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SUBMIT A PRSUBMIT AN ISSUElast edit: Dec 08, 2025

Staking with a Proxy

This guide demonstrates how to use proxy accounts to perform staking operations on the Bittensor network. Using a proxy for staking allows you to keep your high-value coldkey secure in cold storage while using a hot wallet to manage day-to-day staking operations.

See also:

Overview​

A staking proxy is a specialized proxy type that grants limited permissions specifically for staking-related operations. The Staking proxy type allows the delegate to:

  • Add stake to validator hotkeys
  • Remove stake from validator hotkeys
  • Unstake tokens
  • Move stake between validators and subnets
  • Swap stake between validators

The Staking proxy type does not allow transfers, registrations, or other non-staking operations, providing a secure way to delegate only staking responsibilities.

Why use a staking proxy?

Using a staking proxy lets you keep your coldkey offline for maximum security while still being able to actively manage your staking positions. This is particularly useful for:

  • Validators who need to adjust stake frequently
  • Delegators who want to rebalance their stake distribution
  • Users who want operational flexibility without exposing their coldkey

Prerequisites​

Before setting up a staking proxy, ensure you have:

  • Coldkey wallet: Your main account that holds TAO and will authorize the proxy relationship
  • Proxy wallet: A separate wallet that will act as the delegate and perform staking operations
  • Sufficient TAO balance: In the coldkey to cover:
    • Staking operations
    • Proxy deposit (refundable when the proxy is removed)
    • Transaction fees

Create a Staking Proxy​

First, establish the proxy relationship by authorizing the proxy wallet to perform staking operations on behalf of your coldkey. You'll need to enter the password for each wallet.

btcli proxy add \
  --wallet.name PracticeKey \
  --delegate PROXY_WALLET_SS58_ADDRESS \
  --proxy-type Staking \
  --delay 0

Example with actual address:

btcli proxy add \
  --wallet.name my_coldkey \
  --delegate 5CZmB94iEG4Ld7JkejAWToAw7NKEfV3YZHX7FYaqPGh7isXe \
  --proxy-type Staking \
  --delay 0

After creating the proxy, you'll be prompted to save it to your address book for easy reference:

# Save to address book when prompted, or manually:
btcli config add-proxy \
  --name staking-proxy \
  --address 5CZmB94iEG4Ld7JkejAWToAw7NKEfV3YZHX7FYaqPGh7isXe \
  --proxy-type Staking \
  --spawner YOUR_COLDKEY_ADDRESS \
  --delay 0

Example output:

Enter your password:
Decrypting...
Enter your password:
Decrypting...
ExtrinsicResponse:
    success: True
    message: Success
    extrinsic_function: add_proxy_extrinsic
    extrinsic: {'account_id': '0xb0fec20486c9cf366c90bf1c93ad1bbc6b50596653f8832ee6c40483aa73d851', 'signature': {'Sr25519': '0xb06d00647f20259df5e6e67ac78dd4cc96710176b798b605794890521868a122b8cc434f6d8841204de9cbedecaaedd84d0444ae1b644cb217629b0be3f7958c'}, 'call_function': 'add_proxy', 'call_module': 'Proxy', 'call_args': {'delegate': '5CZmB94iEG4Ld7JkejAWToAw7NKEfV3YZHX7FYaqPGh7isXe', 'proxy_type': 'Staking', 'delay': 0}, 'nonce': 653, 'era': {'period': 128, 'current': 5910360}, 'tip': 0, 'asset_id': {'tip': 0, 'asset_id': None}, 'mode': 'Disabled', 'signature_version': 1, 'address': '0xb0fec20486c9cf366c90bf1c93ad1bbc6b50596653f8832ee6c40483aa73d851', 'call': {'call_function': 'add_proxy', 'call_module': 'Proxy', 'call_args': {'delegate': '5CZmB94iEG4Ld7JkejAWToAw7NKEfV3YZHX7FYaqPGh7isXe', 'proxy_type': 'Staking', 'delay': 0}}}
    extrinsic_fee: τ0.000013270
    extrinsic_receipt: ExtrinsicReceipt<hash:0xcd5ded2dfc505152870610233532646f6ebdd930793fa82f999d9bda2b79c2b5>
    transaction_tao_fee: None
    transaction_alpha_fee: None
    data: None
    error: None
Proxy deposit

Creating a proxy requires a deposit that is held as long as the proxy relationship exists. This deposit is returned when you remove the proxy. You can check current deposit requirements using subtensor.get_proxy_constants().

