Node Operator Admission: Kiln as stVault Professional Operator

Node Operators stVaults Identification
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1. Identification

Kiln is an enterprise-grade staking and restaking infrastructure provider serving over 250 businesses (exchanges, custodians, wallets and institutional platforms). Kiln operates globally distributed, multi-cloud, multi-region validator infrastructure across major PoS networks. The company has 100+ employees, is headquartered in Paris, France, SOC 2 Type II certified, and runs a fully non-custodial staking architecture.

Kiln has been an Ethereum node operator in Lido since 2021.

2. Business Case

Kiln has established a proven track record in running validators and staking infrastructure across Ethereum, Solana, Ton, Cosmos, and a lot of other ecosystems. By joining the stVault framework as a Professional Operator, Kiln aims to bring extensive validator operations experience, institutional client distribution (cross-selling into Kiln customer base), and integrations of stVaults with Kiln DeFi and Railnet, our institutional asset management protocol.

3. Ops & Decentralisation

Kiln operates validators under a “better down than slashed” philosophy, with strict change-management, multi-cloud redundancy, and dedicated monitoring/alerting systems.

Kiln maintains a neutral MEV posture compatible with stVault requirements.

Client & Infrastructure Model

  • non-custodial setup — clients retain control of funds at all times.

  • Ethereum client diversity strategy.

  • Validator infrastructure runs exclusively on dedicated bare-metal servers located in Europe, ensuring low latency, high reliability.

  • Remote signing via Web3Signer:

    • Keys are never exposed on validator hosts.

    • Policies enforce strict access control.

    • Web3Signer runs in hardened, isolated environments with controlled network access.

  • Fully automated GitOps deployments on an Infrastructure as Code environment.

  • Continuous monitoring & alerting tracks peer health, version consistency, and validator performance.

  • Infrastructure distributed across multiple data centers and cloud providers.

MEV & Neutrality Policy

  • Kiln follows a balanced, safety-first MEV posture using a diversified set of open, transparent, and regulated relays to maximise resilience while maintaining compliance.

  • Fallback to local block building for proposer availability.

4. Governance & Compliance

Kiln is a EU-based entity adhering to GDPR and operating under institutional security and compliance standards.

The company maintains SOC 2 Type II certification, a dedicated security portal, public status page, bug bounty program, and non-custodial staking design with protocol-controlled withdrawals.

5. Links

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Hi!

Thanks for applying — we’re glad to see you progressing with your onboarding as a Node Operator for stVaults.

As a member of the stVaults Committee, I confirm that the Committee has initiated the assessment process. We’ll keep you updated as it moves forward.

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