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    ETH’s Fusaka Upgrade Launches on Hoodi, Mainnet Coming Soon

    Ethan CarterBy No Comments7 Mins Read
    ETH's Fusaka Upgrade Launches on Hoodi, Mainnet Coming Soon



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    Greetings from The Protocol, CoinDesk’s weekly overview of crucial developments in cryptocurrency technology. I’m Margaux Nijkerk, a journalist at CoinDesk.

    In this edition:

    • Ethereum’s Fusaka Upgrade Completes Final Testing Before Mainnet Launch
    • BOB Introduces Bitcoin Vault Liquidation Engine for BTC-Backed Stablecoin Lending
    • Ledger Launches $179 Nano Gen5, Designed for Identity in an AI-Driven Era
    • Google Announces Quantum Breakthrough to Reignite Bitcoin Ramifications Discussion

    Network Updates

    FUSAKA GOES LIVE ON HOODI, ETHEREUM MAINNET NEXT: The concluding rehearsal for Ethereum’s upcoming Fusaka upgrade took place on Tuesday as the blockchain gears up for the mainnet hard-fork activation. The trial, which started around 18:53 UTC on the Hoodi testnet, involved executing a series of code adjustments aimed at enhancing Ethereum’s scalability and cost-effectiveness. Testnets are mock-ups of a blockchain’s main network, providing developers with a secure environment to test significant upgrades and address any problems before going live on the mainnet. Hoodi was the last of three testnets to undergo a Fusaka simulation, following successful test upgrades on the Holesky and Sepolia networks. Coming about six months after Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, Fusaka includes changes intended to lower costs for developers, users, and institutions on the network. Its main feature, PeerDAS, allows validators to verify only segments of data instead of complete “blobs,” reducing bandwidth requires and costs for validators and layer-2 networks. — Margaux Nijkerk Read more.

    BOB LAUNCHES VAULT LIQUIDATION ENGINE: BOB (“Build on Bitcoin”) introduced a new system enabling Bitcoin holders to borrow stablecoins against their BTC while ensuring it remains secured on the Bitcoin network. The Bitcoin Vault Liquidation Engine tackles several ongoing issues in Bitcoin lending, such as all-or-nothing liquidations and multi-day settlements, founder Alexei Zamyatin conveyed to CoinDesk via Telegram. Here, a vault is a smart contract that securely holds a user’s cryptocurrency as collateral for a loan, acting as a trustless escrow that automatically manages collateral and executes a liquidation (selling the asset) if its value drops too low. Implementing this for Bitcoin could turn the largest and most secure crypto asset into active collateral, unlocking trillions in BTC liquidity for the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem without necessitating sales. BOB’s new framework supports partial liquidation, allowing only enough collateral to maintain loan health to be sold instead of liquidating the entire position. — Jamie Crawley Read more.

    LEDGER REBRANDS ITS WALLET AND PRODUCT LINE: Ledger, the French company renowned for its crypto hardware wallets, has launched a comprehensive update to its product range, setting the stage for what it describes as a new “era of ownership.” The company has revealed the Ledger Nano Gen5, an updated version of its flagship device, alongside Ledger Wallet, a redesigned iteration of its Ledger Live app, and Ledger Enterprise Multisig, a new platform aimed at institutional asset management. The new Nano seeks to be more than just a crypto wallet, as the firm states. Ledger now refers to it as a “signer,” framing the device as a venue for both digital assets and digital identity in an AI-centric world. This rebranding from “wallets” to “signers” marks a shift in the company’s perspective on the core of security in this next digital era. The Ledger Nano Gen5 functions as a secure signing device for tasks ranging from crypto transactions to smart contracts and identity confirmation. — Margaux Nijkerk Read more.

