote Attestation Verification)
A set of smart contracts that verify SGX remote-attestation evidence on-chain, letting an untrusted node operator cryptographically prove it is running Secure-Signer before being admitted to the pool. RAVe is the second deliverable of Puffer's Ethereum Foundation grant.
UniFi (based rollup + AVS)
Puffer's flagship Layer-2 roadmap: UniFi is a based rollup and UniFi AVS on EigenLayer provides preconfirmations (preconfs) as a service for based-rollup fast finality. It is the primary use of the Binance Labs / L2 investment.
PUFFER token & vlPUFFER
PUFFER is the native governance token for the Puffer Protocol and UniFi ecosystem (1 billion max supply). vlPUFFER is a non-transferable, vote-escrow position minted by locking PUFFER (30 days at 1x up to 24 months at 24x multiplier; 10 PUFFER minimum) that grants voting weight over Puffer LRT parameters, UniFi AVS and UniFi Rollup.
Differentiator
Native restaking with hardware-enforced anti-slashing, lowering the capital and risk to operate a restaked validator.
Organizational structure
Units & roles
- Core protocol developer
Puffer Finance (Puffer Labs)
The team building the Puffer native liquid restaking protocol, Secure-Signer/RAVe anti-slashing tooling and the UniFi based rollup. Governance is transitioning to PUFFER / vlPUFFER token holders over Puffer LRT, UniFi AVS and UniFi Rollup parameters.
Investment rounds
| Date | Round | Amount | Investors | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-08-08 | Seed | $5.5M | LemniscapLightspeed FactionBrevan Howard DigitalBankless VenturesAnimoca VenturesDACMCanonical Crypto | Source |
| 2024-01-30 | Strategic (Binance Labs) | Undisclosed | Binance Labs | Source |
| 2024-04-16 | Series A | $18M | Brevan Howard DigitalElectric CapitalCoinbase VenturesKraken VenturesFranklin TempletonAvon VenturesMechanism CapitalLightspeed FactionConsensysAnimocaGSRLemniscap | Source |
Similarity to traditional finance products
How Puffer Finance maps onto established TradFi structures, and where it diverges.
| TradFi product | Similarity to Puffer Finance | Key differences |
|---|---|---|
| Interest-bearing / money-market fund share | pufETH is a liquid, transferable claim whose value accrues over time from an underlying yield stream, similar to how a money-market fund share grows in value while staying redeemable. | Yield comes from Ethereum validation and restaking rather than short-term debt; there is no regulated custodian or NAV guarantee, and holders bear smart-contract, slashing and restaking (AVS) risks with no deposit insurance. |