Transfer TAO to Proxy Wallet​

After creating the proxy relationship, transfer a small amount of TAO to the proxy wallet to cover transaction fees. The proxy wallet needs funds to sign and submit transactions on behalf of the coldkey:

btcli wallet transfer \
  --wallet.name my_coldkey \
  --dest PROXY_WALLET_SS58_ADDRESS \
  --amount 1.0

Example:

btcli wallet transfer \
  --wallet.name PracticeKey \
  --dest 5CZmB94iEG4Ld7JkejAWToAw7NKEfV3YZHX7FYaqPGh7isXe \
  --amount 1.0

This transfers 1 TAO to the proxy wallet to cover transaction fees for future staking operations.

Verify the Proxy​

Before performing staking operations, verify that the proxy relationship was created successfully:

View your locally saved proxies:

btcli config proxies

This displays all proxies you've saved to your local address book.

On-chain verification

BTCLI does not currently provide a command to query on-chain proxy state directly. To verify the on-chain proxy relationship, use the SDK's get_proxies_for_real_account() method or query via Polkadot.js Apps (Developer → Chain state → proxy.proxies).

Example output:

✓ Found 1 proxy relationship(s):

  Delegate: 5CZmB94iEG4Ld7JkejAWToAw7NKEfV3YZHX7FYaqPGh7isXe
  Type: Staking
  Delay: 0 blocks

Total deposit held: τ0.093000000 RAO

Find Validators to Stake To​

Before staking, query the metagraph to find validators with the most stake. We'll find validators on subnet 0 (root network) and subnet 14:

View the metagraph for a subnet to find validators:

# View subnet 0 (root network) metagraph
btcli subnets metagraph --netuid 0

# View subnet 14 metagraph
btcli subnets metagraph --netuid 14

This displays a table showing all validators on the subnet, including their hotkeys, stake amounts, and other metrics. Look for validators with high stake amounts to delegate to.

You can also use the wallet overview to see validators you're already staking to:

btcli wallet overview --wallet.name my_coldkey

Example output:

Subnet 0 - Top validator: 5GrwvaEF5zXb26Fz9rcQpDWS57CtERHpNehXCPcNoHGKutQY
Subnet 0 - Current stake: 125000.5 TAO

Subnet 14 - Top validator: 5HEo565WAy4Dbq3Sv271SAi7syBSofyfhhwRNjFNSM2gP9M2
Subnet 14 - Current stake: 89432.3 TAO
Metagraph Properties
  • S: Stake tensor - contains the stake amounts for all neurons in the subnet
  • hotkeys: List of hotkey addresses for all neurons in the subnet
  • argmax(): Returns the index of the neuron with the maximum stake

Add Stake with Proxy​

Add stake to a validator on behalf of your coldkey using the proxy wallet. We'll stake to the top validator on subnet 0 that we found in the previous step:

btcli stake add \
  --wallet.name proxy_wallet \
  --proxy COLDKEY_SS58_ADDRESS \
  --netuid 0 \
  --hotkey VALIDATOR_HOTKEY \
  --amount 100.0

Example using saved proxy:

# Using proxy address directly
btcli stake add \
  --wallet.name PracticeProxy \
  --proxy 5GrwvaEF5zXb26Fz9rcQpDWS57CtERHpNehXCPcNoHGKutQY \
  --netuid 0 \
  --hotkey 5HEo565WAy4Dbq3Sv271SAi7syBSofyfhhwRNjFNSM2gP9M2 \
  --amount 100.0

# Or using saved proxy name from address book
btcli stake add \
  --wallet.name PracticeProxy \
  --proxy my-coldkey \
  --netuid 0 \
  --hotkey 5HEo565WAy4Dbq3Sv271SAi7syBSofyfhhwRNjFNSM2gP9M2 \
  --amount 100.0

Parameters:

  • --wallet.name: The proxy wallet that signs the transaction
  • --proxy: Your coldkey's SS58 address (or saved proxy name)
  • --netuid: The subnet ID (0 for root network)
  • --hotkey: The validator's hotkey address
  • --amount: Amount of TAO to stake

The stake will be added from your coldkey's balance to the specified validator.

