Today, the Espresso Network takes its next step: a fully decentralized, permissionless base layer secured by staked ESP.

Espresso, a purpose-built base layer for layer-2 chains, provides fast finality, scalable data availability, and crosschain composability to a growing ecosystem that includes ApeChain, Celo, Katana, RARI Chain, Molten, Morph, and LitVM. Today, 20+ chains are live or in various stages of integration, representing over $1B in total value secured.

Espresso's upgrade to proof-of-stake consensus represents the transition from a permissioned network run by a fixed validator set to a base layer secured by its community. The upgrade rolls out across three epochs, completing on March 4 when the stake table takes effect and staking rewards begin to accrue.

Here's what's happening, why it matters, and what to do.

Since launching Mainnet 0 in November 2024, the Espresso Network has operated as a permissioned network of 100 nodes operated by 22 institutional and community validators, selected by the Espresso Systems team before the Espresso Foundation was established. That was a deliberate design choice. Running a stable production network while proving out the consensus mechanics and onboarding rollup integrations required a controlled environment.

Over the past 14 months, Espresso validators have finalized over 70 million blocks from integrated chains, including ApeChain, RARI Chain, Molten, Appchain, NodeOps Network, Rufus, and LogX. HotShot, Espresso's purpose-built BFT consensus protocol, has been running in production, delivering transaction finality in seconds rather than the 16 minutes it takes Ethereum to finalize a rollup's transactions.

The permissioned phase served its purpose. Now it ends.

Mainnet 1.0 opens the validator set to anyone. Economic security, backed by ESP staking, replaces the fixed operator set. This is not a cosmetic change: it fundamentally alters the security model of the network and the guarantees that integrated rollups can rely on.

Under PoS, validator voting power within HotShot's active consensus set is proportional to staked ESP. HotShot dynamically adjusts its active consensus set to match the top 100 validators by total stake at any time. As long as 2/3 of staked ESP is held by honest validators, the network is secure. HotShot's consensus protocol is accountable: In the event of malicious behavior, the evidence is onchain and the community can act.

For rollups integrated with Espresso, this matters in a concrete way. The base layer they depend on for fast finality, data availability, and crosschain composability is now secured by its community rather than a curated set of operators.

The upgrade happens across three epochs, each of which spans 40,000 blocks, or roughly one day at current two-second block times, though exact timing varies with network conditions. There is no fixed clock: epoch transitions happen automatically at set block intervals.

• Today: More than 90% of mainnet node operators have upgraded to the newest release. The upgrade process begins.

• Epoch 1 — est. Monday, March 2: The upgrade triggers at block height 10,960,201. Track it in real time on the Espresso block explorer. Epoch 1 runs for 40,000 blocks with the first epoch transition occurring at block 11,000,000, at which time the stake table governing Epoch 3 PoS consensus is locked in.

• Epoch 2 — est. Tuesday, March 3: A transition epoch beginning at block 11,000,000. The network is preparing to hand off to PoS consensus. No action needed from validators or delegators.

• Epoch 3 — est. Wednesday, March 4: Beginning at block 11,040,000, the stake table takes effect and staking rewards begin to accrue. This is the moment Espresso (specifically HotShot, its consensus protocol) is fully running proof-of-stake.

Watch the Espresso block explorer and our X account for real-time updates as each epoch progresses.

Holders don't need to run a node to put your ESP to work. Most holders participate by delegating their tokens to a validator through the Espresso staking dashboard.

Delegation means you temporarily assign your tokens to a validator, which stakes them on your behalf. In return, you earn staking rewards minus the validator's commission. You can start delegating now, though rewards won’t begin accruing until Epoch 3, which as stated above is expected at block height 11,040,000, scheduled to occur on March 4.

A few things worth knowing before you delegate:

Only the top 100 validators by total stake are eligible to earn rewards. If you delegate to a validator outside the top 100, you won't earn rewards until they enter the top 100. When choosing a validator, the staking dashboard shows total stake, commission rate, and missed slots to help you evaluate your options.

Undelegation takes approximately 7 days to complete. You can only have one pending undelegation per validator at any given time. Plan accordingly if you think you may want to move your stake.

Review the delegation guide in the Espresso documentation for step-by-step instructions.

If you received ESP through the airdrop, staking your entire allocation unlocks access to boosted rewards on top of the standard staking yield.

To be eligible, you need to stake your airdrop allocation within 14 days of when you claimed. This window is calculated on a per wallet basis. Boosts unlock at three milestones based on how long you keep your tokens staked:

• After 3 months: 256% boost to accrued staking rewards since token launch. First claim available.

• After 1 year: 359% boost to accrued staking rewards since the 3-month milestone. Second claim available.

