Sei Network has announced a definitive timeline to complete its transition to an EVM-only chain by mid-2026. This move follows the network's approved proposal to abandon the Cosmos ecosystem.
The network is actively working on the "Sei Giga" upgrade and has urged affected users to take necessary actions to prevent potential asset losses.
Rationale for the Transition
The transition is a result of the community-approved proposal SIP-3, which will deprecate the network’s CosmWasm smart contracts and native Cosmos transactions. Sei Network aims to enhance performance by removing extensive code, with Sei Labs projecting the ability to process over 200,000 transactions per second.
Jay Jog, co-founder of Sei Labs, explained the strategic reasoning behind the decision on X: "To make something faster, you either have to add power or reduce weight. To make something a lot faster, you do both."
Jog further elaborated that the SIP-3 upgrades will dissolve Sei’s dual EVM and Cosmos architecture, establishing it as an EVM-only chain. The implementation involves removing hundreds of thousands of lines of code, a significant undertaking approved by the Sei ecosystem in May.
Timeline and User Implications
This technical overhaul has significant implications for users holding Cosmos-native assets on Sei Network, particularly USDC via Noble (USDC.n). Approximately $1.4 million worth of USDC.n is currently in circulation on the Sei Network.
Sei Labs has advised holders to convert these assets to native USDC before late March 2026 to avoid potential loss of access.
The transition is structured in three stages. Version 6.3, expected in January, will introduce staking functionality through the EVM.
Version 6.4, scheduled for February, will disable inbound IBC transfers. This means users will no longer be able to bridge Cosmos-specific tokens like Atom and USDC.n into Sei Network, as IBC is Cosmos’ native interoperability protocol.
In March, version 6.5 will remove Sei’s native oracle from the codebase. This functionality will be replaced by established providers such as Chainlink, API3, and Pyth.
Users holding USDC.n can swap smaller amounts through decentralized exchanges like DragonSwap or Symphony, though Sei Labs cautions that slippage may vary.
For larger conversions, a migration tool facilitates the routing of USDC.n from Noble through Polygon and back to Sei using Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol version 2. Users with USDC.n deposited in decentralized finance protocols are strongly advised to unwind their positions promptly.
Network Development and Market Presence
Sei Labs launched its mainnet in 2023 and currently holds a market capitalization of approximately $800 million.
In October 2025, Robinhood listed the SEI token, expanding its reach to retail investors. Earlier in 2025, Canary Capital filed for the first spot Sei exchange-traded fund with US regulators, though approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is pending, given their cautious approach to cryptocurrency investment products.