diff --git a/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/HeadlessSetup.cs b/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/HeadlessSetup.cs
index 628979f..02349bc 100644
--- a/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/HeadlessSetup.cs
+++ b/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/HeadlessSetup.cs
@@ -22,7 +22,23 @@ internal static class UiSession
     private static readonly Lazy<HeadlessUnitTestSession> Session =
         new(() => HeadlessUnitTestSession.StartNew(typeof(TestAppBuilder)));
 
-    public static Task Run(Func<Task> body) => Session.Value.Dispatch(body, CancellationToken.None);
+    // Avalonia's Dispatch(Func<Task>) returns as soon as the body reaches its first real await:
+    // everything after it (including the assertions) would silently never run and the test would
+    // pass vacuously. So the async body is driven to completion here, pumping the dispatcher on
+    // the UI thread (the continuations of its awaits are posted there), with a hard time limit.
+    public static Task Run(Func<Task> body) => Session.Value.Dispatch(() =>
+    {
+        var task = body();
+        var deadline = DateTime.UtcNow + TimeSpan.FromMinutes(2);
+        while (!task.IsCompleted)
+        {
+            if (DateTime.UtcNow > deadline)
+                throw new TimeoutException("Async UI test body did not complete within 2 minutes.");
+            Avalonia.Threading.Dispatcher.UIThread.RunJobs();
+            Thread.Sleep(1);
+        }
+        task.GetAwaiter().GetResult();
+    }, CancellationToken.None);
 
     public static Task Run(Action body) =>
         Session.Value.Dispatch(() => { body(); return Task.CompletedTask; }, CancellationToken.None);
diff --git a/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/VmTestBase.cs b/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/VmTestBase.cs
index 9c131c2..a78a30d 100644
--- a/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/VmTestBase.cs
+++ b/tests/PalladiumWallet.Tests/App/VmTestBase.cs
@@ -34,7 +34,10 @@ public abstract class VmTestBase : IDisposable
         MainWindowViewModel.UpdateCheck = _ => Task.FromResult<LatestRelease?>(null);
         // No bootstrap servers: the only reachable server is the in-process fake, so the
         // VM's connect/reconnect loops can never touch a real indexing server.
-        MainWindowViewModel.ProfileOverride = ChainProfiles.Mainnet with { BootstrapServers = [] };
+        // No checkpoints either: the fake chains use tiny heights, and with the real mainnet checkpoints
+        // every proof would have to be anchored up to height 20,000 (ADR 0040), which the fake
+        // server does not serve. Tests that care about anchoring set their own profile.
+        MainWindowViewModel.ProfileOverride = ChainProfiles.Mainnet with { BootstrapServers = [], Checkpoints = [] };
         new AppConfig { LastServerHost = _server.Host, LastServerPort = _server.Port, LastServerUseSsl = false }
             .Save(AppPaths.ConfigPath());
     }