What Should You Do When a Crypto Transaction Is Stuck?
What should you do when a crypto transaction is stuck? A stuck transaction usually means the fee was set too low and the transaction is sitting in the mempool without being included. The fix depends on the chain: on Ethereum and other EVM chains, you can resend with the same nonce and a higher fee to speed up or cancel the original; on Bitcoin, you can use RBF or CPFP to speed it up. For businesses, a resend is a new signature, so it must go through approval and be handled separately during reconciliation.
Why Do Crypto Transactions Get Stuck?
The most common reason is a fee below what the network currently requires. On EVM chains, transactions from the same address execute in nonce order, so if one gets stuck or there is a nonce gap, every later transaction waits behind it.
How Do You Speed Up or Cancel a Stuck Ethereum Transaction?
Send a new transaction with the same nonce and a fee higher than the original by a certain margin, so nodes accept it as a replacement. If the contents stay the same and only the fee goes up, it is a speed-up; if it becomes a zero-value transfer to your own address, it is a cancellation. Both only work while the original has not yet been included, because once confirmed it cannot be reversed. If the transaction is stuck because of a nonce gap, send the missing nonce first.
How Is It Different on Bitcoin?
Bitcoin has two common methods: the sender can use RBF to replace the original with a higher fee rate, and both the sender and the recipient can use CPFP, sending a high-fee child transaction that pulls the original into a block with it.
What Should Businesses Watch Out for When Handling Stuck Transactions?
Speeding up and cancelling both create a new signature, which must go through the same approval workflow as the original. Systems should also monitor transactions that stay unconfirmed for long periods, and count the original and its replacement as a single transaction during reconciliation.
Conclusion
When a transaction is stuck, EVM chains use a same-nonce resend with a higher fee to speed it up or cancel it, while Bitcoin uses RBF or CPFP. Businesses also need resends to go through approval, unconfirmed transactions to be monitored, and replaced transactions to be handled correctly in reconciliation. Safeheron’s Wallet-as-a-Service provides businesses with MPC key management and a policy engine.
Want your on-chain transfers to stop getting stuck? Contact Safeheron’s Sales Team to Book a 1:1 Demo
Looking for a secure way to manage digital assets?
Talk to our experts and find the right solution for your business.
Request a DemoLooking for a secure way to manage digital assets?
Talk to our experts and find the right solution for your business.