ZetaChain votes to close L1, migrate ZETA to Solana

ZetaChain’s governance passed Proposal 68 after voting ended Sept. 20, authorizing the team to prepare a shutdown of its Cosmos SDK-based mainnet and a 1:1 migration of native ZETA to a Solana SPL token. The on-chain tally showed about 263.65 million ZETA in favor, 744,658 against and 752,300 abstaining, representing roughly 99.44% support. The vote does not immediately move tokens or stop the network; it permits a follow-up proposal to set technical steps and timing.

The proposal noted that operating a Cosmos-based chain requires coordinating security advisories and patches across dozens of independent validators. ZetaChain said it expects that operational burden to rise as AI tools make vulnerabilities easier to find, and that replacing validator infrastructure with a Solana-native token would let contributors concentrate on Anuma and development on Solana.

Under the plan, native ZETA balances held on ZetaChain would convert 1:1 into a Solana-native SPL token using the same ticker, with total supply unchanged. After migration, the Solana token would become the canonical ZETA and ZetaChain’s L1 would wind down. The project is redefining ZETA primarily as an access token for its AI offerings rather than as the asset securing an independent proof-of-stake network. Anuma already lets users lock ZETA in exchange for credits they can spend on AI usage, removing those tokens from circulation.

ZetaChain reported Anuma has attracted more than 300,000 users since February and processed over 1 million requests across 35 AI models. Each Anuma account includes a wallet, which could bring those users and tokens into the Solana ecosystem. The proposal cited Solana’s transaction confirmations of roughly 400 milliseconds, about $15 billion of stablecoins on the network and about $70 billion in monthly decentralized-exchange volume as factors in the decision.

Several technical and coordination issues remain. ZETA held on Ethereum and BNB Chain are outside Proposal 68, and existing vesting schedules will remain unchanged. Native balances moving to Solana will shift from 18 decimal places to Solana’s nine and be rounded down; the initial proposal does not specify how fractional remainders will be handled. The future of staking is unresolved: rewards will continue until the L1 shuts down and the team is still exploring post-migration staking options.

The migration timetable depends heavily on centralized exchanges that list ZETA. Core contributors plan to submit the second governance proposal only after exchanges confirm how they will support the swap. Major venues require advance notice for token migrations, so the shutdown schedule will be set by those negotiations. The follow-up proposal is expected to set the withdrawal window for assets on ZetaChain, the snapshot and halt heights, the start of Solana claims, how exchange-held balances convert, holder protections and the validator wind-down process.

Until exchanges and token holders approve the detailed mechanics, ZetaChain will continue operating its existing infrastructure. The approved vote gives the team authority to plan and prepare the migration, but the transition will proceed only after technical details and exchange support are secured.