Summary
Type: Asset Assessment
Timeline: From 2025-07-01 To 2025-07-04
Total Issues: 1 (0 resolved)
Low Severity Issues: 1 (0 resolved)
Overview
Mantle Restaked Ether (cmETH) is a liquid restaking token (LRT) introduced by the Mantle Network as part of its mETH Protocol. In the Mantle ecosystem, users stake ETH to receive Mantle Staked Ether (mETH), a yield-bearing receipt token similar to other liquid staking tokens. cmETH is a second-layer receipt token built on mETH and represents mETH that has been “restaked” across various approved protocols to earn additional yield. In simpler terms, cmETH lets holders earn the normal Ethereum Proof-of-Stake rewards (via the underlying mETH) plus extra rewards from restaking that mETH in other protocols.
An asset assessment was conducted on cmETH to evaluate its suitability as a collateral asset for the USDe market on Mantle within the Compound ecosystem.
Materials Reviewed
| Material | Version/Date | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Technical Documentation | As of 2025-07-04 | mETH Protocol Documentation |
| Proposal Discussion | As of 2025-07-04 | Compound Community Forum |
| ChaosLabs Risk Assessment | As of 2025-07-04 | AAVE Community Forum |
Summary of Findings
Key Concerns
- Currently, the cmETH contract can be upgraded by the Security Council’s 6-of-13 multisig without a timelock.
- The available price feeds on Mantle, such as Chronicle’s and Chainlink’s, are flagged as “High Market Risk”.
Positive Observations
- Several audits of the mETH protocol have been conducted.
- mETH is already listed as a collateral asset on Mantle’s USDe market.
Asset Information
Asset Name: cmETH
Asset Type: Liquid Restaking Token (LRT)
Creation Date: August 02, 2024
Blockchain: Mantle
Contract Address: 0xE6829d9a7eE3040e1276Fa75293Bde931859e8fA
Contract Verification: Verified
Asset Standard: ERC-20
Key Metrics
| Metric | Value | Source | Verification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Supply | 100,372 | Etherscan | Verified |
| Onchain Market Cap | $267.21M | Etherscan | Verified |
| Holders | 178,623 | Etherscan | Verified |
Token Economics
When a user opts into restaking, they deposit their mETH into the Teller contract and receive an equal amount of cmETH. cmETH is non-rebasing and keeps a strict 1:1 peg to mETH. Additional restaking rewards are handled outside of the token (e.g., accumulated for distribution in separate reward tokens or claimable yields) instead of increasing the cmETH balance.
Behind the scenes, the deposited mETH is held in a BoringVault contract. The vault can route portions of this mETH into various PositionManager contracts – each integration with a specific restaking protocol (e.g., EigenLayer, Symbiotic, Karak, etc.) to earn extra yield.
Supply Mechanics
cmETH is minted exclusively on Ethereum L1 by converting mETH at a fixed 1:1 rate, after which it can be bridged to Mantle. Alternatively, users on Mantle L2 can acquire cmETH directly from liquidity pools via supported decentralized exchanges.
While cmETH does not impose a fixed lock-up period, unstaking is subject to either an 8-hour delay or, in some cases, up to ~7 days, depending on available protocol inventory and the cooldown periods of third-party restaking platforms. During this time, unstaking requests are processed based on mETH availability in the protocol’s unstaking queue. Once the request is fulfilled, users receive mETH, which can then be redeemed for ETH through the standard unstaking process or by simply swapping mETH on an exchange for ETH if immediate liquidity is desired. There is no minimum unstake amount.
Distribution
| Holder Category | Percentage | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Top 3 Holders | 72.73% | Comprised of two staking contracts and a Bybit hot wallet |
| Top 10 Holders | 93.57% | The 4th holder is a Safe multisig that owns almost 7% of the supply, while the rest of the holders own less than 3.5% each |
Access Control
The main roles related to the cmETH token are:
| Role | Capabilities | Controlled by |
|---|---|---|
| UPGRADER | Upgrade contract implementation | Timelock (no delay and controlled by the Security Council’s multisig) |
| MANAGER | Set block and sanction lists | MLSPSecL2 multisig |
| DELEGATOR | Manage LayerZero configuration | MLSPSecL2 multisig |
Further information about roles can be found in the Mantle docs.
Asset Checklist
Token Standard Compliance
| Requirement | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ERC-20 | COMPLIANT | N/A |
Token Security
| Feature | Implementation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Audited | COMPLIANT | Several audits have been performed, covering different parts of the system |
| No Fee-on-transfer | COMPLIANT | N/A |
| No Blocklist | NON-COMPLIANT | A blocklist is present but is not actively used in normal operations |
| No Delay in transfer | COMPLIANT | N/A |
Risk Assessment
| Risk Category | Risk Level | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Technical Risk | LOW | Several audits of the mETH protocol have been conducted |
| Economic Risk | LOW | cmETH is fully collateralized by mETH, which is in turn collateralized by ETH |
| Centralization Risk | MEDIUM | The Security Council operates as a 6-of-13 multisig, which has the ability to upgrade the cmETH implementation via a Timelock with no delay |
| Price Feed Risk | MEDIUM | Chronicle’s cmETH/mETH and Chainlink’s mETH/ETH price feeds are both flagged as “High Market Risk”, indicating a lack of quality and/or quantity of sources |
Low Severity
Trust Assumption Concerning Security Council Multisig
According to the official Mantle documentation, upgrades to the cmETH token contract and other protocol-critical components can be executed by the Security Council’s 6-of-13 Safe multisig. If this multisig were to act maliciously or become compromised, it could execute upgrades that materially alter the behavior of the token or its economics.
While all the privileged roles on the system are transparent and documented, they do introduce a layer of centralized control that could expose Compound to risks such as:
- unexpected token behavior or new restrictions
- compromised or misaligned incentives for collateral holders
While this is considered a low-severity issue due to the reputational strength of the mETH protocol, it nonetheless represents a real trust assumption that should be acknowledged. It is also worth noting that the mETH token—governed by the same Security Council multisig—is already listed as a collateral asset on Mantle’s USDe market.
Conclusion
The cmETH token was reviewed for its potential use as collateral in the USDe market on Mantle. The primary concerns identified relate to the absence of reliable price feeds and the lack of delay on contract upgrades. However, similar concerns apply to the mETH token, which is already listed as a collateral asset on Mantle’s USDe market. Therefore, cmETH appears to be a suitable collateral option within the context of Compound’s current risk framework.
Final Recommendations
The following recommendations are provided regarding the use of cmETH as collateral in the USDe market on Mantle:
- Upgrades to the mETH protocol contracts via the Security Council’s governance should be actively monitored to ensure that no new risks are introduced to Compound.
- The price oracle solution for cmETH should be resilient and account for the possibility of sharp price movements, especially if it relies on underlying price feeds that are high-risk.
- Gauntlet’s recommendations should be followed when setting the risk parameters for the collateral.