2.1 Release - Mainnet - Validators

<aside> ⚠️

This Announcement is dedicated to Validator Operators. Please read the full announcement before executing any commands. In particular, please do not upgrade the chainflip-cli until after the runtime upgrade.

</aside>

Dear Mainnet Validators,

We've released the 2.1.4 binaries!

The major additions with this upgrade:

• A migration of Ethereum and Arbitrum witnessing to the new ‘elections’ protocol. Node operators should see a significant reduction in RPC volume. Additionally, websockets are no longer used for these chains, making the RPCs more cache-friendly. Note: if you do want to cache requests be aware that (a) this is only really beneficial if you run multiple nodes and (b) you should not cache get_block_number requests. If in doubt, contact us through Discord or ask your fellow mainnet operators.
• New assets: WBTC, arbUSDT and solUSDT have been added to the protocol.

For a complete list of changes, check out the Changelog.

Validator Upgrade Instructions

Validators are requested to upgrade before Wednesday March 11, 2026 - 09:00 UTC to avoid exclusion from the authority set.

To upgrade via APT, run the following commands:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install --only-upgrade chainflip-engine chainflip-node

For containerized workloads, use the berghain-2.1.4 image.

Projected Timeline (CET [UTC+1], approximate times):

10:00: Preparation:

• Authority Rotation: Any nodes not yet upgraded to 2.1.4 will be excluded from the Authority set.
• Quoting disabled.
• Maintenance mode activated.

11:00: Runtime Upgrade.

11:00-13:00: Post-Upgrade Governance Actions and Checks:

• Initialisation of new assets: Liquidity Pools, External contracts.
• Validation of post-upgrade network state.
• Validators can upgrade the chainflip-cli