diff --git a/logos_delivery/waku/rln/group_manager/on_chain/group_manager.nim b/logos_delivery/waku/rln/group_manager/on_chain/group_manager.nim
index a912306a5..319aff1eb 100644
--- a/logos_delivery/waku/rln/group_manager/on_chain/group_manager.nim
+++ b/logos_delivery/waku/rln/group_manager/on_chain/group_manager.nim
@@ -48,6 +48,9 @@ type
     proofPathRefreshInFlightFut*: Future[seq[byte]]
     lastRootsRefreshMoment*: Moment
     rootsRefreshInFlightFut*: Future[void]
+    # Pacing for retried on-chain transaction calls; a zero value is replaced
+    # with the RetryStrategy defaults during init.
+    retryStrategy*: RetryStrategy
 
 # The below code is not working with the latest web3 version due to chainId being null (specifically on linea-sepolia)
 # TODO: find better solution than this custom sendEthCallWithoutParams call
@@ -358,7 +361,7 @@ method register*(
 
   let gasPrice = (
     await retryWrapper(
-      RetryStrategy.new(),
+      g.retryStrategy,
       "Failed to get gas price",
       proc(): Future[int] {.async.} =
         let fetchedGasPrice = uint64(await ethRpc.provider.eth_gasPrice())
@@ -383,7 +386,7 @@ method register*(
     idCommitmentsToErase = idCommitmentsToErase
   let txHash = (
     await retryWrapper(
-      RetryStrategy.new(),
+      g.retryStrategy,
       "Failed to register the member",
       proc(): Future[TxHash] {.async.} =
         return await wakuRlnContract
@@ -396,7 +399,7 @@ method register*(
   # wait for the transaction to be mined and get the receipt
   let tsReceipt = (
     await retryWrapper(
-      RetryStrategy.new(),
+      g.retryStrategy,
       "Failed to get the transaction receipt",
       proc(): Future[ReceiptObject] {.async.} =
         let r = await ethRpc.provider.eth_getTransactionReceipt(txHash)
@@ -610,6 +613,9 @@ proc establishConnection(
   return ok(ethRpc)
 
 method init*(g: OnchainGroupManager): Future[GroupManagerResult[void]] {.async.} =
+  if g.retryStrategy.retryCount == 0:
+    g.retryStrategy = RetryStrategy.new()
+
   # check if the Ethereum client is reachable
   let ethRpc: Web3 = (await establishConnection(g)).valueOr:
     return err("failed to connect to Ethereum clients: " & $error)
diff --git a/tests/node/test_wakunode_legacy_lightpush.nim b/tests/node/test_wakunode_legacy_lightpush.nim
index aec37e18c..b88ede071 100644
--- a/tests/node/test_wakunode_legacy_lightpush.nim
+++ b/tests/node/test_wakunode_legacy_lightpush.nim
@@ -136,7 +136,7 @@ suite "RLN Proofs as a Lightpush Service":
     check (await server.mountLegacyLightPush()).isOk()
     client.mountLegacyLightPushClient()
 
-    let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](server.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](server.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
diff --git a/tests/node/test_wakunode_lightpush.nim b/tests/node/test_wakunode_lightpush.nim
index f13cbcaab..00313cc50 100644
--- a/tests/node/test_wakunode_lightpush.nim
+++ b/tests/node/test_wakunode_lightpush.nim
@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ suite "RLN Proofs as a Lightpush Service":
     check (await server.mountLightPush()).isOk()
     client.mountLightPushClient()
 
-    let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](server.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](server.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
diff --git a/tests/waku_rln_relay/anvil_state/state-deployed-contracts-mint-and-approved.json.gz b/tests/waku_rln_relay/anvil_state/state-deployed-contracts-mint-and-approved.json.gz
index b5fdebb74..0cbc4afba 100644
Binary files a/tests/waku_rln_relay/anvil_state/state-deployed-contracts-mint-and-approved.json.gz and b/tests/waku_rln_relay/anvil_state/state-deployed-contracts-mint-and-approved.json.gz differ
diff --git a/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_rln_group_manager_onchain.nim b/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_rln_group_manager_onchain.nim
index bbd97217f..000180981 100644
--- a/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_rln_group_manager_onchain.nim
+++ b/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_rln_group_manager_onchain.nim
@@ -29,17 +29,16 @@ import
   ../testlib/wakucore,
   ./utils_onchain
 
