TL;DR
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The Dash blockchain has stopped following a failed hardfork.
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The developers are looking into the issue and hope to resolve it soon.
Dash Blockchain Halts
The Dash blockchain stopped processing transactions and producing new blocks during the early hours of Monday. This is according to Samuel Westrich, CTO of Dash Core Group.
In his tweet, Westrich announced that there was a problem during the v19 activation of Dash Core. The chain stalled and was not producing any blocks. He added that the technical team was investigating the issue.
There was a problem during v19 activation of Dash Core. The chain is stalled and currently not producing blocks. We have everyone investigating the issue. I will continue with updates on Twitter as we have more information.
— Samuel Westrich (@SamWestrich) May 22, 2023
A few hours later, the Dash community received an update via developer Pasta. The developer revealed that they had identified the issue and were working to fix it. Pasta stated that;
“We've continued to investigate over the last ~8 hours. We've identified a few issues and are working on a fix. We will have a hot fix release in the near future. There are two options we are investigating, and everyone is focused on promptly resolving this issue”
We've continued to investigate over the last ~8 hours. We've identified a few issues and are working on a fix. We will have a hot fix release in the near future. There are two options we are investigating, and everyone is focused on promptly resolving this issue. (1/n)
— Pasta (@DashBoost_Pasta) May 22, 2023
Due to this ongoing issue, the Dash Core Group will have to delay the planned release of the latest Dash Core client update, v19.
Pasta added that blocks and transactions on the transaction would not be considered final until a new update is deployed.
There haven’t been any updates from the development team over the past few hours as they continue to work to address the issue.
Binance Suspends DASH Mining Rewards
This latest development prompted Binance, the world’s leading cryptocurrency by trading volume, to suspend the distribution of mining rewards until the Dash blockchain resumes block production.
A member of the DashPay Reddit page opined that the planned v19 update didn’t go as the development team planned. The Dash Core Group launched a hardfork that introduced a new type of node. However, these nodes created a mess, resulting in the blockchain splitting into two chains and running in parallel.
The Dash Core v19 was announced on April 14 and was set to bring some updates, including significant modifications to how the nodes and wallets function. The development team planned to introduce a new version of Dash masternodes following the v19 activation.
Furthermore, the update is expected to come with numerous other changes for nodes, wallets, Dash anonymity features, and other facets of the blockchain.
Dash is one of the oldest blockchains, as it has been around since 2014. It is currently trading at $43 per coin and currently occupies the 85th position on Coinmarketcap.