dYdX Blockchain Suffers Major Outage After Planned Upgrade

dYdX, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, has encountered an unexpected halt in block production following a scheduled upgrade on April 8, leading to an ongoing outage since 6:50 a.m. UTC. Engineers are actively investigating the issue and working with validators to identify a solution without risking penalization during the chain restart. The incident marks the first major outage for the protocol since its launch in October and has not yet affected the price of its token, which has seen a slight increase in the past 24 hours.

dYdX Suffers Major Blockchain Outage Following Scheduled Upgrade

April 8, 2023 - The decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol dYdX has experienced an unexpected halt in block production following a scheduled upgrade of its Cosmos blockchain. The outage, which began at 6:50 a.m. UTC, has yet to be resolved, and engineers are still working to identify and debug the issue.

Investigation and Resolution

The dYdX team has confirmed the outage and is actively working to resolve the situation. They are collaborating with validators to explore potential solutions without risking penalties for being offline during the chain restart. Nodes Guru, a blockchain explorer platform, indicates that no new blocks have been produced since the scheduled upgrade five hours ago.

Impact on Users and Network

The outage has not impacted the price of dYdX's DYDX token, which has risen over 4% in the past 24 hours, according to CoinmarketCap. However, it has disrupted the protocol's functionality, affecting users who rely on it for trading and other DeFi operations.

Background on Protocol Upgrade

The outage occurred during a scheduled protocol upgrade that aimed to introduce several advancements, including order book features, risk and safety improvements, and enhancements related to Cosmos integration. The upgrade was intended to enhance the protocol's capabilities and address the increasing trading activity within the dYdX community.

dYdX's Prior Developments

dYdX launched its standalone Cosmos blockchain on the mainnet in October 2023, allowing DYDX token holders to transfer funds from the Ethereum network to the new platform. The protocol has also authorized the staking of $61 million in treasury tokens on the liquid staking protocol Stride to address the growing trading activity.

Expansion and Challenges

dYdX migrated from Ethereum in early 2022 due to concerns over the network's scalability issues. The protocol's total value locked on-chain currently stands at $504.48, with the network generating over $48.59 million in fees over the past twelve months.

Conclusion

The dYdX outage is a significant setback for the protocol, representing its first major issue since the launch of its standalone blockchain. The team is actively working to resolve the situation and restore block production. Despite the disruption, dYdX remains committed to enhancing its protocol and expanding its utility for users.