• After 2 years: 420% boost to accrued staking rewards since the 1-year milestone. Third claim available.

Two important caveats: boosted rewards apply only to airdrop tokens, not tokens acquired elsewhere. And if you unstake more than 50% of your tokens before reaching a milestone, you forfeit your boosted rewards for that period. The one exception is if your validator takes their node offline: In that case, you have 14 days to redelegate to a new validator without losing eligibility.

The Espresso Foundation will announce when each claim window for these boosted rewards opens via its X account and blog. Claims for the initial airdrop are now closed.

For more details, here’s a guide to the boosted rewards program.

Launching a new proof-of-stake consensus protocol is not common. You can count recent PoS network launches on one hand (e.g., Monad, Sui, Aptos, etc.). It requires not only a consensus protocol, but also a credible validator set, and infrastructure that can actually perform under real conditions. Espresso has all three.

HotShot, Espresso's purpose-built consensus protocol, finalizes blocks in seconds. Not minutes. For institutions and enterprises building L2s and appchains, that's the difference between infrastructure they can rely on for crosschain payments and instant settlement, and infrastructure they can't. Fast, irreversible transaction finality is a prerequisite for serious financial applications. Slow finality is a risk they don't want to carry.

With PoS live, that finality is now backed by economic stake rather than a fixed operator set. The network is decentralized, accountable, and built to support seamless crosschain transactions, while flexible enough to support secure settlement across multiple chains.

The L2s integrated with Espresso came for the fast finality. Decentralization strengthens that finality, adding economic security to infrastructure that institutions and enterprises can build on with confidence.

The PoS upgrade is a milestone, not a destination. The technical roadmap continues: we're targeting subsecond finality in 2026, currently at 4-5 seconds and improving.

More chains are in the process of integrating, including Celo, Morph, LitVM, Katana, and Gate Layer. And the ecosystem of crosschain applications that Espresso makes possible is just getting started.

Follow the PoS upgrade in real time on the Espresso block explorer.

For updates on each epoch transition, follow the Espresso Foundation on X.

To delegate and start earning rewards, visit the staking dashboard.

The Espresso Foundation serves as the long-term steward of Espresso Network, the purpose-built base layer for interoperable chains and next-generation blockchain applications. The Foundation oversees network development, ecosystem growth, and the transition to full decentralization, including the launch of the ESP token. https://www.espresso.foundation/

Today, the Espresso Network takes its next step: a fully decentralized, permissionless base layer secured by staked ESP.

Espresso, a purpose-built base layer for layer-2 chains, provides fast finality, scalable data availability, and crosschain composability to a growing ecosystem that includes ApeChain, Celo, Katana, RARI Chain, Molten, Morph, and LitVM. Today, 20+ chains are live or in various stages of integration, representing over $1B in total value secured.

Espresso's upgrade to proof-of-stake consensus represents the transition from a permissioned network run by a fixed validator set to a base layer secured by its community. The upgrade rolls out across three epochs, completing on March 4 when the stake table takes effect and staking rewards begin to accrue.

Here's what's happening, why it matters, and what to do.

Since launching Mainnet 0 in November 2024, the Espresso Network has operated as a permissioned network of 100 nodes operated by 22 institutional and community validators, selected by the Espresso Systems team before the Espresso Foundation was established. That was a deliberate design choice. Running a stable production network while proving out the consensus mechanics and onboarding rollup integrations required a controlled environment.

Over the past 14 months, Espresso validators have finalized over 70 million blocks from integrated chains, including ApeChain, RARI Chain, Molten, Appchain, NodeOps Network, Rufus, and LogX. HotShot, Espresso's purpose-built BFT consensus protocol, has been running in production, delivering transaction finality in seconds rather than the 16 minutes it takes Ethereum to finalize a rollup's transactions.

The permissioned phase served its purpose. Now it ends.

Mainnet 1.0 opens the validator set to anyone. Economic security, backed by ESP staking, replaces the fixed operator set. This is not a cosmetic change: it fundamentally alters the security model of the network and the guarantees that integrated rollups can rely on.

Under PoS, validator voting power within HotShot's active consensus set is proportional to staked ESP. HotShot dynamically adjusts its active consensus set to match the top 100 validators by total stake at any time. As long as 2/3 of staked ESP is held by honest validators, the network is secure. HotShot's consensus protocol is accountable: In the event of malicious behavior, the evidence is onchain and the community can act.

For rollups integrated with Espresso, this matters in a concrete way. The base layer they depend on for fast finality, data availability, and crosschain composability is now secured by its community rather than a curated set of operators.

The upgrade happens across three epochs, each of which spans 40,000 blocks, or roughly one day at current two-second block times, though exact timing varies with network conditions. There is no fixed clock: epoch transitions happen automatically at set block intervals.

