Bitwise Asset Management is reportedly set to acquire institutional crypto staking firm Chorus One, deepening its expansion into digital asset yield services.
The deal would bring a large-scale staking operation onto Bitwise’s platform, reflecting rising demand for onchain yield products from both retail and institutional investors.
Chorus One offers staking services across multiple decentralized networks and currently oversees about $2.2 billion in staked assets, according to its website.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Bloomberg reported the development on Wednesday, citing statements from both companies. Cointelegraph contacted Bitwise and Chorus One for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.
Ethereum staking demand surges as validator queue grows
Data from Ethereum’s validator queue shows a sharp increase in demand to stake Ether. The entry queue has expanded to more than 4 million ETH, implying a waiting period of over 70 days.
Nearly 37 million ETH—just over 30% of the total supply—is now staked, supported by close to 1 million active validators securing the network. The figures indicate that a growing number of ETH holders are willing to lock up their tokens despite extended onboarding delays.
Growing interest in staking has prompted other major asset managers to bake yield into regulated crypto products. Morgan Stanley has filed to launch a spot Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) that would stake a portion of its holdings to generate passive income. Grayscale is also preparing to begin distributing staking rewards from its Ethereum Trust ETF, marking the first payout linked to onchain staking by a U.S.-listed spot crypto exchange-traded product.
Crypto M&A hits record levels
Bitwise’s reported acquisition comes amid a boom in crypto mergers and acquisitions in 2025. By November, deal activity had reached $8.6 billion across a record 133 transactions, exceeding the combined total of the previous four years.
Coinbase led the surge, completing six acquisitions during the year, including its $2.9 billion purchase of crypto derivatives exchange Deribit.
