Polygon zkEVM Sunset Deadline Nears as Users Urged to Withdraw Assets Before July 1, 2026

• Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta sequencer will sunset on July 1, 2026.
• Wallet-held assets not bridged before the deadline will be auto-migrated to Ethereum L1.
• Funds locked in DeFi protocols cannot be automatically migrated and may become inaccessible after shutdown.
• Polygon first announced the sunset timeline in June 2025, providing a 12-month migration window.
• A dedicated claim interface will be available for eligible wallet-held assets after the shutdown.

Polygon Issues Final Reminder Ahead of zkEVM Mainnet Beta Shutdown

Polygon Labs has issued a final reminder to users ahead of the planned shutdown of the Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta sequencer on July 1, 2026. The company reiterated that users holding assets on the network should migrate funds before the deadline, particularly assets deposited in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.

The sunset timeline was originally announced in June 2025, providing the ecosystem with a full year to prepare for the network’s retirement. According to Polygon, the chain and bridge remain operational until July 1, allowing users to transfer assets to Ethereum before the sequencer is switched off.

Polygon stated:

Once the sequencer is shut down, transactions will no longer be processed on Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta, affecting the operation of applications and protocols built on the network.

DeFi Assets Face Greater Risk Than Wallet-Held Funds

Polygon emphasized that only assets held directly in user wallets will be eligible for automatic migration to Ethereum Layer 1 if they remain on the network after July 1. An exit snapshot of wallet balances will be taken at the time of the shutdown, and those funds will later be claimable through a dedicated Ethereum-based interface.

However, the company warned that assets locked in smart contracts, including DeFi applications, liquidity pools, multisignature wallets, and other protocol-controlled contracts, cannot be automatically migrated. Polygon stated that it does not own or control decentralized applications operating on the network and therefore cannot recover or transfer those assets on behalf of users.

The warning has also been echoed by ecosystem projects. QuickSwap advised users to withdraw all assets and liquidity provider positions from Polygon zkEVM before the shutdown date, noting that funds left on the chain could be lost after the network ceases operation. The exchange clarified that the change does not affect assets held on Polygon PoS.

Claim Process and Key Dates

Polygon has outlined several milestones for users affected by the network sunset. Until July 1, 2026, users can continue bridging assets to Ethereum while the network remains operational. On the shutdown date, Polygon will take a final snapshot of wallet-held balances remaining on-chain.

After the sunset, a dedicated claim interface will allow eligible users to recover automatically migrated assets on Ethereum. Polygon has stated that the claim process will occur entirely on Ethereum and will not require activity on the retired zkEVM chain.

The company also confirmed that the claim window will remain open until December 31, 2027. Any eligible assets that remain unclaimed after that date will be considered abandoned.

Polygon zkEVM launched as an Ethereum-compatible zero-knowledge rollup designed to provide lower-cost transactions while maintaining compatibility with Ethereum applications. Polygon has stated that technologies and research developed through the zkEVM project continue to support other parts of its ecosystem, including AggLayer infrastructure and Polygon CDK chains. The sunset applies only to Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta and does not affect Polygon PoS or other Polygon ecosystem networks.

Recently, INK Finance suffered a security breach on the Polygon network after an attacker exploited a whitelist validation flaw in its Workspace Treasury Proxy contract, draining approximately $140,000 in USDT through a flash loan-assisted attack.

At 10:31 AM UTC, Polygon PoS held approximately $1.03 billion in total value locked (TVL), placing it 10th among blockchain ecosystems by DeFi liquidity, according to DefiLlama. Despite a 1.9% decline over the previous 24 hours, the network remained one of the largest decentralized finance platforms by capital deployed across applications and protocols.

Polygon (POL) Climbs 4.13% Weekly as Trading Volume Accelerates

Polygon’s POL token traded at $0.07903 as of 10:23 am UTC, posting a 2.57% gain over the past 24 hours and a 4.13% increase over the last seven days. The cryptocurrency’s market capitalization stood at $842.7 million, broadly in line with its 10.66 billion circulating supply. Trading activity also strengthened, with 24-hour volume rising 12.6% to $40.5 million, signaling growing investor interest. While the recent gains point to improving sentiment, the move remains relatively modest and has yet to confirm a broader market turnaround.