Polygon hard fork aims to recover stolen POL tokens
ITF Team2 min read
Polygon Labs proposes a hard fork on 11/5/2026 to move 70.49 million POL from five attacker addresses after the Polymarket and Binance hacks.
Key takeaways
- The Polygon Improvement Proposal (PIP) was scheduled for a governance call on 11/5/2026.
- Roughly 70.49 million POL tokens are locked in five attacker‑controlled addresses.
- If approved, the hard fork could be implemented in about two weeks.
- The PIP lists six conditions that must be met before the fork can proceed.
Polygon Labs announced on 11/5/2026 a formal improvement proposal that would trigger a hard fork of the Polygon Proof‑of‑Stake (PoS) mainnet. The aim is to move about 70.49 million native POL tokens – seized in the Polymarket and Binance hacks – from five attacker‑controlled wallets to verified recovery addresses. The move would be a one‑off governance action, not a permanent tool for freezing assets.
What the proposal entails and how prices reacted
The proposal requires validators to transfer the POL balances without private keys, effectively rewriting the ledger for the affected accounts. Because the change needs consensus, a hard fork is the only technical path. Market reaction was muted; POL’s spot price stayed within its recent range as traders awaited the governance vote rather than speculating on immediate price impact.
The underlying data show that the Polymarket incident on October 30, 2026 froze 24 million of the 28 million POL originally moved, while the $6.3 billion Binance breach transferred over 46 million POL from its hot wallet. All 70.49 million tokens are now listed on the Bor transaction block list, which only updates when block producers restart their nodes.
Why a hard fork is considered necessary
The current blocklist mechanism is fragile: entries do not expire automatically, and attackers have tried to bypass the lock by offering high‑fee transactions or contacting validators for payment. Leaving the tokens locked would keep tens of millions of POL inaccessible indefinitely, while relying on attacker cooperation has proven ineffective. Hence, the proposers argue that a hard fork is the only reliable way to restore the assets to the rightful parties.
Alternative solutions – such as building a permanent recovery module or waiting for voluntary cooperation – were examined but rejected as either too slow or uncertain. The hard fork is framed as an extraordinary measure, emphasized by the six checkable conditions that must be satisfied, including public acknowledgment by the victims and absence of competing claims.
Read also: XRP and XLM extend recovery as bears lose steam
Governance process and timeline
The PIP will be presented at the Polygon Protocol Governance Call on Wednesday, 11/5/2026. If the community votes in favor, the implementation is expected to take roughly two weeks, after which the PoS chain would restart with the revised state. The proposal explicitly states that this action is not intended to become a generic freeze‑or‑recover tool for future incidents.
Traders should watch the outcome of the governance vote, the subsequent fork block height, and any post‑fork monitoring of POL balances. A successful fork could set a precedent for on‑chain asset recovery, while a rejection may leave the tokens permanently locked and could pressure the Polygon community to explore alternative governance mechanisms.
- 28 million POL moved in Polymarket hack (Oct 30 2026)
- 24 million of those frozen at request
- >46 million POL transferred from Binance hot wallet
- Total 70.49 million POL held in five attacker addresses
Frequently asked questions
What is the purpose of Polygon’s proposed hard fork?
The hard fork is intended to move 70.49 million POL tokens from five attacker‑controlled addresses to verified recovery addresses, effectively reversing the on‑chain effects of the Polymarket and Binance hacks.
How long will the hard fork take if approved?
The implementation is expected to require roughly two weeks after the governance vote, according to the Polygon Improvement Proposal schedule.
Why can’t the existing blocklist recover the stolen POL?
The blocklist only loads at validator startup and does not expire automatically; attackers have tested high‑fee transactions to bypass it, making the lock‑up fragile and insufficient for full recovery.
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This article is compiled from international market news for information only. It is not investment advice.