Lisk to End Its Blockchain on Oct. 31, 2026; DAO Proposal Calls for Burning 100M LSK

Lisk plans to shut down the Lisk Chain on Oct. 31, 2026, drawing a line under nearly a decade of operating its own network as the project pivots toward business finance software. A proposal put forward through the Lisk DAO calls for burning 100 million LSK from treasury allocations, cutting the maximum supply by 25% to 300 million from 400 million. Lisk said the tokens slated for destruction were previously expected to enter circulation through future vesting. The shutdown does not eliminate the LSK token. Lisk said the token contract and ticker remain unchanged for holders on Ethereum or via exchanges. The project expects Base to become LSK's primary network alongside Ethereum, with LSK positioned as a loyalty token within the new business-focused platform. For users holding LSK on Lisk Chain, timing is critical. Lisk said those balances must be bridged to Ethereum ahead of the Oct. 31, 2026 closure. The bridging process is expected to take at least seven days, and stakers face a three-day waiting period after unstaking. The proposal also seeks to adjust staking mechanics by removing the penalty for emergency unlocking. A three-day waiting period would still apply before funds become available. The restructuring includes plans to dissolve the Lisk DAO over time, with governance contracts and the forum eventually wound down. The proposal would also transfer about 47 million LSK from the DAO treasury to Lisk Ltd, the company behind the project. Lisk attributed the shift to the rising difficulty of justifying an independent blockchain after years of ecosystem work. It said its Layer2 strategy, adopted after moving from a Layer1 model in 2023, failed to generate enough revenue to sustain incentives, while token-based rewards added to selling pressure.