Blockchain infrastructure-as-a-service company Bison Trails is integrating with Coinbase Custody while also providing support for the Polkadot protocol.

Announced on April 14, the integration will allow Coinbase Custody clients to delegate Polkadot (DOT) tokens to Bison Trails validators, which helps to secure the Polkadot protocol and earn participatory rewards.

Lowering barriers in the blockchain space

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Bison Trails CEO Joe Lalloz said that the integration will make it easier for people to run blockchain infrastructure and participate in the network, adding:

“One of the ways we can encourage greater participation is by focusing on the user experience. By removing the need for command line tools and manual engineering work through integration with a top custodian, we’re enabling customers to much more easily participate in the network.”

Staking and its role within the crypto sphere

Lalloz also said that the integration “is really unique” for the company, as users can run their own infrastructure and not just delegate to a third party or a staking-as-a-service company, stating:

“Ultimately that optimizes the way that they participate and the way they’re seen in the community and on the network.”

Sam McIngvale, CEO of Coinbase Custody, said that staking is "an increasingly important element of the crypto ecosystem. It provides Coinbase Custody clients, many of whom have obligations to their investors, with a crypto-native way to participate in network rewards while also contributing to the security and governance of the ecosystem.”

Going forward, Lalloz said that Bison Trails will continue to add support for more protocols:

“The road ahead for us is building better infrastructure, continuing to add protocols that we’re excited about and that the communities are excited about, whether that be work-specific protocols or new layer one protocols.”

Cointelegraph recently reported that Bison Trails intends to provide support for the Solana protocol — an open-source project that implements permissionless blockchain technology.