[DRC] Proposal for dYdX Protocol Upgrade to v9.5

TL;DR: (summary)

We would like to submit for consideration a software upgrade proposal for the dYdX Protocol v9.5. This version introduces a new governance-controlled transfer mechanism, adds epoch querying commands, and adjusts short block window parameters for improved throughput and stability, alongside critical bug fixes.

Introduction:

Hello dYdX Community,

We’re bringing to your attention the dYdX Protocol release v9.5, which incorporates a new governance message for account-level fund transfers, commands for querying epoch data, and a critical increase to the ShortBlockWindow parameter to account for reduced block times, as well as necessary fixes for statistics expiration and volume/commission calculations.

Note: the adoption of v9.5 is subject to software upgrade via a governance proposal.

Specification:

Detailed information on v9.5 can be found in the release notes.
Key updates include:

  • New governance message for account level transfer - Adds a new governance message to enable the transfer of coins between any two x/bank accounts on the dYdX Chain, implemented via the SendFromAccountToAccount keeper function in the x/sending module, with an update to register the new message type.

  • New Epoch CLI command - Adds both RPC and CLI commands, providing a straightforward way for users and tools to query and retrieve information about the current epoch.

  • Protocol Performance improvement - The ShortBlockWindow has been increased to 40 (up from 20) to account for reduced block times (from ~1s to ~0.6s), improving the short-term order block window. This update also doubles the mempool size and modifies the Time-To-Live (TTL) to correspond with the new ShortBlockWindow to allow for more orders to remain in the mempool.

Next Steps:

Feedback is welcome on this DRC. The dYdX Operations subDAO suggests the following timeline for proceeding with the governance proposal:

  • Proposal Submission: Dec 5, 2025
  • Expected Vote Outcome: Dec 7, 2025
  • Upgrade Date: Dec 8, 2025
  • Suggested Block Height: 66630000

Note: We advise that the potential proposer revise the suggested block height at the time of proposing and pick an upgrade height close to 5:00 PM (UTC) on December 8, 2025- especially in case the ETA of 66630000 has shifted dramatically.

Resources:

NOTE: Please make sure to include the required info-fields in the proposal.

Also, please note that the protocol software has dropped patch number from upgrade name, therefore mandating the use of v9.5 in the proposal JSON.

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Thank you for your continued participation and support in the governance and improvement of the dYdX Chain.

dYdX Operations SubDAO

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