diff --git a/tools/usdt-bridge/src/main.rs b/tools/usdt-bridge/src/main.rs
index 83f1e705..0b30ff7f 100644
--- a/tools/usdt-bridge/src/main.rs
+++ b/tools/usdt-bridge/src/main.rs
@@ -1085,7 +1085,25 @@ async fn process_deposit_block(
                                                             .map(Into::<[u8; 32]>::into)
                                                             .map_err(|e| format!("bad custody_multisig_pezkuwi config: {e:?}"));
                                                         match owner_bytes {
-                                                            Ok(owner_bytes) => Some(execute_wusdt_auto_payout(client, keypair, config.pezkuwi_wusdt_asset_id, owner_bytes, dest_bytes, net_amount).await),
+                                                            Ok(owner_bytes) => {
+                                                                let first = execute_wusdt_auto_payout(client, keypair, config.pezkuwi_wusdt_asset_id, owner_bytes, dest_bytes, net_amount).await;
+                                                                // A cached signing client's WS connection can die silently between
+                                                                // uses (same failure class as the listener's live subscription -
+                                                                // see LIVE_SUBSCRIPTION_STALL_TIMEOUT's doc) with no error until the
+                                                                // next real use - retry once against a genuinely fresh connection
+                                                                // before falling back to manual review, rather than requiring a
+                                                                // full process restart to recover auto-pay.
+                                                                let result = if first.is_err() {
+                                                                    warn!("   ⚠️ Auto-pay attempt failed ({:?}) - retrying once with a fresh connection", first.as_ref().err());
+                                                                    match PezkuwiSigningClient::<PezkuwiConfig>::from_insecure_url(&config.pezkuwi_rpc).await {
+                                                                        Ok(fresh_client) => execute_wusdt_auto_payout(&fresh_client, keypair, config.pezkuwi_wusdt_asset_id, owner_bytes, dest_bytes, net_amount).await,
+                                                                        Err(_) => first,
+                                                                    }
+                                                                } else {
+                                                                    first
+                                                                };
+                                                                Some(result)
+                                                            }
                                                             Err(reason) => { warn!("   ⚠️ Auto-pay skipped: {reason}"); None }
                                                         }
                                                     }
@@ -1457,7 +1475,22 @@ async fn process_withdrawal_block(
                                                             .map(Into::<[u8; 32]>::into)
                                                             .map_err(|e| format!("bad custody_multisig_polkadot config: {e:?}"));
                                                         match owner_bytes {
-                                                            Ok(owner_bytes) => Some(execute_usdt_auto_payout(client, keypair, config.polkadot_usdt_asset_id, owner_bytes, dest_bytes, net_amount).await),
+                                                            Ok(owner_bytes) => {
+                                                                let first = execute_usdt_auto_payout(client, keypair, config.polkadot_usdt_asset_id, owner_bytes, dest_bytes, net_amount).await;
+                                                                // Same reconnect-and-retry as the wUSDT leg - see its comment. This
+                                                                // exact failure ("Connection reset by peer... restart required")
+                                                                // was observed live twice on this leg before this fix.
+                                                                let result = if first.is_err() {
+                                                                    warn!("   ⚠️ Auto-pay attempt failed ({:?}) - retrying once with a fresh connection", first.as_ref().err());
+                                                                    match OnlineClient::<SubstrateConfig>::from_url(&config.polkadot_rpc).await {
+                                                                        Ok(fresh_client) => execute_usdt_auto_payout(&fresh_client, keypair, config.polkadot_usdt_asset_id, owner_bytes, dest_bytes, net_amount).await,
+                                                                        Err(_) => first,
+                                                                    }
+                                                                } else {
+                                                                    first
+                                                                };
+                                                                Some(result)
+                                                            }
                                                             Err(reason) => { warn!("   ⚠️ Auto-pay skipped: {reason}"); None }
                                                         }
                                                     }