-# Anvil is started once for the whole suite. The first test runs the full
-# `setupOnchainGroupManager` flow (fund a fresh account + mint tokens + approve
-# allowance) and then takes a baseline snapshot capturing that post-setup chain
-# state. Subsequent tests revert to the baseline (restoring the funded account)
-# and build a bare manager pointing at the same key. evm_revert consumes the snapshot
-# ID, so we re-snapshot after every revert. Cleanup is registered via
+# Anvil is started once for the whole suite from the cached state file, which
+# already contains the deployed RLN contracts and the funded, token-approved
+# FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY account — no per-run on-chain setup is needed. A
+# baseline snapshot is taken right after startup; every test reverts to it and
+# builds a bare manager pointing at the baked-in key. evm_revert consumes the
+# snapshot ID, so we re-snapshot after every revert. Cleanup is registered via
 # addExitProc so anvil is terminated when the test binary exits.
 var sharedAnvilProc: Process
 var anvilStarted: bool = false
 var baselineSnapshotId: string
-var fundedPrivateKey: string
 
 suite "Onchain group manager":
   var manager {.threadVar.}: OnchainGroupManager
@@ -53,13 +52,10 @@ suite "Onchain group manager":
           if not sharedAnvilProc.isNil:
             stopAnvil(sharedAnvilProc)
       )
-      manager = waitFor setupOnchainGroupManager(deployContracts = false)
-      fundedPrivateKey = manager.ethPrivateKey.get()
-      baselineSnapshotId = waitFor takeEvmSnapshot()
     else:
       discard waitFor revertEvmSnapshot(baselineSnapshotId)
-      baselineSnapshotId = waitFor takeEvmSnapshot()
-      manager = buildOnchainGroupManager(fundedPrivateKey)
+    baselineSnapshotId = waitFor takeEvmSnapshot()
+    manager = buildOnchainGroupManager(FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY)
 
   test "should initialize successfully":
     (waitFor manager.init()).isOkOr:
diff --git a/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_waku_rln_relay.nim b/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_waku_rln_relay.nim
index 10de8d4d6..265d7d900 100644
--- a/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_waku_rln_relay.nim
+++ b/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_waku_rln_relay.nim
@@ -230,7 +230,7 @@ suite "Waku rln relay":
       rln = (await Rln.new(wakuRlnConfig)).valueOr:
         raiseAssert $error
 
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -286,7 +286,7 @@ suite "Waku rln relay":
       rln = (await Rln.new(wakuRlnConfig)).valueOr:
         raiseAssert $error
 
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -335,7 +335,8 @@ suite "Waku rln relay":
       wakuRlnRelay1 = (await Rln.new(rlnConf1)).valueOr:
         raiseAssert "failed to create waku rln relay: " & $error
 
-    let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](wakuRlnRelay1.groupManager)
+    let manager1 =
+      cast[OnchainGroupManager](wakuRlnRelay1.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -348,7 +349,8 @@ suite "Waku rln relay":
       wakuRlnRelay2 = (await Rln.new(rlnConf2)).valueOr:
         raiseAssert "failed to create waku rln relay: " & $error
 
-    let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](wakuRlnRelay2.groupManager)
+    let manager2 =
+      cast[OnchainGroupManager](wakuRlnRelay2.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials2 = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager2.register(idCredentials2, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
diff --git a/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_wakunode_rln_relay.nim b/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_wakunode_rln_relay.nim
index 4c02b4cbd..b7290e09c 100644
--- a/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_wakunode_rln_relay.nim
+++ b/tests/waku_rln_relay/test_wakunode_rln_relay.nim
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node1.start()
 
       # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node2.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig2)
       await node2.start()
 
-      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated2 = waitFor manager2.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node2", rootUpdated2
 
@@ -98,7 +98,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node3.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig3)
       await node3.start()
 
-      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated3 = waitFor manager3.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node3", rootUpdated3
 
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
         getWakuRlnConfig(manager = manager, index = MembershipIndex(1))
       await node1.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig1)
       await node1.start()
-      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
         getWakuRlnConfig(manager = manager, index = MembershipIndex(2))
       await node2.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig2)
       await node2.start()
-      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials2 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager2.register(idCredentials2, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
         getWakuRlnConfig(manager = manager, index = MembershipIndex(3))
       await node3.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig3)
       await node3.start()
-      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials3 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager3.register(idCredentials3, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -319,7 +319,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node1.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig1)
       await node1.start()
 
-      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -340,7 +340,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node2.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig2)
       await node2.start()
 
-      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated2 = waitFor manager2.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node2", rootUpdated2
     lockNewGlobalBrokerContext:
@@ -356,7 +356,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node3.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig3)
       await node3.start()
 
-      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated3 = waitFor manager3.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node3", rootUpdated3
 
@@ -431,7 +431,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node1.start()
 
       # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -454,7 +454,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node2.start()
 
       # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated2 = waitFor manager2.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node2", rootUpdated2
     lockNewGlobalBrokerContext:
@@ -472,7 +472,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node3.start()
 
       # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager3 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node3.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated3 = waitFor manager3.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node3", rootUpdated3
 
@@ -600,7 +600,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node1.start()
 
       # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager1 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node1.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let idCredentials1 = generateCredentials()
 
       (waitFor manager1.register(idCredentials1, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -619,7 +619,7 @@ procSuite "WakuNode - RLN relay":
       await node2.start()
 
       # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager)
+      let manager2 = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node2.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
       let rootUpdated2 = waitFor manager2.updateRoots()
       info "Updated root for node2", rootUpdated2
 
diff --git a/tests/waku_rln_relay/utils_onchain.nim b/tests/waku_rln_relay/utils_onchain.nim
index 4955d8d64..e44d527fd 100644
--- a/tests/waku_rln_relay/utils_onchain.nim
+++ b/tests/waku_rln_relay/utils_onchain.nim
@@ -20,7 +20,13 @@ import
   results
 
 import
-  logos_delivery/waku/[rln, rln/protocol_types, rln/constants, rln/bindings],
+  logos_delivery/waku/[
+    rln,
+    rln/protocol_types,
+    rln/constants,
+    rln/bindings,
+    rln/group_manager/on_chain/retry_wrapper,
+  ],
   ../testlib/common
 
 const CHAIN_ID* = 1234'u256
@@ -31,6 +37,26 @@ const DEFAULT_ANVIL_STATE_PATH* =
 const TOKEN_ADDRESS* = "0x5FbDB2315678afecb367f032d93F642f64180aa3"
 const WAKU_RLNV2_PROXY_ADDRESS* = "0x5fc8d32690cc91d4c39d9d3abcbd16989f875707"
 
