How to Stake on Berachain’s V2 Testnet

Berachain's consensus mechanism, powered by Proof-of-Liquidity (PoL), flips the script on traditional Proof-of-Stake. Instead of simply locking up tokens to validators or centralized protocols, users stake by providing liquidity to the ecosystem through BEX pools. This innovative approach kills two birds with one stone: it secures the network while simultaneously boosting DeFi liquidity, which would otherwise be locked up in users’ wallets or isolated protocol smart contracts. Stakers earn the non-transferrable BGT governance token, which can be delegated to validators for additional rewards. The kicker? BGT can't be bought - only earned through active participation, aligning ecosystem incentives, and fostering a more engaged, liquidity-rich network.

The idea is that the more liquidity is fostered within a protocol, the more vibrant an ecosystem can be built within it. Accompanying this protocol innovation is an atmosphere that puts vibes, fun, and memes over the typical blockchain infrastructure project. 

Roles Validators Play in Berachain

High-level overview of PoL architecture, from Berachain’s documentation 

How to Stake on Berachain 

Step 1: Navigate to Berachain on Validation Cloud's staking page here: https://app.validationcloud.io/staking/berachain

Step 2: Load Berachain Wallet and Fund it with ETH

This tutorial assumes that you already have a browser wallet installed. If not, some examples of wallets that can be easily downloaded are here:

• MetaMask
• Coinbase Wallet Extension
• Trust 
• Rainbow
• Phantom
• Ledger Hardware Wallet (Can be plugged into most browser wallets)

Once the wallet is loaded and installed, ensure that it is funded with any amount of $BGT you would like to stake. You can navigate to the official testnet faucet to bootstrap your wallet with free tokens: https://bartio.faucet.berachain.com/

Step 3: Navigate to Validation Cloud’s Validator Page and Connect your Wallet

Go to Validation Cloud's validator page and click on the “Connect Wallet” button at the top right of the screen.

Most wallets already connect you to the appropriate network by default. As shown in the image below, this is what you can expect to see for the example with MetaMask’s wallet extension:

However In the event your wallet is not able to automatically connect to the Berachain testnet, you’ll want to add the following configuration to your wallet connection details:

Network name: Berachain-Bartio 

Network URL: https://bartio.rpc.berachain.com 

Chain ID: 80084 

Currency symbol: BERA 

Block explorer URL: https://bartio.beratrail.io/ 

Step 4: Set Desired Amount of Staked Bera and Press the “Stake” button

This can be any amount of $BGT that you have. The corresponding transaction costs and fees are outlined in the description. It also includes the amount of $BGT tokens that you will receive.

The positions can be unbonded at any time as well. Simply submit a request to unbond via the above interface, and you will get your r previously staked tokens back. 

If at any point you choose to redeem your $BGT to $BERA tokens, you can do so at a 1:1 ratio via the redeem interface, located here: https://bartio.station.berachain.com/redeem. 

Validation Cloud x Berachain

Validation Cloud is proud to be a validator on the Berachain Testnet V2. To learn more about Berachain, check out our overview blog here. You can view Validation Cloud’s Berachain validator page here and start staking below. 

About Validation Cloud

Validation Cloud is a Web3 data streaming and infrastructure company that connects organizations into Web3 through a fast, scalable, and intelligent platform. Headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, Validation Cloud offers highly performant and customizable products in staking, node, and data-as-a-service. Learn more at Validationcloud.io | LinkedIn | X