The Stacks community has voted to approve SIP-045, the Bitcoin Staking upgrade, with more than 99% of ballots cast in favor. Co-creator Muneeb Ali confirmed the result this week, clearing the way for a network hard fork that is targeted for around July 29 at approximately Bitcoin block 907,740. The upgrade — formally named 'PoX-5: Bitcoin Staking and Emission Schedule...' — is the latest major change to the Stacks protocol and aims to let users stake Bitcoin directly on the network.
The vote and the margin
Stacks holders cast their ballots over the past several days, and the final tally showed near-unanimous support. The 99% approval rate is one of the highest in the network's history. Muneeb Ali noted the result in a public statement, calling it a strong signal from the community. No formal opposition block emerged during the voting period.
What the upgrade does
SIP-045 introduces a mechanism for native Bitcoin staking within the Stacks ecosystem. Under the current design, Stacks miners commit Bitcoin to earn STX tokens via Proof of Transfer. The new emission schedule shifts rewards to align with a staking model, allowing Bitcoin holders to lock up BTC and receive yield denominated in STX. The exact reward rate and lock-up parameters will be determined by the protocol after the fork.
Hard fork timeline
The upgrade is a hard fork, meaning Stacks nodes must update to the new software before block 907,740 on the Bitcoin chain. That block is expected around July 29, barring any unexpected shifts in Bitcoin's hashrate. Developers have already released the compatible client, and node operators are encouraged to upgrade ahead of the deadline. The last major Stacks fork — the Nakamoto release — went smoothly in early 2025.
What comes next
Once the fork activates, the staking contract will go live. The Stacks Foundation has not yet announced a specific activation date for the first staking pools, but the community expects them to open within a week of the upgrade. The key question now is how much Bitcoin will flow into the system — and whether the yield proves attractive enough to draw holders away from other DeFi venues.