+# Private key of the account baked into DEFAULT_ANVIL_STATE_PATH. The state
+# regeneration flow (test_rln_contract_deployment.nim) funds this exact account
+# with ETH, mints test tokens to it and approves the RLN contract allowance, so
+# tests that load the cached state can use it directly without any per-run
+# on-chain setup. Using a fixed key also makes the deployed contract addresses
+# deterministic across state regenerations.
+const FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY* =
+  "1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111"
+
+# Anvil mines instantly, so the multi-second production retry delay only adds
+# dead time when polling for transaction receipts.
+const FastRetryStrategy = RetryStrategy(retryDelay: 100.millis, retryCount: 15)
+
+proc withFastRetries*(m: OnchainGroupManager): OnchainGroupManager =
+  ## Applies test retry pacing to a manager built outside these helpers, such as
+  ## the node-internal manager created during RLN mount. register() reads the
+  ## strategy at call time, so setting it after init() is effective.
+  m.retryStrategy = FastRetryStrategy
+  return m
+
 proc generateCredentials*(): IdentityCredential =
   let credRes = membershipKeyGen()
   return credRes.get()
@@ -624,10 +650,17 @@ proc stopAnvil*(runAnvil: Process) {.used.} =
   try:
     when not defined(windows):
       discard execCmdEx(fmt"kill -TERM {anvilPID}")
-      # Give Anvil time to dump state on graceful shutdown before escalating to KILL.
-      sleep(200)
-      let checkResult = execCmdEx(fmt"kill -0 {anvilPID} 2>/dev/null")
-      if checkResult.exitCode == 0:
+      # Give Anvil time to dump state on graceful shutdown before escalating to
+      # KILL; killing too early truncates the dump and corrupts the state file.
+      # Poll via osproc `running` (which reaps the child) rather than `kill -0`,
+      # since the latter also succeeds for an exited-but-unreaped zombie.
+      const gracefulExitTimeoutMs = 10_000
+      const pollIntervalMs = 100
+      var elapsed = 0
+      while runAnvil.running and elapsed < gracefulExitTimeoutMs:
+        sleep(pollIntervalMs)
+        elapsed += pollIntervalMs
+      if runAnvil.running:
         warn "Anvil process still running after TERM signal, sending KILL",
           anvilPID = anvilPID
         discard execCmdEx(fmt"kill -9 {anvilPID}")
@@ -639,26 +672,55 @@ proc stopAnvil*(runAnvil: Process) {.used.} =
   except Exception as e:
     error "Error stopping Anvil daemon", anvilPID = anvilPID, error = e.msg
 
+proc buildOnchainGroupManager*(
+    privateKey: string = FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY, ethClientUrl: string = EthClient
+): OnchainGroupManager =
+  ## Constructs an OnchainGroupManager pointing at the cached RLN proxy contract
+  ## using the supplied private key. No on-chain work happens here — the caller
+  ## is expected to run Anvil from a state where this key already owns a funded,
+  ## token-approved account (the cached DEFAULT_ANVIL_STATE_PATH state provides
+  ## this for FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY). Each call returns a fresh RLN instance.
+  let rlnInstanceRes = createRlnInstance()
+  check:
+    rlnInstanceRes.isOk()
+  return OnchainGroupManager(
+    ethClientUrls: @[ethClientUrl],
+    ethContractAddress: WAKU_RLNV2_PROXY_ADDRESS,
+    chainId: CHAIN_ID,
+    ethPrivateKey: some(privateKey),
+    rlnInstance: rlnInstanceRes.get(),
+    retryStrategy: FastRetryStrategy,
+    onFatalErrorAction: proc(errStr: string) =
+      raiseAssert errStr
+    ,
+  )
+
 proc setupOnchainGroupManager*(
     ethClientUrl: string = EthClient,
     amountEth: UInt256 = 10.u256,
     deployContracts: bool = true,
 ): Future[OnchainGroupManager] {.async.} =
   ## Setup an onchain group manager for testing
-  ## If deployContracts is false, it will assume that the Anvil testnet already has the required contracts deployed, this significantly speeds up test runs.
-  ## To run Anvil with a cached state file containing pre-deployed contracts, see runAnvil documentation.
-  ## 
+  ## If deployContracts is false, it assumes the Anvil testnet was started from
+  ## the cached state file (DEFAULT_ANVIL_STATE_PATH), which already contains the
+  ## deployed contracts and the funded, token-approved FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY
+  ## account — no on-chain setup happens at all.
+  ##
   ## To generate/update the cached state file:
   ## 1. Call runAnvil with stateFile and dumpStateOnExit=true
   ## 2. Run setupOnchainGroupManager with deployContracts=true to deploy contracts
+  ##    (this funds/mints/approves FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY, baking it into state)
   ## 3. The state will be saved to the specified file when anvil exits
   ## 4. Commit this file to git
-  ## 
+  ##
   ## To use cached state:
   ## 1. Call runAnvil with stateFile and dumpStateOnExit=false
   ## 2. Anvil loads state in read-only mode (won't overwrite the cached file)
   ## 3. Call setupOnchainGroupManager with deployContracts=false
   ## 4. Tests run fast using pre-deployed contracts
+  if not deployContracts:
+    return buildOnchainGroupManager(FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY, ethClientUrl)
+
   let rlnInstanceRes = createRlnInstance()
   check:
     rlnInstanceRes.isOk()
@@ -669,76 +731,50 @@ proc setupOnchainGroupManager*(
   let accounts = await web3.provider.eth_accounts()
   web3.defaultAccount = accounts[1]
 
