Nick Johnson Proposes ENSv2 Activation, Pausing New .eth Registrations

Nick Johnson has submitted a draft proposal seeking approval to activate ENSv2, a next-generation version of the Ethereum Name Service (ENS) that would temporarily halt new .eth registrations during the transition.

If approved, the existing ENS registrar would stop accepting new registrations while records are synchronized. New .eth registrations through both the current and upgraded systems would be unavailable for several hours during the cutover.

Existing domain holders would not need to migrate immediately. Their names would continue to function, and holders could renew them. ENS Labs has reserved space for existing .eth names in ENSv2.

The upgrade would introduce a redesigned registry architecture with more flexible controls for domain transfers, permissions and subdomain management. ENS Labs also plans to transfer its remaining administrative permissions to the ENS decentralized autonomous organization, or DAO.

The proposal remains in draft form and must advance to an on-chain governance vote before implementation. ENS governance rules require at least 1% voter participation, equal to 1 million ENS votes, along with majority support during a seven-day voting period. An approved proposal would then face a minimum two-day timelock before execution.

No voting date has been announced. The proposal continues earlier coverage of the ENSv2 activation plan.

More than 3 million .eth domains are in use worldwide across wallets, decentralized finance protocols and nonfungible token platforms.