Nexo

For most of its life, Base has had a quiet gap between how fast it feels and how fast it actually is. On Thursday, November 5, at 18:00 UTC, the network is closing that gap with an upgrade called Denim.

If you hold or move assets on Base, the short version is that you do not need to do anything. Your balances and addresses stay where they are. The one thing to plan around is a precautionary processing pause on Base deposits and withdrawals from 17:30 to 19:00 UTC, covered at the end.

Base in a minute

Base is a layer 2 network: a separate network built on top of Ethereum that processes transactions in bulk and posts the results back to it. That lets it handle everyday activity at lower cost while relying on Ethereum for final settlement. Like Ethereum, Base groups transactions into blocks. A block is a batch of transactions that the network records together, in order, each with its own number. How often blocks are produced sets the rhythm of everything built on the network.

From previews to real blocks

A system called Flashblocks published previews of each Base block as it was being built, roughly every 200 milliseconds. Apps could use those previews to show a transaction as likely confirmed before the full block arrived.

However, a preview is still a preview. The block it belongs to becomes final only once it is sealed. Implementing the Denim hardfork changes that. Each 200-millisecond slice now becomes a complete block of its own, with its own number, its own record of the network’s state, and its own receipts. Flashblocks will be retired, because there is nothing left to preview.

What changes for apps and services

For most people using Base, nothing visible changes on the day. For the companies and developers building on it, there is some work to be done. Base has asked services that rely on block timing to update their systems for this change. That is why exchanges and other platforms update their own systems around the switch.

What it means for Nexo clients

You do not need to do anything. Your balances and addresses stay the same, and there is nothing to convert, swap, or upgrade.

As a precaution, Nexo will temporarily pause the processing of deposits and withdrawals on the Base network from 17:30 to 19:00 UTC on 5 November, while Base switches over and we confirm the network is stable. We expect to resume earlier if all goes smoothly. Any deposits and withdrawals made during the window will be processed once we resume. Deposits and withdrawals on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon, and BSC are not affected.