-  var privateKey: keys.PrivateKey
-  var acc: Address
-  var testTokenAddress: Address
-  var contractAddress: Address
+  debug "Performing Token and RLN contracts deployment"
+  let privateKey = keys.PrivateKey.fromHex(FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY).valueOr:
+    assert false, "invalid FUNDED_TEST_PRIVATE_KEY: " & $error
+    return
+  let acc = Address(toCanonicalAddress(privateKey.toPublicKey()))
 
-  if not deployContracts:
-    debug "Using contract addresses from constants"
+  discard await sendEthTransfer(
+    web3, web3.defaultAccount, acc, ethToWei(1000.u256), some(0.u256)
+  )
 
-    testTokenAddress = Address(hexToByteArray[20](TOKEN_ADDRESS))
-    contractAddress = Address(hexToByteArray[20](WAKU_RLNV2_PROXY_ADDRESS))
+  let testTokenAddress = (await deployTestToken(privateKey, acc, web3)).valueOr:
+    assert false, "Failed to deploy test token contract: " & $error
+    return
 
-    (privateKey, acc) = createEthAccount(web3)
+  await sendMintCall(
+    web3, web3.defaultAccount, testTokenAddress, acc, ethToWei(1000.u256), some(0.u256)
+  )
 
-    discard await sendEthTransfer(web3, web3.defaultAccount, acc, ethToWei(1000.u256))
+  let contractAddress = (await executeForgeContractDeployScripts(privateKey, acc, web3)).valueOr:
+    assert false, "Failed to deploy RLN contract: " & $error
+    return
 
-    await sendMintCall(
-      web3, web3.defaultAccount, testTokenAddress, acc, ethToWei(1000.u256)
-    )
+  # `executeForgeContractDeployScripts` shells out to `forge` via blocking
+  # `execCmdEx` calls (many seconds). While those run the chronos event loop
+  # is frozen and the existing web3 HTTP connection to Anvil rots; the next
+  # eth_call fails with "Not connected". Reconnect before continuing.
+  try:
+    await web3.close()
+  except CatchableError:
+    discard
+  web3 = await newWeb3(ethClientUrl)
+  web3.defaultAccount = accounts[1]
 
-    let tokenApprovalResult = await approveTokenAllowanceAndVerify(
-      web3, acc, privateKey, testTokenAddress, contractAddress, ethToWei(2000.u256)
-    )
-    assert tokenApprovalResult.isOk(), tokenApprovalResult.error
-  else:
-    debug "Performing Token and RLN contracts deployment"
-    (privateKey, acc) = createEthAccount(web3)
+  let tokenApprovalResult = await approveTokenAllowanceAndVerify(
+    web3,
+    acc,
+    privateKey,
+    testTokenAddress,
+    contractAddress,
+    ethToWei(2000.u256),
+    some(0.u256),
+  )
 
