The Protocol: Ethereum’s Holesky Testnet Finalizes, Finally

4 hours ago

Welcome to The Protocol, CoinDesk's play wrap-up of the astir important stories successful cryptocurrency tech development. I'm Margaux Nijkerk, CoinDesk’s Ethereum Reporter.

In this issue:

Ethereum’s Holesky Testnet Finalizes – Finally

Starknet to Settle connected some Bitcoin and Ethereum

From Ethereum’s Engine Room to Wall Street: Danny Ryan’s New Mission

Japanese Tech Giants Sony and LINE Join Forces

This nonfiction is featured successful the latest contented of The Protocol, our play newsletter exploring the tech down crypto, 1 artifact astatine a time. Sign up here to get it successful your inbox each Wednesday.

Network News

ETHEREUM HOLESKY TESTNET FINALIZES - FINALLY: Ethereum's Holesky testnet achieved finality astir 2 weeks aft the Pectra upgrade, overcoming a client-software configuration bug that had prevented finality since Feb. 24. The accomplishment comes arsenic Ethereum developers held disconnected connected deciding erstwhile Pectra would spell unrecorded connected the mainnet blockchain, frankincense delaying the large upgrade. — Shaurya Malwa Read more.

STARKNET TO SETTLE ON BITCOIN AND ETHEREUM: One of the foremost projects aiming to summation the velocity of the Ethereum web is ramping up its enactment connected the world's archetypal blockchain: Bitcoin. Ethereum layer-2 Starknet, successful concern with BTC wallet Xverse, is aiming to present a "full DeFi acquisition to Bitcoin users." Xverse said it volition "achieve Bitcoin's DeFi take-off moment," done integrating with Starknet successful Q2 2025, successful an emailed announcement seen by CoinDesk. The Starknet Foundation has published a caller Bitcoin Roadmap, which described however Starknet would stay afloat progressive connected Ethereum, portion "becoming Bitcoin's execution layer," with the extremity of scaling the web "from 13 TPS to thousands." Developers person been progressively exploring however to pat the information and heavy reserves held successful BTC to empower the broader DeFi and blockchain world. The situation has been however to code Bitcoin's comparative deficiency of programmability compared to Ethereum and others. - Jamie Crawley Read more.

FROM ETHEREUM’S ENGINE ROOM TO WALL STREET: DANNY RYAN’S NEW MISSION: Danny Ryan, antecedently a cardinal researcher astatine the Ethereum Foundation, left the EF successful September but entered talks a fewer months aboriginal to rejoin the enactment arsenic its caller leader. In January, Ryan "ended up mutually parting ways" with the foundation, and successful March helium announced helium would beryllium joining Etherealize, an enactment focused connected bringing Ethereum to Wall Street. In a candid interrogation with CoinDesk, Ryan said helium made the determination due to the fact that helium believes Ethereum is astatine a technological inflection point: "Ethereum is overmuch bigger than the EF. It's not conscionable a mates of changes astatine the EF that are going to marque oregon interruption Ethereum astatine large." — Margaux Nijkerk Read more.

JAPANESE TECH GIANTS SONY AND LINE JOIN FORCES: Sony's blockchain part is bringing Japanese societal media elephantine LINE into the Web3 world, with plans to accommodate respective fashionable mini-apps onto Sony's Soeneium network, the institution announced. LINE reports astir 200 cardinal progressive users crossed its platform, and the statement volition bring 4 LINE-based games, oregon "mini-apps," to Soneium: Sleepagotchi, Farm Frens, Puffy Match, and Pocket Mob. The integration is meant to facilitate features similar in-game rewards and purchases. Soneium went live successful January, and astatine the time, the squad said that they hoped to span Web2 users into the Web3 space. The blockchain is simply a layer-2 connected apical of Ethereum that uses Optimism’s OP Stack technology.— Margaux Nijkerk Read more.

In Other News

The U.S. House of Representatives struck down an IRS regularisation that would person imposed accusation postulation rules connected decentralized entities. The vote, supported by a bipartisan radical that included 71 Democrats, is simply a large triumph for DeFi. Nik De reports.

We whitethorn person to hold a small longer for caller crypto ETFs successful the U.S. Applications person been filed for a drawstring of caller entities, including for XRP, Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE) and Litecoin (LTC). But a determination connected these isn’t apt earlier President Trump’s prime to tally the agency, Paul Atkins, is confirmed by the Senate. As yet, nary proceeding connected that has been scheduled. Helene Braun reports.

In a immense systemic triumph for the crypto industry, The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) said that federally regulated banks tin prosecute successful assorted cryptocurrency activities without anterior approval. The OCC has besides withdrawn a request for banks to study liquidity risks related to crypto. Sam Reynolds reports.