    GOOGLE COMMENTS ON QUANTUM COMPUTING AND BITCOIN DISCUSSION: Google announced its achievement of a verifiable “quantum advantage” with its Willow chip, completing a calculation that would take classical supercomputers thousands of times longer. This reported advancement may reignite discussions in the cryptocurrency community regarding the potential negative implications of quantum computing for Bitcoin, whose functionality and security rely on cryptographic techniques that quantum computing might disrupt. The chip is said to have simulated quantum chaos in just two hours by measuring Out-of-Time-Order Correlators (OTOCs), a crucial benchmark for monitoring particle behavior. Researchers indicate that this progress brings quantum computing closer to practical applications, like Hamiltonian learning, where quantum machines could assist in modeling intricate molecular structures that are currently beyond the capabilities of existing tools. While significant, the breakthrough is not causing alarm in the crypto industry; although quantum computing may eventually pose challenges to Bitcoin’s cryptographic foundations, most experts believe this scenario is still a long way off. – Jamie Crawley Read more.

    In Other Developments

    • Western Union (WU) is set to launch a stablecoin for its 100 million-user payment network, joining the growing list of traditional finance firms leveraging blockchain technology for global transfers. Known for cross-border payments and cash network among retail clients, the company plans to introduce the U.S. Dollar Payment Token (USDPT) in the first half of next year, as detailed in a press statement. The token will be issued by Anchorage Digital, a federally regulated digital asset bank, using the Solana network, a public blockchain designed for fast and economical settlements. — Kristzian Sandor Read more.
    • The traditional wealth management and private banking sectors are facing increasing pressure to deliver digital assets to affluent clients, especially in crypto-friendly regions like Dubai, Switzerland, and Singapore. Swiss software firm Avaloq, which serves many private banks and wealth managers, studied investor attitudes among high-net-worth individuals (HNW) in the UAE (based on surveys of 3,851 investors and 456 wealth professionals conducted in February/March 2025) and discovered that while demand for digital assets in that area is notably high (39% of wealthy clients own crypto), only 20% of these crypto investors utilized a traditional wealth manager. The UAE, recognized for its oil-rich, ultra-high net worth family offices and being a low-tax center for expatriates, is rapidly emerging as a major crypto hub, with Dubai providing a clear regulatory framework via the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), operational since 2022. Additionally, younger generations from ultra-high net worth families are educating their parents about crypto. In this context, Avaloq’s UAE survey indicated that 63% of investors have switched managers or are considering doing so, largely due to their unanswered questions concerning crypto, as per the findings. — Ian Allison Read more.

    Regulatory and Policy Updates

    • Several notable figures in the crypto sector are among those financing a controversial White House ballroom project that commenced recently with the demolition of the historic East Wing. However, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal is seeking clarification about their involvement but they are largely remaining out of the limelight. CoinDesk inquired with crypto firms on the extensive list of Trump’s private-sector supporters about their backing and intentions to respond to the senator’s investigation, but only a spokesperson from Coinbase replied. Ripple, Tether, and Gemini, whose co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss were also donors, have not spoken, despite having received letters from Blumenthal, the ranking Democrat on the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. “Coinbase is proud to support the Trust for the National Mall, a 501(c)(3) partner of the National Park Service, and looks forward to addressing the committee’s inquiries,” the firm stated as its response. — Jesse Hamilton Read more.
    • Prediction market Kalshi has filed a federal lawsuit against the New York State Gaming Commission, asserting that the state’s efforts to halt certain event-based contracts infringe upon federal law. In a complaint submitted in the Southern District of New York, Kalshi requested the court to prevent New York officials from implementing state gambling laws that the company argues do not pertain to its operations. Kalshi is registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a designated contract market (DCM), granting it the federal right to list and clear derivatives tied to real-world events, including sports outcomes. The dispute revolves around Kalshi’s recent introduction of sports-event contracts, which the company self-certified with the CFTC earlier this year, allowing users to take opposing financial positions on whether a team will win or advance in a tournament, among other outcomes. — Francisco Rodrigues Read more.

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    Ethan is a seasoned cryptocurrency writer with extensive experience contributing to leading U.S.-based blockchain and fintech publications. His work blends in-depth market analysis with accessible explanations, making complex crypto topics understandable for a broad audience. Over the years, he has covered Bitcoin, Ethereum, DeFi, NFTs, and emerging blockchain trends, always with a focus on accuracy and insight. Ethan's articles have appeared on major crypto portals, where his expertise in market trends and investment strategies has earned him a loyal readership.

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