Two New Referenda Target Polkadot's Staking Economics

@Polkadot has put two new OpenGov proposals to its community: referenda 1909 and 1910. Together, they represent the next step in a broader effort to overhaul the network's staking architecture, shifting risk away from everyday participants and toward the validators who operate the infrastructure.

Referendum 1909 builds on the 10,000 $DOT validator self-stake minimum that was established by the earlier Referendum 1890. The new proposal adds self-stake rewards for validators, sets validator commissions to 0%, and introduces permissionless chilling, meaning that under-bonded validators can be removed from the active set without requiring a governance action. The intent is to sharpen validator incentives and ensure operators carry genuine financial exposure to their own performance.

Referendum 1910 addresses the nominator side of the equation. It proposes removing nominator slashing entirely and reducing the unbonding period to 48 hours. Under Polkadot's current model, nominators who back a misbehaving validator can lose a portion of their staked funds. The existing unbonding period, meanwhile, sits at approximately 28 days, meaning stakers must wait nearly a month before withdrawn $DOT becomes transferable.

Rebalancing Risk Between Validators and Nominators

The two proposals are designed to work in tandem. By concentrating slashing risk on validators through the self-stake requirement and removing it for nominators, Polkadot aims to make staking more accessible to a broader range of participants. Cutting the unbonding window to 48 hours addresses a longstanding liquidity concern that has discouraged some holders from participating at all.

Taken together, referenda 1909 and 1910 continue a reform trajectory that @Polkadot's governance community began earlier in 2026. The core logic remains consistent: validators, who control the infrastructure, should absorb the primary operational risk, while nominators should be able to delegate and earn rewards with fewer barriers and less exposure to losses outside their control.

Both proposals are open for a vote through Polkadot's OpenGov system, where $DOT holders can participate directly in the decision.

Sources:
Polkadot OpenGov Votes on Mandatory 10,000 DOT Validator Self-Bond (BanklessTimes)
Staking on Polkadot (Polkadot Wiki)
Polkadot OpenGov Referenda Tracker (Subsquare)