diff --git a/chain-signatures/node/src/protocol/triple.rs b/chain-signatures/node/src/protocol/triple.rs
index 6b3e55b10..1ee0ae81a 100644
--- a/chain-signatures/node/src/protocol/triple.rs
+++ b/chain-signatures/node/src/protocol/triple.rs
@@ -42,7 +42,9 @@ struct TripleGenerator {
     me: Participant,
     proposer: Participant,
     participants: Vec<Participant>,
-    protocol: TripleProtocol,
+    /// Option to temporarily move it to a blocking task. Must be Some in all
+    /// other circumstances.
+    protocol: Option<TripleProtocol>,
     timeout: Duration,
     slot: TriplePairSlot,
     created: Instant,
@@ -84,7 +86,7 @@ impl TripleGenerator {
             me,
             proposer,
             participants,
-            protocol: Box::new(protocol),
+            protocol: Some(Box::new(protocol)),
             timeout,
             slot,
             created: Instant::now(),
@@ -129,7 +131,31 @@ impl TripleGenerator {
 
         loop {
             let poke_start_time = Instant::now();
-            let action = match self.protocol.poke() {
+            // Temporarily move protocol into blocking task and restore it immediately after.
+            let mut protocol = self.protocol.take().expect("must be always be Some");
+
+            let poke_result =
+                match tokio::task::spawn_blocking(move || (protocol.poke(), protocol)).await {
+                    Ok((res, protocol)) => {
+                        self.protocol = Some(protocol);
+                        res
+                    }
+                    Err(err) => {
+                        crate::metrics::protocols::TRIPLE_GENERATOR_FAILURES.inc();
+                        if self.proposer == self.me {
+                            crate::metrics::protocols::TRIPLE_GENERATOR_OWNED_FAILURES.inc();
+                        }
+                        tracing::warn!(
+                            id = self.id,
+                            ?err,
+                            elapsed = ?start_time.elapsed(),
+                            "triple generation failed in a spawned blocking task",
+                        );
+                        return;
+                    }
+                };
+
+            let action = match poke_result {
                 Ok(action) => action,
                 Err(err) => {
                     crate::metrics::protocols::TRIPLE_GENERATOR_FAILURES.inc();
@@ -164,7 +190,10 @@ impl TripleGenerator {
                         }
                         break;
                     };
-                    self.protocol.message(msg.from, msg.data);
+                    self.protocol
+                        .as_mut()
+                        .expect("must always be Some")
+                        .message(msg.from, msg.data);
                 }
                 Action::SendMany(data) => {
                     for to in &self.participants {
diff --git a/integration-tests/tests/cases/mpc.rs b/integration-tests/tests/cases/mpc.rs
index c407c93ab..bf338360b 100644
--- a/integration-tests/tests/cases/mpc.rs
+++ b/integration-tests/tests/cases/mpc.rs
@@ -521,7 +521,7 @@ async fn test_sign_contention_5_nodes() {
     const NUM_SIGN_REQUESTS: u8 = 5; // Reduced from 10 to match presignature availability
     const MIN_PRESIGNATURES_PER_OWNER: usize = 3;
     const STOCKPILE_MIN: u32 = 8;
-    const STOCKPILE_MAX: u32 = 12;
+    const STOCKPILE_MAX: u32 = 24;
 
     tracing::info!(
         num_nodes = NUM_NODES,
@@ -537,13 +537,15 @@ async fn test_sign_contention_5_nodes() {
         .with_max_triples_stockpile(STOCKPILE_MAX)
         .with_min_presignatures_stockpile(STOCKPILE_MIN)
         .with_max_presignatures_stockpile(STOCKPILE_MAX)
+        .with_signature_timeout_ms(20_000) // default is 10_000 but this test sometimes takes longer
         .build()
         .await;
 
     // Wait for presignatures to be generated - 5-node triple generation takes ~3-4 minutes
     // We wait for a modest per-owner count since distribution is not uniform
+    // TODO: reduce timeout once P+T generation is more reliable
     tracing::info!("waiting for presignatures to be generated (triple gen takes ~3-4 min)...");
-    let timeout = Duration::from_secs(480); // 8 minutes for triple + presignature generation
+    let timeout = Duration::from_secs(540); // 9 minutes for triple + presignature generation
     network
         .assert_presignatures(MIN_PRESIGNATURES_PER_OWNER, timeout)
         .await;
@@ -563,7 +565,8 @@ async fn test_sign_contention_5_nodes() {
     }
 
     // Wait for all signatures - allow more time for 5-node consensus
-    let timeout = Duration::from_secs(120);
+    // TODO: reduce timeout once signature generation is more reliable
+    let timeout = Duration::from_secs(180);
     let actions = network
         .assert_actions(NUM_SIGN_REQUESTS as usize, timeout)
         .await;