Parameters:

  • netuid: The subnet ID where you want to stake (0 = root network in this example)
  • hotkey: The validator hotkey to stake to (subnet 0 top validator from metagraph)
  • amount_staked: The amount to stake in RAO, use Balance.from_tao(amount).rao to convert
  • force_proxy_type: Must match the proxy type that was set when creating the proxy relationship

Verify the stake was added:

# View overview of all your stakes
btcli wallet overview --wallet.name my_coldkey

# Or list stakes specifically
btcli stake list --wallet.name my_coldkey

Move Stake with Proxy​

Move stake between subnets using the proxy. We'll move stake from subnet 0 to subnet 14, using the top validators we found earlier:

btcli stake move \
  --wallet.name proxy_wallet \
  --proxy COLDKEY_SS58_ADDRESS \
  --origin-netuid 0 \
  --origin-hotkey SUBNET0_VALIDATOR \
  --dest-netuid 14 \
  --dest-hotkey SUBNET14_VALIDATOR \
  --amount 50.0

Example:

btcli stake move \
  --wallet.name PracticeProxy \
  --proxy my-coldkey \
  --origin-netuid 0 \
  --origin-hotkey 5GrwvaEF5zXb26Fz9rcQpDWS57CtERHpNehXCPcNoHGKutQY \
  --dest-netuid 14 \
  --dest-hotkey 5HEo565WAy4Dbq3Sv271SAi7syBSofyfhhwRNjFNSM2gP9M2 \
  --amount 50.0

Parameters:

  • --wallet.name: The proxy wallet that signs the transaction
  • --proxy: Your coldkey's SS58 address (or saved proxy name)
  • --origin-netuid: Source subnet ID
  • --origin-hotkey: Source validator hotkey
  • --dest-netuid: Destination subnet ID
  • --dest-hotkey: Destination validator hotkey
  • --amount: Amount of TAO to move

Parameters:

  • origin_netuid: The subnet ID where the stake is currently located (0 = root network in this example)
  • origin_hotkey_ss58: The validator hotkey where the stake is currently staked (subnet 0 top validator)
  • destination_netuid: The subnet ID where you want to move the stake (14 in this example)
  • destination_hotkey_ss58: The validator hotkey where you want to stake (subnet 14 top validator)
  • alpha_amount: The amount of stake to move, use Balance.from_tao(amount) (Balance object is automatically converted)
  • force_proxy_type: Must match the proxy type that was set when creating the proxy relationship

Verify the stake was moved:

btcli wallet overview --wallet.name my_coldkey

Remove Stake with Proxy​

Remove stake from a validator on behalf of your coldkey using the proxy wallet. We'll unstake from the subnet 14 validator:

btcli stake remove \
  --wallet.name proxy_wallet \
  --proxy COLDKEY_SS58_ADDRESS \
  --netuid 14 \
  --hotkey VALIDATOR_HOTKEY \
  --amount 25.0

Example:

btcli stake remove \
  --wallet.name PracticeProxy \
  --proxy my-coldkey \
  --netuid 14 \
  --hotkey 5HEo565WAy4Dbq3Sv271SAi7syBSofyfhhwRNjFNSM2gP9M2 \
  --amount 25.0

Parameters:

  • --wallet.name: The proxy wallet that signs the transaction
  • --proxy: Your coldkey's SS58 address (or saved proxy name)
  • --netuid: The subnet ID to unstake from
  • --hotkey: The validator's hotkey address
  • --amount: Amount of TAO to unstake

The unstaked TAO will be returned to your coldkey's free balance.

Important Parameters
  • netuid: The subnet ID where you want to unstake from (14 in this example)
  • hotkey: The validator hotkey to unstake from (subnet 14 top validator from metagraph)
  • amount_unstaked: The amount to unstake in RAO, use Balance.from_tao(amount).rao to convert
  • force_proxy_type: Must match the proxy type that was set when creating the proxy relationship