diff --git a/yarn-project/txe/src/node/txe_node.ts b/yarn-project/txe/src/node/txe_node.ts
index 03fdbb1c7158..7c76972dc880 100644
--- a/yarn-project/txe/src/node/txe_node.ts
+++ b/yarn-project/txe/src/node/txe_node.ts
@@ -273,7 +273,8 @@ export class TXENode implements AztecNode {
     // hold a reference to them.
     // We should likely migrate this so that the trees are owned by the node.
 
-    if (blockNumber == 'latest') {
+    // TODO: blockNumber is being passed as undefined, figure out why
+    if (blockNumber === 'latest' || blockNumber === undefined) {
       blockNumber = await this.getBlockNumber();
     }