zkSync has officially begun preparing to retire its original ZK-rollup, setting the stage for a full transition to newer and more advanced technology across its network.
The team announced on Dec. 7 that zkSync Lite (zkSync 1.0) will be shut down in 2026. This isn’t sudden or rushed — it’s a planned and gradual process for a system that launched back in 2020 and helped prove many of the ideas behind today’s zero-knowledge rollups.
What this means right now
For users, nothing changes today.
zkSync Lite is still online, withdrawals to Ethereum work normally, and all funds are safe.
The team said they’ll release a detailed timeline and a step-by-step migration guide next year. This will explain how users and developers can move to zkSync Era or to other chains built with the ZK Stack.
Right now, about $50 million is still bridged to zkSync Lite. Anyone can withdraw their assets to Ethereum at any time. zkSync suggests people start preparing early once instructions are out so they don’t face delays as the 2026 shutdown gets closer.
zkSync Lite processed more than one billion transactions over its lifetime, but activity has now dropped to fewer than 200 transactions a day. Because of this, maintaining the old system no longer fits with the project’s vision, which is now focused on zkSync Era, Prividiums, and a full ecosystem of next-generation ZK chains.
What comes next
A full transition plan is expected in early 2026.
The shutdown applies only to zkSync Lite — it does not affect zkSync Era or any chain built using the ZK Stack.
At the same time, zkSync is rolling out major upgrades across its ecosystem:
- On Dec. 5, the Atlas upgrade went live, bringing native cross-chain messaging to all ZK chains in the network without relying on external bridges. Early numbers show user activity is already picking up as apps start using the new system.
- An earlier upgrade in October improved proof performance and added new privacy features designed for high-throughput use cases like tokenized real-world assets.
These improvements highlight the direction zkSync is heading: a multi-chain network of ZK-powered systems built on shared cryptography and cross-chain communication.
Even Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently pointed to zkSync’s roadmap as an important piece of Ethereum’s long-term scaling plan, especially for DeFi and tokenization.
By sunsetting its first rollup, zkSync is closing an early chapter of its history and shifting its full attention to what it calls a unified “network of ZK chains” — faster, stronger, and designed for the next generation of blockchain activity.
