.svg)
.svg)
Partner: Fireblocks
Integration: ETH-Link Custom Staking API
Use case: ETH validator infrastructure for institutional custody platforms
The Challenge
Fireblocks is the operational backbone for thousands of institutional clients - banks, asset managers, custodians, exchanges. ETH staking has been part of the platform, but integrating validator providers required bespoke, complex setups that were difficult to scale and maintain across multiple providers.
As institutional demand for ETH staking grew, Fireblocks needed a better model: a standardized interface that would let trusted validator providers integrate consistently, give clients access to more providers with less complexity, and keep the full staking lifecycle under Fireblocks' control.
The goal was not to add staking - it was to make staking simpler, more scalable, and more open across providers.
The Solution
Fireblocks built the ETH-Link API - a minimal, provider-agnostic interface designed to source validators from trusted external providers while keeping the full staking lifecycle under Fireblocks' control.
The architecture is deliberately constrained. ETH-Link defines the smallest possible surface for integrating external validator providers: how validators are created, how they are shut down, and nothing more. Deposits, rewards management, distribution, and all client-facing flows stay entirely within the Fireblocks system.
P2P.org is one of the first validator infrastructure providers to integrate within the ETH-Link architecture. Our role is focused: we manage and operate ETH validators under Fireblocks' direction. We do not intervene in custodied assets. Our infrastructure runs in the background - a blind guardian - while everything client-facing remains inside Fireblocks.
Fireblocks retains full control over everything client-facing - deposits, rewards, reporting. P2P.org runs the validator infrastructure underneath. The two never overlap.
P2P.org's Infrastructure
Fireblocks' clients are regulated institutions. When they ask about a validator provider, the questions go beyond uptime - key management architecture, audit history, slashing exposure, regulatory compliance. Here is how P2P.org answers them:
Key management. Validator keys are stored in an air-gapped private vault with no public access, anchored by Hardware Security Modules (HSMs) and protected through Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) for real-time encryption of all private key operations. No single person holds access. Key operations have been fully audited by PwC.
ETH-specific architecture. Validators run on threshold signature clusters (2 of 3 via Dirk) with strict access controls and no overlap between signers - no single point of failure, no single point of compromise. A built-in slashing database actively protects staked assets from penalties.
Resilience. Infrastructure spans geographically distinct regions across bare metal and cloud, with diversified consensus and execution clients. All MEV extraction runs through OFAC-compliant relays.
What Fireblocks Clients Get
For institutional clients already on Fireblocks, the integration is seamless:
- ETH staking within the existing platform. Same custody model, same key management framework. No new provider relationship to establish at the custody level.
- Assets stay within the Fireblocks environment. P2P.org operates as a validator provider inside the platform - not as an external service that assets flow toward.
- Enterprise-grade validator infrastructure. P2P.org's security posture, uptime guarantees, and slashing prevention apply within the integration. Clients inherit that without building or managing any of it.
