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The information contained in this Crypto Asset Statement was last updated on June 17, 2025

No securities regulatory authority in Canada has expressed an opinion about Lido DAO or any of the other Crypto Contracts or Crypto Assets made available through Newton Crypto Ltd. (Newton) on the Newton Platform, including an opinion that Lido DAO itself is not a security and/or derivative. Changes to applicable law may adversely affect the use, transfer, exchange, or value of any of your crypto assets, and such changes may be sudden and without notice.

Newton is offering Crypto Contracts in reliance on a prospectus exemption contained in the exemptive relief decision Re Newton Crypto Ltd. dated March 12, 2025.  The statutory rights of action for damages and the right of rescission in section 130.1 of the Securities Act (Ontario) and similar legislation in the other provinces and territories of Canada would not apply in respect of a misrepresentation in this Crypto Asset Statement or the Newton Platform Risk Statement.

This overview provides a summary of certain risks associated with Lido DAO (LDO) and is not an exhaustive description or summary of these risks and, in addition, does not take into account an individual’s particular situation or risk tolerance.  Investors are encouraged to conduct their own research prior to trading any crypto asset.

Newton users should read the Newton Platform Risk Statement for additional discussion of general risks associated with crypto assets made available through the Newton platform.  A copy of the Newton Platform Risk Statement acknowledged by you is available in your account in the “Statements & Reports” section.

Token Description & Project Background

Coin Description

Lido DAO (LDO) is the governance token of the Lido ecosystem, a decentralized liquid staking protocol that enables users to stake ETH on Ethereum while maintaining liquidity. LDO empowers holders to participate in governance by voting on validator sets, protocol upgrades, and strategic decisions, ensuring a decentralized approach to the protocol’s evolution. Built on Ethereum, Lido aligns incentives between stakers and the broader DeFi ecosystem.

Key Features of Lido DAO (LDO):

1. Governance Participation: LDO holders can propose, discuss, and vote on decisions like protocol upgrades, validator changes, treasury allocation, and ecosystem partnerships—ensuring decentralized community control.
    
2. Liquid Staking Access: Lido allows users to stake Ethereum (ETH) and receive stETH, a liquid token that can be used across DeFi platforms without losing staking rewards.
    
3. Ethereum-Only Support: As of 2025, Lido has phased out staking services for other blockchains such as Polygon, Polkadot, and Kusama, and now exclusively supports staking for Ethereum (ETH).
    
4. DeFi Integration: stETH is integrated into major DeFi platforms, enabling users to earn yield through borrowing, lending, and liquidity provision while their assets remain staked.
    

Background Information (Issuer, Team, etc.)

Lido DAO was launched in 2020 as a community-driven initiative to make staking more accessible. The protocol was created through collaboration between teams including P2P Validator, KR1, and Chorus One. As a DAO, Lido focuses on transparency, decentralization, and user empowerment. LDO is central to Lido’s mission of democratizing ETH staking, enabling users to contribute to network security and participate in the protocol’s growth.

Risks of Lido DAO

Like an investment in other crypto assets, an investment in LDO includes the following general risks:  (i) volatility risk and liquidity risk, (ii) short history risk, (iii) demand risk, (iv) forking risk, (v) code defects, (vi) regulatory risk, (vii) electronic trading risk, and (viii) cyber security risk.

For additional information of general risks associated with crypto assets, you may refer to the Newton Platform Risk Statement. 

Please note that these risks and the associated summaries or overviews provided for each herein are not intended to be an exhaustive discussion pertaining to all such risks and, in addition, there may be other risks that come with exposure to LDO. We encourage all Newton users to perform their own due diligence to assess the risks associated with LDO and to determine whether this level of risk is acceptable to them.  Neither the Lido DAO team/founders nor Newton guarantees the value of LDO, and holders of LDO will not have any recourse to LDO or Newton if the value of LDO declines for any reason whatsoever.

Newton’s Evaluation Process

Newton has reviewed and assessed LDO prior to making it available on the Newton Platform and has concluded that LDO is not a security or derivative under Canadian securities legislation; however, there is a risk that this conclusion could change in the future and that, in such event, Newton will be required to halt, suspend, and then remove LDO from its platform as described in the Newton Platform Risk Statement.

Further, as indicated above, no Canadian securities regulatory authority has expressed an opinion about LDO, including an opinion that LDO is not itself a security and/or derivative.

Based on publicly available information Newton has reviewed LDO, including, but not limited to, a review of the following:

• The creation, governance, usage, and design of LDO, including the source code, security, and roadmap for growth in the developer community and, if applicable, the background of the developer(s) that created LDO.
• The supply, demand, maturity, utility, and liquidity of LDO.
• Material technical risks associated with LDO, including any code defects, security breaches and other threats concerning LDO and its supporting blockchain (such as the susceptibility to hacking and impact of forking), or the practices and protocols that apply to them.
• Legal and regulatory risks associated with LDO, including (i) any pending, potential, or prior civil, regulatory, criminal, or enforcement action relating to the issuance, distribution, or use of LDO, and (ii) statements made by any securities regulatory authorities in Canada, other regulators in IOSCO-member jurisdictions, or the regulator with the most significant connection to LDO about whether LDO, or generally about whether the type of crypto asset, is a security and/or derivative.