diff --git a/cmd/geth/chaincmd.go b/cmd/geth/chaincmd.go
index 8e195bcf96..bed4aa2d2f 100644
--- a/cmd/geth/chaincmd.go
+++ b/cmd/geth/chaincmd.go
@@ -208,6 +208,7 @@ func initGenesis(ctx *cli.Context) error {
 		}
 		triedb := trie.NewDatabaseWithConfig(chaindb, &trie.Config{
 			Preimages: ctx.Bool(utils.CachePreimagesFlag.Name),
+			Verkle:    true,
 		})
 		_, hash, err := core.SetupGenesisBlock(chaindb, triedb, genesis)
 		if err != nil {