The Solana Foundation Delegation Program aims to amplify the impact of stake delegations issued to a node, whether they are from the node operator, a third-party delegator, or from an independent stake pool.

Matching Criteria

For eligible, high-performing validators, the Solana Foundation will now match external delegations 1:1 up to 100,000 SOL.

For example, if a validator receives 5,000 SOL from external delegations, the Foundation will delegate an additional 5,000 SOL to that node as long as it meets ongoing performance and decentralization criteria. If that validator’s delegation increases over time up to 100,000 SOL, the Foundation will continually increase its matched delegation.

When a validator’s external stake exceeds 100,000 SOL, up to 1,000,000 SOL, the Foundation match will remain capped at 100,000 SOL. If a validator’s external delegations exceed 1,000,000 SOL, the Foundation will no longer delegate to that node.

Any residual SOL held by the Foundation that is committed to this program after all the stake matching delegations are made will be distributed evenly to eligible validators as long as they meet program performance requirements.

The initial matching ratio of 1:1, matching limits, and the pool of residual SOL delegations are all expected to decrease over time as the Foundation increases its deposits into community stake pools, thereby reducing any operator’s reliance on any single delegation strategy or on the Foundation as a whole.

Q: What is the Solana Foundation Delegation Program?

A: The Solana Foundation Delegation Program aims to amplify the impact of stake delegations issued to a node, whether they are from the node operator, a third-party delegator, or from an independent stake pool.

Q: How does the program work?

A: Eligible, high-performing validators have their external delegations matched 1:1 up to 100,000 SOL, as long as they meet ongoing performance and decentralization criteria.

Q: What happens if a validator’s external stake exceeds 100,000 SOL?

A: The Foundation match will remain capped at 100,000 SOL, and any external delegations exceeding 1,000,000 SOL will no longer be matched.

Q: How will residual SOL held by the Foundation be distributed?

A: Any residual SOL held by the Foundation after all stake matching delegations are made will be distributed evenly to eligible validators as long as they meet program performance requirements.