• Today: More than 90% of mainnet node operators have upgraded to the newest release. The upgrade process begins.

• Epoch 1 — est. Monday, March 2: The upgrade triggers at block height 10,960,201. Track it in real time on the Espresso block explorer. Epoch 1 runs for 40,000 blocks with the first epoch transition occurring at block 11,000,000, at which time the stake table governing Epoch 3 PoS consensus is locked in.

• Epoch 2 — est. Tuesday, March 3: A transition epoch beginning at block 11,000,000. The network is preparing to hand off to PoS consensus. No action needed from validators or delegators.

• Epoch 3 — est. Wednesday, March 4: Beginning at block 11,040,000, the stake table takes effect and staking rewards begin to accrue. This is the moment Espresso (specifically HotShot, its consensus protocol) is fully running proof-of-stake.

Watch the Espresso block explorer and our X account for real-time updates as each epoch progresses.

Holders don't need to run a node to put your ESP to work. Most holders participate by delegating their tokens to a validator through the Espresso staking dashboard.

Delegation means you temporarily assign your tokens to a validator, which stakes them on your behalf. In return, you earn staking rewards minus the validator's commission. You can start delegating now, though rewards won’t begin accruing until Epoch 3, which as stated above is expected at block height 11,040,000, scheduled to occur on March 4.

A few things worth knowing before you delegate:

Only the top 100 validators by total stake are eligible to earn rewards. If you delegate to a validator outside the top 100, you won't earn rewards until they enter the top 100. When choosing a validator, the staking dashboard shows total stake, commission rate, and missed slots to help you evaluate your options.

Undelegation takes approximately 7 days to complete. You can only have one pending undelegation per validator at any given time. Plan accordingly if you think you may want to move your stake.

Review the delegation guide in the Espresso documentation for step-by-step instructions.

If you received ESP through the airdrop, staking your entire allocation unlocks access to boosted rewards on top of the standard staking yield.

To be eligible, you need to stake your airdrop allocation within 14 days of when you claimed. This window is calculated on a per wallet basis. Boosts unlock at three milestones based on how long you keep your tokens staked:

• After 3 months: 256% boost to accrued staking rewards since token launch. First claim available.

• After 1 year: 359% boost to accrued staking rewards since the 3-month milestone. Second claim available.

• After 2 years: 420% boost to accrued staking rewards since the 1-year milestone. Third claim available.

Two important caveats: boosted rewards apply only to airdrop tokens, not tokens acquired elsewhere. And if you unstake more than 50% of your tokens before reaching a milestone, you forfeit your boosted rewards for that period. The one exception is if your validator takes their node offline: In that case, you have 14 days to redelegate to a new validator without losing eligibility.

The Espresso Foundation will announce when each claim window for these boosted rewards opens via its X account and blog. Claims for the initial airdrop are now closed.

For more details, here’s a guide to the boosted rewards program.

Launching a new proof-of-stake consensus protocol is not common. You can count recent PoS network launches on one hand (e.g., Monad, Sui, Aptos, etc.). It requires not only a consensus protocol, but also a credible validator set, and infrastructure that can actually perform under real conditions. Espresso has all three.

HotShot, Espresso's purpose-built consensus protocol, finalizes blocks in seconds. Not minutes. For institutions and enterprises building L2s and appchains, that's the difference between infrastructure they can rely on for crosschain payments and instant settlement, and infrastructure they can't. Fast, irreversible transaction finality is a prerequisite for serious financial applications. Slow finality is a risk they don't want to carry.

With PoS live, that finality is now backed by economic stake rather than a fixed operator set. The network is decentralized, accountable, and built to support seamless crosschain transactions, while flexible enough to support secure settlement across multiple chains.

The L2s integrated with Espresso came for the fast finality. Decentralization strengthens that finality, adding economic security to infrastructure that institutions and enterprises can build on with confidence.

The PoS upgrade is a milestone, not a destination. The technical roadmap continues: we're targeting subsecond finality in 2026, currently at 4-5 seconds and improving.

More chains are in the process of integrating, including Celo, Morph, LitVM, Katana, and Gate Layer. And the ecosystem of crosschain applications that Espresso makes possible is just getting started.

Follow the PoS upgrade in real time on the Espresso block explorer.

For updates on each epoch transition, follow the Espresso Foundation on X.

To delegate and start earning rewards, visit the staking dashboard.

The Espresso Foundation serves as the long-term steward of Espresso Network, the purpose-built base layer for interoperable chains and next-generation blockchain applications. The Foundation oversees network development, ecosystem growth, and the transition to full decentralization, including the launch of the ESP token. https://www.espresso.foundation/