Renzo: A New Star in the Re-staking Arena

Renzo is an Ethereum re-staking protocol based on Eigenlayer, designed to simplify the complexities of re-staking on Eigenlayer. It provides users with a more convenient and liquid way to participate in the re-staking process. Users can deposit ETH or liquid staking tokens (LST) into Renzo to receive ezETH in return, which is a liquid re-staking token (LRT) that can be used in DeFi applications.

Renzo's core advantage lies in its reduction of the barriers for users to participate in the Eigenlayer ecosystem. It allows users to select and delegate to different active validation services (AVS) on Eigenlayer, thereby providing users with ETH stake rewards, Eigenlayer point rewards, and Renzo's own point rewards.

Detailed Explanation of ezETH

ezETH is Renzo's liquidity re-staking token, representing the user's re-staking position in Renzo. For every 1 LST or ETH deposited, an equivalent amount of ezETH is minted. ezETH is similar to cTokens, and its value is expected to increase over time as it earns rewards in the form of ETH, USDC, and AVS tokens.

It is worth noting that ezETH withdrawals are currently not supported, and users can provide liquidity or sell ezETH in the liquidity pool. Unstaking requires at least 7 days, primarily due to EigenLayer's requirements, and the specific time may vary due to AVS.

Renzo allocates all rewards of EigenLayer to users, and the fees collected by the protocol will be distributed between the protocol reserves and node operators.

Renzo Points System

Renzo Points ( ezPoints ) is the project's loyalty program, and users can earn it in the following ways:

1. Mint and hold ezETH: Each ezETH can earn 1 ezPoint per hour.
2. Referral System: Invite others to deposit ETH to earn an additional 10% referral user points.

The earnings available to Renzo users include: ETH stake earnings, EigenLayer re-staking points, and Renzo points.

Project Development History

Since the launch of the Renzo mainnet testnet in December 2023, it has gone through several important milestones:

• Secured $3.2 million in seed funding on January 16, 2024.
• Received investment from Binance Labs on February 22, 2024
• Continuously support multiple blockchain networks, including Arbitrum, BNB Chain, Mode, Linea, and Base.
• $REZ token will be launched on Binance Launchpool on April 23, 2024.

Project Data

According to DeFiLlama data, Renzo's total locked value (TVL) has reached 3.231 billion USD, distributed across 7 different blockchain networks. This data makes Renzo the second largest project in the liquidity re-staking track, second only to Ethfi.

Token Economics

$REZ is the native utility and governance token of the Renzo protocol, with a total supply of 10 billion. The initial circulating supply is approximately 1.15 billion (11.50%). The token distribution is as follows:

• Binance Launchpool: 2.50%
• Community Airdrop: 12.00%
• Team: 20.00%
• Foundation: 12.44%
• Investors and Advisors: 31.56%
• DAO Treasury: 20.00%
• Liquidity Pool: 1.50%

Listing Information

$REZ will be listed for spot trading on Binance at 12:00 UTC on April 30, 2024. Currently, it is being mined on Binance Launchpool, with 2.5% of the total token supply allocated for a duration of 6 days.

Summary

As an emerging project in the re-staking arena, Renzo has quickly accumulated a considerable TVL by simplifying user operations and utilizing a multi-chain layout. However, the project also faces some potential risks, such as the de-pegging risk of ezETH and its reliance on the Eigenlayer ecosystem. Investors should weigh the potential returns against the risks and make decisions based on their individual risk preferences.