Ethereum's Holesky Testnet Is Finally Complete

Protocol: Ethereum's Holesky Testnet Finally Completed

Also: Starknet Explores Bitcoin and Ethereum, Danny Ryan's New Initiative From Ethereum Engine Room to Wall Street, and Japanese Tech Giants Sony and LINE Join Forces

Margot Nijkerk | Edited by Benjamin Schiller , 12 Mar 2025, 21:35 UTC

Welcome to The Protocol, CoinDesk’s weekly look at the biggest developments in cryptocurrency tech. My name is Margot Nijkerk, and I’m CoinDesk’s Ethereum reporter.

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• Ethereum's Holesky Testnet Is Finally Complete
• Starknet to Focus on Bitcoin and Ethereum
• From the Ethereum Engine Room to Wall Street: Danny Ryan's New Initiative
• Japanese Tech Giants Sony and LINE Join Forces

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Network news

ETHEREUM HOLESKY TESTNET FINALIZED — FINALLY: Ethereum's Holesky testnet has reached finality nearly two weeks after the Pectra upgrade, overcoming a client software configuration bug that had been preventing finality since February 24. This success was possible because Ethereum developers had been holding off on deciding whether to launch Pectra on the mainnet blockchain, delaying a major upgrade. — Shaurya Malwa Read more.

STARKNET TO FOCUS ON BITCOIN AND ETHEREUM: One of the leading projects to increase the speed of the Ethereum network is stepping up its efforts on the world’s original blockchain: Bitcoin. Ethereum layer-2 Starknet, in collaboration with BTC wallet Xverse, aims to offer “a complete DeFi experience for Bitcoin users.” Xverse claims it will “reach Bitcoin’s DeFi takeoff moment” through its integration with Starknet in Q2 2025, according to a press release seen by CoinDesk. The Starknet Foundation has published a new Bitcoin roadmap that outlines how Starknet will remain fully active on Ethereum while “becoming the Bitcoin execution layer,” with the goal of increasing network performance “from 13 TPS to the thousands.” Developers are increasingly looking for ways to leverage the security and deep reserves stored in BTC to empower the wider world of DeFi and blockchain. The problem is how to deal with Bitcoin's relative lack of programmability compared to Ethereum and others. – Jamie Crowley Read more.

FROM ETHEREUM’S ENGINE ROOM TO WALL STREET: DANNY RYAN’S NEW INITIATIVE: Danny Ryan, who was previously a key researcher at the Ethereum Foundation, left EF in September but began talks to return to the organization as its new leader a few months later. Ryan “ultimately parted ways” with the foundation in January, and in March he announced he would be joining Etherealize, an organization aimed at bringing Ethereum to Wall Street. In a candid interview with CoinDesk, Ryan said he made the decision because he believes Ethereum is at a technological tipping point: “Ethereum is much bigger than EF. It’s not just a few changes in EF that can make or break Ethereum as a whole.” — Margot Nijkerk Read more

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