Polygon team blames temporary outage on suspected “consensus bug”

  • Polygon’s Heimdall consensus layer was down for 1 hour today due to a consensus bug.
  • The Bor layer stayed live, and transactions continued uninterrupted.
  • The bug follows the recent complex Heimdall V2 upgrade.

Polygon, one of Ethereum’s leading Layer 2 scaling solutions, suffered a temporary outage on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, that halted its Heimdall consensus layer for approximately one hour.

Notably, the unexpected disruption came just weeks after the network’s most technically complex upgrade since its inception in 2020.

Validator exit triggered the rare failure

The outage began around 09:30 UTC when Heimdall, the consensus layer responsible for managing validators and syncing Polygon’s proof-of-stake chain with Ethereum, suddenly became unresponsive.

According to an official statement from the Polygon Foundation, the incident was caused by a validator unexpectedly exiting the network — a rare event that the system had not been programmed to handle.

This unusual validator exit led to a “consensus bug” that halted checkpointing and caused a temporary break in chain progression.

Polygon confirmed that the chain’s “liveliness”— or its ability to process and execute transactions — remained intact throughout the disruption, thanks to the Bor layer, which continued to produce blocks without interruption.

Bor stays live, but RPCs falter

While the core functionality of the network was preserved, the user experience told a different story.

According to an update from the Polygon Foundation, due to the outage, several RPC providers experienced sync inconsistencies across their Bor nodes.

This created confusion for users and dApps who rely on explorers and API endpoints to verify network status and transactions in real time.

Some users mistakenly believed the entire network was offline.

Polymarket, a major prediction market platform built on Polygon, briefly showed error messages during the downtime, further adding to the perception that funds or trades were stuck.

Polygon’s team later clarified that while validator data and checkpoint information were temporarily inaccessible, the chain itself never stopped processing transactions.

In their words, the situation “triggered a false alarm” due to the network’s limited handling of validator exits.

A bug weeks after a major upgrade

The timing of the incident was notable. Earlier in July, Polygon launched Heimdall V2, an upgrade built on CometBFT and Cosmos-SDK v0.50.

The upgrade aimed to reduce finality times to around five seconds and boost scalability.

However, the update also added new complexity to the system, introducing potential points of failure.

Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal described it as the most technically complex hard fork since the protocol’s launch in 2020.

The outage has now raised questions about whether the complexity introduced with Heimdall V2 may have outpaced the system’s preparedness for rare scenarios.

This isn’t the first time Polygon has faced such disruptions. In March 2022, an error in Heimdall V1 resulted in several hours of downtime.

Similarly, in March 2024, Polygon’s zkEVM network suffered a 10-hour outage tied to sequencer issues.

User confidence under pressure

The incident comes at a time when trust and uptime are critical.

With over $1.4 billion in total value locked on Polygon, many users rely on the protocol’s availability to move and withdraw funds without disruption.

Although transactions continued behind the scenes, the RPC and explorer issues impacted user trust and caused visible friction.

Polygon’s native token, POL, fell nearly 3% during the incident and was trading at $0.22, reflecting trader unease amid rising competition in the Layer 2 space.

Although the chain remained technically live, the perception of downtime — especially for traders — can be just as damaging.

Other blockchains have faced similar issues. Just a day earlier, Hyperliquid reported an outage caused by a spike in traffic, and Solana has dealt with multiple outages over the years that resulted in financial losses for DeFi users.

Polygon says fix is in place

Polygon’s development team acted quickly, identifying the issue and deploying a patch within an hour. By 11:01 UTC, the Heimdall consensus layer was fully restored.

The Polygon Foundation has since confirmed that it is working closely with RPC providers to resolve any lingering sync issues and restore complete availability for all users.

However, the team has not yet detailed whether future upgrades will include mechanisms to better handle validator exits.

The post Polygon team blames temporary outage on suspected “consensus bug” appeared first on CoinJournal.

Coinbase and JPMorgan Chase partner for crypto integration

  • JPMorgan Chase cards can be used for crypto purchases on Coinbase this fall.
  • Chase rewards points will be redeemable for USDC starting in 2026.
  • JPMorgan Chase accounts to link directly with Coinbase for easy transfers.

In a landmark move signalling the deepening ties between traditional finance and digital assets, Coinbase and JPMorgan Chase have announced a strategic partnership aimed at making crypto more accessible to millions of Americans.

This collaboration brings together the largest US bank and one of the most influential cryptocurrency exchanges, introducing a range of new features set to roll out starting this fall and continuing into 2026.

The alliance marks a significant step forward in mainstream crypto adoption, with both companies emphasising the need to lower entry barriers and provide seamless pathways for everyday consumers to enter the crypto economy.

Crypto purchases using Chase credit cards

As part of the agreement, Chase credit card holders will be able to use their cards to purchase cryptocurrencies directly on Coinbase beginning in fall 2025.

This integration allows customers to fund their Coinbase accounts with their Chase cards, providing a new layer of convenience for users looking to enter the crypto space without relying solely on traditional bank transfers.

However, Coinbase has noted that such purchases may be subject to Chase’s standard cash advance terms and conditions.

Despite that, the move represents a critical step in normalising crypto spending through familiar financial tools.

It also highlights how traditional credit infrastructure is increasingly being adapted to support digital asset transactions.

JPMorgan Chase rewards points will become redeemable for USDC

Starting in 2026, Chase Ultimate Rewards Points will become redeemable for USDC, a popular stablecoin pegged to the US dollar.

This will be the first time a major credit card rewards program offers redemption in the form of digital currency.

According to Coinbase, this innovation will take place on Base, the exchange’s Layer 2 blockchain network.

This is designed to give Chase’s 80 million-plus customers a more direct way to experience and participate in the crypto economy.

By turning loyalty points into digital assets, JPMorgan and Coinbase are bridging a critical gap between everyday finance and blockchain technology.

For users, this means they can begin exploring stablecoins without spending out-of-pocket cash, further easing their entry into the world of crypto.

Chase customers will enjoy seamless Coinbase access

In addition to purchases and rewards, a third major feature is coming in 2026 — a direct integration between Chase bank accounts and Coinbase.

This functionality will allow customers to link their accounts directly to the exchange, simplifying the process of transferring funds for crypto purchases.

Coinbase says this will offer a faster, more efficient user experience compared to existing banking integrations.

The upcoming feature signals a growing recognition within traditional finance that consumers want faster, easier ways to manage digital and fiat assets in a single ecosystem.

Notably, JPMorgan’s willingness to offer this kind of access further cements its pivot toward embracing crypto infrastructure.

The post Coinbase and JPMorgan Chase partner for crypto integration appeared first on CoinJournal.