Share this article

Ethereum Mainnet Was Unable to Fully Finalize Transactions for 25 Minutes

Developers resolved the finalization issues and are investigating what caused the outage.

Updated May 12, 2023, 3:32 p.m. Published May 11, 2023, 9:42 p.m. 1 min read
(Getty Images)

The Ethereum mainnet was unable to fully confirm transactions for about 25 minutes on Thursday, with blocks getting proposed but not being finalized.

Users of the blockchain saw that their transactions were going through. However, during the 25-minute span, they were at risk of being altered because of the malfunction.

Some Ethereum core developers announced that the blockchain wasn’t finalizing over Twitter and that they were investigating the issue. A similar issue in the past was caused a bug in a client – the software that runs the blockchain.

After roughly 25 minutes, the mainnet was finalizing blocks again. The developers said they are still investigating what caused this outage, and would report back to the community soon.

This is a developing story.

More For You

departure, airplain

Also: Citi on quantum computing and bitcoin, Jump Crypto’s Firedancer, and Vitalik Buterin on AI verification

What to know:

Welcome to The Protocol, CoinDesk's weekly wrap of the most important stories in cryptocurrency tech development. I’m Margaux Nijkerk, a reporter at CoinDesk.

In this issue:

  • ‘What's happening at the EF?’ Ethereum community is looking for answers after high-profile departures
  • Bitcoin faces outsized quantum threat as computing breakthroughs accelerate, Citi...