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Delegator Guide

This guide walks you through delegating GEN tokens to a validator on the GenLayer testnet.

What is Delegation?

Delegation allows you to stake your GEN tokens with an existing validator without running validator infrastructure yourself. You earn staking rewards proportional to your stake.

Prerequisites

  • Node.js installed
  • GenLayer CLI installed (npm install -g genlayer)
  • GEN tokens for staking

Step 1: Create an Account

genlayer account create

You'll be prompted to set a password. This creates an encrypted keystore file.

Step 2: Set Network to Testnet

genlayer network testnet-bradbury

Step 3: Fund Your Account

Transfer GEN tokens to your address. Check your balance:

genlayer account

Step 4: Check Minimum Delegation

genlayer staking epoch-info

Note the delegatorMinStake - you need at least this amount.

Step 5: Find a Validator

List all active validators:

genlayer staking active-validators

Output:

{
  count: 6,
  validators: [
    '0xa8f1BF1e5e709593b4468d7ac5DC315Ea3CAe130',
    '0xe9246A020cbb4fC6C46e60677981879c9219e8B9',
    ...
  ]
}

Get details about a specific validator:

genlayer staking validator-info --validator 0xa8f1BF1e5e709593b4468d7ac5DC315Ea3CAe130

Look for:

  • live: true - Validator is active
  • banned: 'Not banned' - Validator is in good standing
  • identity - Validator's metadata (moniker, website, etc.)

Step 6: Unlock Your Account (Optional)

For convenience:

genlayer account unlock

Step 7: Delegate to a Validator

genlayer staking delegator-join --validator 0xa8f1...130 --amount 100gen

Options:

  • --validator <address> - Validator address to delegate to (required)
  • --amount <amount> - Amount to stake (e.g., 100gen)

Step 8: Verify Your Delegation

genlayer staking delegation-info --validator 0xa8f1...130

Output:

{
  delegator: '0x86D0d159483CBf01E920ECfF8bB7F0Cd7E964E7E',
  validator: '0xa8f1BF1e5e709593b4468d7ac5DC315Ea3CAe130',
  shares: '100000000000000000000',
  stake: '100 GEN',
  projectedReward: '0.2 GEN per epoch',
  pendingDeposits: 'None',
  pendingWithdrawals: 'None'
}

The projectedReward shows your estimated earnings per epoch based on current inflation and your stake weight.

Managing Your Delegation

Check Your Stake

genlayer staking delegation-info --validator 0xa8f1...130

Withdraw (Exit) Delegation

To withdraw your stake:

genlayer staking delegator-exit --validator 0xa8f1...130 --shares 50

Options:

  • --validator <address> - Validator you delegated to
  • --shares <shares> - Number of shares to withdraw

This initiates a withdrawal. Your tokens enter an unbonding period of 7 epochs before they can be claimed.

Check your pending withdrawals with delegation-info:

pendingWithdrawals: [
  {
    epoch: '5',
    shares: '50',
    stake: '50 GEN',
    claimableAtEpoch: '12',
    status: 'Unbonding (4 epochs remaining)'
  }
]

Claim Withdrawals

After the 7-epoch unbonding period, claim your tokens:

genlayer staking delegator-claim --validator 0xa8f1...130

Choosing a Validator

Consider these factors when choosing a validator:

  1. Uptime - Validators with high uptime earn more rewards
  2. Reputation - Check their identity metadata and community presence
  3. Stake - Higher stake may indicate trust from the community
  4. Not banned/quarantined - Avoid validators with issues

Check quarantined validators:

genlayer staking quarantined-validators

Check banned validators:

genlayer staking banned-validators

Troubleshooting

"No account found"

Run genlayer account create first.

"Insufficient balance"

Ensure you have enough GEN. Check with genlayer account.

"Below minimum stake"

Check minimum with genlayer staking epoch-info and increase your amount.

"Validator not found"

Verify the validator address is correct and they are still active.

Transaction Stuck

Check the transaction status:

genlayer receipt <tx-hash>

Lock Your Account

When done, lock your account:

genlayer account lock