The ETH validator exit queue has exploded. On-chain data shows that over 2.4 million ETH (worth more than $10 billion) are waiting to be withdrawn, and the queue time has been extended to 41 days.

Does it look dangerous? But institutions are quietly buying the dip. Grayscale alone has added 272,000 ETH (about $1.2 billion) to the staking queue, and other institutions are following suit with large amounts of capital locking up ETH. What’s the result? The exit pressure is being partially offset.

Network stability is not an issue—over 1 million active validators have locked up 35.6 million ETH, accounting for 29.4% of the total supply. ETFs and corporate treasuries continue to enter the market, actually creating more scarcity for ETH.

In the short term, there is indeed selling pressure risk. But judging from the aggressive institutional positioning, this could be a signal: big money is setting the stage for ETH’s future price.