FCMP++ and Monero's Next Hard Fork: 2026 Status
No. As of the date at the top of this page, Monero is still running the same consensus rules it has since 2022, and there is no next hard fork scheduled — no date, no block height. FCMP++, the big privacy upgrade people keep asking about, is still being built. If you've read that it "activated in early 2026" or that there's an "August 2026 fork," that's wrong, and here's the proof, straight from Monero's own code and from a live node.
hard_fork_info. Full network stats →Monero is on hard fork v16, which activated on 14 August 2022. Nothing has forked since. FCMP++ is roughly two-thirds of the way through its development milestone, with no release date and no fork height set. Everyday wallets keep working exactly as they do now until a fork is actually scheduled — and you'll get plenty of warning when that happens.
What version is Monero on right now?
Monero's consensus rules are versioned by hard fork. The current one is v16, which activated at block 2,689,608 on 14 August 2022. Every block since has followed those same rules. The live box above reads this directly from a node's hard_fork_info call — it's not a number we typed, it's what the network itself reports.
This matters because it's the one fact that settles the whole question. A hard fork changes the protocol version. If Monero had forked in 2026, the version would no longer say 16. It does.
Is a hard fork scheduled?
No. Two primary sources make this plain:
- Monero's own code. The project keeps a table of scheduled upgrades in its README. The row for the next fork is filled with placeholder
Xs — the code literally says the date and height "have not been determined." - The FCMP++ development milestone on GitHub. It's still open, with roughly two-thirds of its tasks done and no due date. The main integration is still marked work-in-progress.
Monero ships regular software updates like 0.18.5.x ("Fluorine Fermi"). These are optional app updates that run on the same v16 rules — they fix bugs, add features, and improve performance. A hard fork is a change to the consensus rules that every node must adopt by a set block height. Some articles confuse a July 2026 point release with "the FCMP++ fork." They're not the same thing.
What is FCMP++, and what does it change?
Right now, when you spend a Monero output, your wallet hides which one is really yours by signing it together with 15 unrelated decoys pulled from the chain — a "ring" of 16. An outside observer sees 16 possibilities and can't tell which is the real spend.
FCMP++ (Full-Chain Membership Proofs) replaces that ring with something much stronger: a cryptographic proof that your output is one of every output that has ever existed on the chain. Instead of hiding among 16, you hide among the entire set — over a hundred million outputs. It's the largest privacy jump Monero has planned, and it removes a whole class of analysis that tries to guess the real spend out of a small ring.
It arrives alongside a new addressing scheme (referred to as CARROT) built for this design. If you want the deeper background on how today's privacy works, see staying private and what is Monero.
What happened to Seraphis and Jamtis?
You may have seen those names in older roadmaps. Seraphis was an earlier, broader redesign of Monero's transaction protocol, with Jamtis as its addressing layer. The project shifted its priority toward FCMP++ as a faster route to the same goal — a much larger anonymity set — without the longer timeline a full Seraphis rework would need. FCMP++ is the active effort; treat Seraphis/Jamtis as background, not the current plan.
When will FCMP++ actually happen?
There is no announced date, and we won't invent one. Judging by the open milestone and the work still in progress, a realistic window is late 2026 at the earliest, and quite possibly 2027. It ships when the code is finished, independently audited, and the developers set a concrete fork block height — usually announced months ahead so wallets and exchanges can prepare.
The wrong claims to ignore
- "FCMP++ activated in Q1 2026." — False. The milestone is still open; no fork has happened.
- "There's a Monero hard fork in August 2026." — False. The only mid-2026 event was an optional point release, not a consensus fork.
- "Monero is on v17 / v18 now." — False. It's on v16, and has been since August 2022.
- "FCMP++ already has a block height." — False. No date and no height are set.
How you'll know it's real
When FCMP++ is genuinely coming, three things happen: the upgrade table in Monero's code gets a real date and block height, a wallet release ships specifically to support the fork, and the milestone closes. Until you see those, any "it's happening now" headline is guesswork. You can also just check the live box on this page — the day the protocol version changes from 16, it has forked. Not before.
Frequently asked
Is there a Monero hard fork in 2026?
No hard fork is scheduled. Monero is still on protocol version v16, which activated on 14 August 2022, and the next-fork row in Monero's code is still a placeholder with no date or block height.
Is FCMP++ live yet?
No. FCMP++ is still in development — its GitHub milestone is open with roughly two-thirds of its tasks done and no due date. It has not been activated on mainnet.
What protocol version is Monero on?
Monero is on hard fork v16, active since block 2,689,608 on 14 August 2022. You can confirm this live from any node's hard_fork_info call.
What does FCMP++ change?
FCMP++ (Full-Chain Membership Proofs) replaces today's 16-member decoy ring with a proof that your output belongs to the entire set of chain outputs — hiding a spend among 100 million+ outputs instead of 16. It comes with a new addressing scheme (CARROT).
Are Monero 0.18.5 releases the FCMP++ fork?
No. Releases like 0.18.5.x are optional software point releases on the same v16 rules. A hard fork changes the consensus rules at a set block height; a point release does not.