Blast Shuts Down Due to Excessive Operating Costs, Sets October 26 Withdrawal Deadline

Blast, an Ethereum layer-2 network, has announced its shutdown due to operating costs exceeding network revenue. The team has set October 26, 2026, as the final day for withdrawals through the normal interface. However, users will face a temporary pause in withdrawals for about one week due to the team's decision to withdraw its assets from Lido.

The shutdown follows a nearly three-year journey since Blast received $20 million in funding from Paradigm and Standard Crypto in November 2023. The network had opened early access that November, with its mainnet launch planned for February 2024. The team has now apologized to users and developers who supported the network, stating its priority is managing the shutdown safely.

After October 26, users will need to interact directly with Blast's bridge contracts on Ethereum L1 to withdraw their assets. The team has urged users to transfer their assets to Ethereum mainnet before the deadline. The shutdown marks a significant development in the crypto space, with the team citing a lack of economic sustainability as the reason for its decision.