IOTA is poised for its most transformative leap yet with the official rollout of its Rebased Protocol — a full-scale network upgrade that delivers staking, ultra-fast consensus, and Move-based smart contracts.
On May 5, 2025, the IOTA blockchain will migrate from the Stardust network to the newly built IOTA Rebased, a Layer-1 protocol overhaul designed to improve scalability, decentralization, and developer access. The upgrade arrives after a successful community vote, audit reviews, and months of testing.
What to Expect from IOTA Rebased
According to the IOTA Foundation, Rebased is the project’s “most significant upgrade” to date. It introduces several major protocol innovations:
- Mysticeti Consensus Protocol: A breakthrough in throughput and finality. It can process 50,000+ TPS with sub-500 millisecond finality.
- Native Move Smart Contracts: IOTA will become one of only three blockchains (alongside Aptos and Sui) to support MoveVM on Layer 1, enabling secure, composable dApps.
- Adaptive Fees + Gas Station: The network introduces minimal and dynamic fees, and lets developers cover gas fees on behalf of users using the IOTA Gas Station model.
- Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS): The protocol launches with 50 permissionless validator slots, scaling up to over 150 nodes, all elected by the community.
Validator participants at launch include the IOTA Foundation, Luganodes, Stakin, Twinstake, Nansen, DLT Green, and others.
Staking Goes Live for IOTA Holders
In a first for the IOTA ecosystem, token holders will finally be able to stake their coins and earn yield:
- APY: Estimated between 10%–15%
- Role: Secure the network and support validator operations
- Incentive: Encourage long-term holding and decentralized governance
Staking adds a powerful incentive layer to IOTA’s ecosystem and aligns the protocol with other L1 leaders in terms of utility and community participation.
Community-Driven Governance + Institutional-Grade Testing
The Rebased upgrade was unanimously approved in a December 2024 governance vote. Since then, it’s passed through rigorous auditing, performance testing, and validator onboarding phases.
The upgrade also signals IOTA’s commitment to institutional adoption, thanks to its focus on scalability, security, and programmability.
Real-World Use Cases in Focus
Rebased is designed not just for crypto users but for enterprises, governments, and institutions. IOTA’s roadmap includes support for:
- Trade digitization and tokenization
- Digital identity
- Supply chain optimization
- Stablecoin issuance
- On-chain DeFi and orderbook-based exchanges
By combining low fees, gasless user experiences, and smart contract capabilities, IOTA Rebased aims to be the infrastructure layer for real-world Web3 applications.
Price Action & Market Snapshot
At press time, IOTA (MIOTA) is trading at $0.1727, reflecting a 1% daily gain and 6% weekly increase. However, the token remains down 29% YoY and over 96% below its 2017 all-time high of $5.25.
Final Takeaway
Rebased isn’t just an upgrade — it’s a relaunch. IOTA is reintroducing itself to the crypto market with the tools and performance to compete with the fastest and most scalable networks in the space.
As the countdown to May 5 begins, developers, institutions, and token holders will be watching closely to see if IOTA can truly deliver on its promise to lead the next wave of Web3 innovation.
