1. Difference between Swell and Lido in terms of liquid ETH staking:

There are multiple differences which we believe leads to a superior product overall.

At a high level, Swell is ushering in the next generation of ETH staking - effectively, what we're terming to be Staking 2.0.

At a more practical level, some of the main differences are:

• Atomic Deposit Transaction: Swell utilizes an atomic deposit whereby the user is the direct depositor into the Beacon Chain. This means higher yields and more transparency. Lido and others are uses a deposit pooling model which creates lower yield (because net rewards, including slashing and penalties are socialized across the network of stakers) and lower transparency (as it is not a direct deposit unlike Swell).
• Vaults: Swell will make use of ERC4626 to create vaults for users to compound their yield within the same DApp, creating a one-stop shop experience. This makes for a better UX and simplified DeFi experience. Lido and others simply return the staking derivative and create additional burden for users to yield-farm / compound their yield.
• Permissionless + White Label: Swell is permissionless for node operators, whilst making use of both verified and unverified approaches. On the contrary, Lido is permissioned and we believe that Swell's growth will accelerate as we're leveraging the best of a whitelist approach and a trustless approach (e.g. Rocket Pool). We have node operators like InfStones already well on the way to becoming whitelist node operators.

These are just a few of the differences. Ultimately, we're taking the best of Lido, Rocket Pool, and others, and then advancing the experience for all actors in the ecosystem, both for stakers and node operators.

1. Difference between Swell and Stader in terms of liquid ETH staking:

Stader and Swell are similar in that both are liquid staking with applications across retail and institutional.

Swell does intend to move multi-chain next year and will exclusively focus on Ethereum this year.

To help clarify the differences between Swell and Stader:

• Existing Track Record in ETH: Swell has demonstrated a Proof of Concept V1, since the inception of the Beacon Chain in 2020. Stader is yet to deploy liquid staking of any kind of Ethereum, with their initial focus being on Terra and others.
• Differences for ETH Compared to Other PoS: Whilst Stader may be looking to move cross / multichain with Ethereum nodes; developing a winning liquid ETH staking solution on Ethereum is more nuanced given the way that the Ethereum PoS consensus mechanism is designed with the 32 ETH validator requirement, complexity around Merge, treatment of MEV, and a whole host of other issues, of which Swell has a reasonable understanding about given our specialized expertise in Ethereum.
• ETH Backers: Swell has secured some of the leading funds / firms in the DeFi and Ethereum ecosystem including being backed by Framework Ventures, founders of major DeFi protocols (Synthetix, Balancer, Ren, Mask, and more), and the Tier 1 Ethereum opinion leaders including Mark Cuban, Bankless (Ryan / David), and Anthony Sassano. These backers will serve as a powerful platform for Swell to becoming a leading player in what will be the largest PoS blockchain post Merge and beyond.
• Ethereum Foundation: Swell has ongoing dialogue with the Ethereum Foundation, especially given that Swell has been first to market on multiple Ethereum PoS developments. Our team is very technical with a focus on deep tech / R&D.
• Proven Innovation (First-Ever Innovations): Swell has proven its innovative flair to stay atop and shape the frontiers of liquid ETH staking, including but not limited to being: first to do atomic deposit transaction, first to do financial NFT staking, etc. all of which translate to a better UX and product experience.
• ETH Liquid Staking Timing: Swell's design of liquid, permissionless, non-custodial, is well placed to take advantage of ETH liquid staking. (Note that ~90% of ETH still remains unstaked / idle, and so Swell is well positioned to capture the market, noting that even a small % share of this market would impute strong valuation uplifts for investors.)