-    discard await sendEthTransfer(
-      web3, web3.defaultAccount, acc, ethToWei(1000.u256), some(0.u256)
-    )
-
-    testTokenAddress = (await deployTestToken(privateKey, acc, web3)).valueOr:
-      assert false, "Failed to deploy test token contract: " & $error
-      return
-
-    await sendMintCall(
-      web3,
-      web3.defaultAccount,
-      testTokenAddress,
-      acc,
-      ethToWei(1000.u256),
-      some(0.u256),
-    )
-
-    contractAddress = (await executeForgeContractDeployScripts(privateKey, acc, web3)).valueOr:
-      assert false, "Failed to deploy RLN contract: " & $error
-      return
-
-    # `executeForgeContractDeployScripts` shells out to `forge` via blocking
-    # `execCmdEx` calls (many seconds). While those run the chronos event loop
-    # is frozen and the existing web3 HTTP connection to Anvil rots; the next
-    # eth_call fails with "Not connected". Reconnect before continuing.
-    try:
-      await web3.close()
-    except CatchableError:
-      discard
-    web3 = await newWeb3(ethClientUrl)
-    web3.defaultAccount = accounts[1]
-
-    let tokenApprovalResult = await approveTokenAllowanceAndVerify(
-      web3,
-      acc,
-      privateKey,
-      testTokenAddress,
-      contractAddress,
-      ethToWei(2000.u256),
-      some(0.u256),
-    )
-
-    assert tokenApprovalResult.isOk(), tokenApprovalResult.error
+  assert tokenApprovalResult.isOk(), tokenApprovalResult.error
 
   let manager = OnchainGroupManager(
     ethClientUrls: @[ethClientUrl],
@@ -746,6 +782,7 @@ proc setupOnchainGroupManager*(
     chainId: CHAIN_ID,
     ethPrivateKey: some($privateKey),
     rlnInstance: rlnInstance,
+    retryStrategy: FastRetryStrategy,
     onFatalErrorAction: proc(errStr: string) =
       raiseAssert errStr
     ,
@@ -753,26 +790,4 @@ proc setupOnchainGroupManager*(
 
   return manager
 
-proc buildOnchainGroupManager*(
-    privateKey: string, ethClientUrl: string = EthClient
-): OnchainGroupManager =
-  ## Constructs an OnchainGroupManager pointing at the cached RLN proxy contract
-  ## using the supplied private key. No on-chain work happens here — the caller
-  ## is expected to have an Anvil snapshot where this key already owns a funded,
-  ## token-approved account (e.g. via a prior `setupOnchainGroupManager` followed
-  ## by `takeEvmSnapshot`). Each call returns a fresh RLN instance.
-  let rlnInstanceRes = createRlnInstance()
-  check:
-    rlnInstanceRes.isOk()
-  return OnchainGroupManager(
-    ethClientUrls: @[ethClientUrl],
-    ethContractAddress: WAKU_RLNV2_PROXY_ADDRESS,
-    chainId: CHAIN_ID,
-    ethPrivateKey: some(privateKey),
-    rlnInstance: rlnInstanceRes.get(),
-    onFatalErrorAction: proc(errStr: string) =
-      raiseAssert errStr
-    ,
-  )
-
 {.pop.}
diff --git a/tests/wakunode_rest/test_rest_relay.nim b/tests/wakunode_rest/test_rest_relay.nim
index b59dc463d..632859c53 100644
--- a/tests/wakunode_rest/test_rest_relay.nim
+++ b/tests/wakunode_rest/test_rest_relay.nim
@@ -264,7 +264,7 @@ suite "Waku v2 Rest API - Relay":
     await node.setRlnValidator(wakuRlnConfig)
     await node.start()
     # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -535,7 +535,7 @@ suite "Waku v2 Rest API - Relay":
       await node.connectToNodes(@[meshNode.peerInfo.toRemotePeerInfo()])
 
     # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -604,7 +604,7 @@ suite "Waku v2 Rest API - Relay":
     await node.start()
 
     # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -663,7 +663,7 @@ suite "Waku v2 Rest API - Relay":
     await node.start()
 
     # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr:
@@ -735,7 +735,7 @@ suite "Waku v2 Rest API - Relay":
     await node.start()
 
     # Registration is mandatory before sending messages with rln-relay
-    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager)
+    let manager = cast[OnchainGroupManager](node.rln.groupManager).withFastRetries()
     let idCredentials = generateCredentials()
 
     (waitFor manager.register(idCredentials, UserMessageLimit(20))).isOkOr: