VeChain’s Hayabusa upgrade, announced as going live around December 2, 2025, retools the VeChainThor protocol by replacing its Proof of Authority model with a Delegated Proof of Stake system and redesigning VET/VTHO token economics. The Hayabusa package ties gas issuance to active staking, introduces NFT-based staking mechanics and formally engages the EU regulatory pathway under MiCA, positioning the network for institutional integration.
Consensus migration and staking architecture
Hayabusa replaces the prior Proof of Authority (PoA) arrangement—historically operated by a fixed set of 101 pre-approved authority nodes with low energy use, cited as about 0.04% of comparable networks—with a Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) model in which the same number of validators are now elected by VET holders. Delegated Proof of Stake is a consensus model in which token holders elect a limited set of validators to produce blocks and secure the chain, with voting power and reward weighting derived from NFT-represented staking tiers ranging from a minimum of 10,000 VET up to 15.6 million VET, converting passive holdings into active governance stakes.
Hayabusa also integrated a StarGate NFT-based staking system that launched around July 1, 2025, and added a supplementary reward token, $B3TR. A “Boost” function allows protocol participants to burn VTHO in order to accelerate NFT maturity, introducing an intentional deflationary mechanism directly tied to staking activity.
Under Hayabusa, VTHO—the network’s gas token—ceases to be generated for idle VET and is now issued exclusively to actively staked VET, with rewards drawn from a pooled reserve of protocol distributions. The redesign projects a 60–70% reduction in VTHO inflation as a direct outcome of the dynamic issuance model and the new staking incentives, reallocating issuance toward stakeholders who secure the network and creating built-in deflationary pressure through the Boost burn mechanism and $B3TR integration.
A core stated objective of the upgrade was regulatory alignment with the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework. VeChain proceeded with updated VET and VTHO whitepapers filed for review and recorded activity on ESMA’s interim MiCA register as early as March 2025, with a further whitepaper submission noted as filed on November 19, 2025, and the transition to an electorally based validator model presented as improving transparency and auditable governance records in line with MiCA’s investor-protection and disclosure expectations.
Hayabusa’s combination of auditable validator elections, staking records represented by NFTs and explicit filings with ESMA aims to reduce jurisdictional and compliance risk for service providers seeking EU market access. VASPs, custodians, issuers and institutional counterparties are expected to evaluate updated custody controls for NFT-backed stakes, enhanced record-keeping for delegation and reward flows, and the integration of AML/KYC and travel-rule processes for activity linked to staking rewards or VTHO burns.
Hayabusa bundles consensus migration, tokenomics reform and regulatory engagement into a single roadmap phase intended to make VeChain more attractive to enterprise and institutional participants while tightening economic controls. The resulting architecture is designed to align network economics with active security contributions and to deliver a more regulator-friendly, institution-ready execution environment.