Ronin, the gaming-centric blockchain once synonymous with the industry’s infamous $625 million exploit, is officially shedding its sidechain skin on May 12 to become an Ethereum layer 2 to improve security while maintaining throughput.
Ronin, which announced the migration in April, will perform a hard fork at block 55,577,490, a process that will result in about 10 hours of downtime for users, the network said on Monday the X. According to onchain data, the migration is expected to begin on Tuesday around 15:16 UTC.
“Four years ago, we launched Ronin because Axie Infinity needed a faster and more efficient network,” Ronin said in announcing the migration. “It worked. Axie Infinity deployed millions of players to crypto, and Pixels proved it was possible to do it again.” The time has come to plug “back into the mothership.”
While operating as an independent sidechain in mid-May 2022, Ronin suffered what remains today the largest DeFI bridge exploit in history. Layer 2 protocols benefit from tighter links to the underlying blockchain than sidechains, providing benefits that include greater security.
The network’s native token, RON, is currently trading at around 11 cents with a market capitalization of around $89.5 million, according to CoinDesk data. While the token remains well below its 2024 peak, the migration sparked a rally that saw prices rise 30% over the past 30 days as investors see a shift in the network’s supply dynamics.
“In this downtime window, all network transactions [including transfers, swaps, and smart contract interactions] will be paused,” Ronin said, adding that all games using its network will also be affected. “To avoid inconvenience, please complete all necessary transactions/onchain game actions on the Ronin network before the downtime begins.”
During the downtime, a “Proof of Distribution” model will be introduced to reward builders based on active network contribution rather than passive effort, Ronin said. The team noted that “this is fundamentally positive for the RON as it dramatically reduces token inflation from above 20% to below 1%.”
The company also said that the transition to the OP stack will allow it to inherit Ethereum’s robust security while maintaining high throughput. The move redirects 90 million RON tokens previously earmarked for staking rewards into the Ronin Treasury, while more than doubling marketplace fees to 1.25% from 0.5%.
Ronin said its narrative is dominated by its decisive return to Ethereum, a strategic move to reset its finances, secure its bridge infrastructure and secure its future in an upgrade to improve scalability and reduce costs through the use of EigenDA for data availability.
