VeChain Launches Hayabusa Testnet Ahead of December Mainnet Upgrade
VeChain has officially launched the Testnet for its Hayabusa upgrade, marking a transition from the Proof-of-Authority (PoA) to Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS) system to foster decentralization and community involvement. The Hayabusa Testnet activation initiates a seven-day transition period, concluding on November 11, with the mainnet upgrade scheduled for December 2. The new DPoS model features 101 validators for block production, providing opportunities for users to participate by staking VET tokens through the StarGate platform. Validators and delegators are now rewarded under a tiered system. The upgrade eliminates automatic VeThor Token (VTHO) generation without staking, promoting active participation and a sustainable token economy. VeChain's CEO Sunny Lu confirmed increased validator activity, with 475 million VET locked. Partnerships with Keyrock for trading infrastructure and Franklin Templeton for tokenization are also accelerating VeChain's growth. This upgrade has the potential to significantly boost VET’s price, with predictions of a 570% increase despite recent declines.
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Hayabusa Testnet Launch and Transition
In August, the Hayabusa upgrade received approval from all stakeholders, and the network has now officially launched its Testnet. Hayabusa brings a transition from Proof of Authority (PoA) to Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) to promote decentralization and community participation. The VeChain team announced on X that with Hayabusa now activated on Testnet, a 7-day transition period has begun. During this period, transactions will continue to process, VTHO generation will stop, and Validators can join the validator queue to signal their intent to switch to DPoS.
Key Dates for Transition
According to the timeline, the Hayabusa transition period will conclude on November 11th at 11:39:30 UTC, with the mainnet Hayabusa network upgrade scheduled for December 2. Additionally, Phase 3: Interstellar, planned for 2026, will introduce JSON-RPC compatibility and an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) upgrade as part of the roadmap.
Voting Results and DPoS Mechanism
Voting for Hayabusa began on August 18, and it concluded with 98.39% approval, 0.23% disapproval, and 1.39% abstentions. The DPoS system introduces 101 validators responsible for block production and network security. Any VeChain user can indirectly participate by staking VET via StarGate and delegating to a validator. Reward tiers have been set with Validators earning 2x rewards, X-Node Delegators 1.5x, and Economic Node Delegators at 1x rate.
Enhanced Governance and Token Economy
Under the previous PoA system, VTHO was passively generated by holding VET. With Hayabusa, this changes—VTHO is generated only via staking or delegation, aligning rewards with active participation. Block rewards are restructured: 30% for Validators and 70% for Delegators. Staking locks more VET, decreasing the circulating supply eligible for rewards and creating a more sustainable token economy.
Validator Growth and Strategic Partnerships
Sunny Lu, VeChain’s co-founder and CEO, highlighted that the Hayabusa upgrade is already attracting new validators. Redeno, a liquid staking platform within VeChain, reported 19 active validator nodes collectively locking 475 million VET, with more in onboarding. Moreover, VeChain has partnered with Keyrock for trading and liquidity infrastructure and Franklin Templeton to integrate its tokenization platform, BENJI, into VeChain's ecosystem.
Impact on VET Price and Market Capitalization
These upgrades are speculated to serve as a catalyst for VET price growth, potentially rallying toward $0.095 from its current $0.01413, representing a nearly 570% upside despite a 15% decline in the past week. VeChain currently holds a market capitalization of approximately $1.12 billion.