The BNB Smart Chain is preparing for a significant performance upgrade as the Fermi hard fork moves from testing into full deployment.

After completing roughly two months on testnet, the upgrade is scheduled to go live on mainnet on January 14, marking another step in the network’s effort to compete with high-speed blockchain and traditional financial systems.

Key takeaways

• The Fermi hard fork will go live on BNB Chain mainnet on January 14

• Block times will be reduced from 750 milliseconds to 250 milliseconds

• The upgrade is designed to support time-sensitive and high-frequency applications

• New indexing features aim to lower data and hardware requirements

• The changes reflect BNB Chain’s push toward higher throughput and faster execution

At the core of the Fermi upgrade is a major reduction in block time. Once activated, blocks will be produced every 250 milliseconds, down from the previous 750 milliseconds.

This change is designed to support applications that depend on near-instant execution, including trading platforms, payment systems, and other use cases where even small delays can impact performance. To offset the challenges that come with faster block production, the update also adjusts governance voting parameters, helping validators coordinate more effectively despite increased communication strain.

Beyond speed improvements, Fermi introduces infrastructure changes aimed at reducing hardware and data burdens for network participants. A new indexing feature allows users and developers to access only the portions of blockchain data they need, rather than downloading the full transaction history. This approach lowers resource requirements and makes participation more accessible, particularly for applications that rely on partial data rather than full ledger replication.

BNB Chain targets higher throughput and broader adoption

The upgrade reflects a broader strategy by BNB Chain to increase throughput and narrow the performance gap between decentralized networks and traditional payment systems. Originally launched in 2020 by Binance, the network has since evolved into a validator-driven ecosystem with a growing base of decentralized applications.

At present, the chain processes just over 200 transactions per second, though its theoretical capacity is significantly higher. Even so, blockchain networks still trail legacy payment infrastructure in raw throughput.

For comparison, Visa routinely handles thousands of transactions per second, enabling near-instant payments for merchants worldwide. Closing this gap remains a key objective for layer-1 blockchains aiming to support mass-market financial activity.

Network usage suggests BNB Chain is moving in that direction. The number of active addresses has risen sharply, approaching levels seen on other high-performance networks such as Solana. As activity grows, reducing block times and improving execution speed becomes increasingly important, particularly for decentralized finance applications.

Longer confirmation times and limited throughput can introduce delays, slippage, and execution risk in DeFi markets, making them less attractive for users accustomed to instant settlement in traditional finance. By accelerating block production and optimizing data handling, the Fermi hard fork aims to improve user experience and position BNB Chain as a more viable platform for fast, high-volume onchain activity.