diff --git a/ci/test/06_script_b.sh b/ci/test/06_script_b.sh
index e1032ba6bd6..77358f93d95 100755
--- a/ci/test/06_script_b.sh
+++ b/ci/test/06_script_b.sh
@@ -41,6 +41,7 @@ if [ "${RUN_TIDY}" = "true" ]; then
   CI_EXEC "python3 ${DIR_IWYU}/include-what-you-use/iwyu_tool.py"\
           " src/compat"\
           " src/init"\
+          " src/kernel/mempool_persist.cpp"\
           " src/policy/feerate.cpp"\
           " src/policy/packages.cpp"\
           " src/policy/settings.cpp"\
diff --git a/contrib/devtools/iwyu/bitcoin.core.imp b/contrib/devtools/iwyu/bitcoin.core.imp
index ce7786f58c2..919ffab102d 100644
--- a/contrib/devtools/iwyu/bitcoin.core.imp
+++ b/contrib/devtools/iwyu/bitcoin.core.imp
@@ -3,4 +3,5 @@
   { include: [ "<bits/termios-c_lflag.h>", private, "<termios.h>", public ] },
   { include: [ "<bits/termios-struct.h>", private, "<termios.h>", public ] },
   { include: [ "<bits/termios-tcflow.h>", private, "<termios.h>", public ] },
+  { include: [ "<bits/chrono.h>", private, "<chrono>", public ] },
 ]
diff --git a/src/Makefile.am b/src/Makefile.am
index d293775fc33..02ec5c098eb 100644
--- a/src/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/Makefile.am
@@ -177,6 +177,7 @@ BITCOIN_CORE_H = \
   kernel/context.h \
   kernel/mempool_limits.h \
   kernel/mempool_options.h \
+  kernel/mempool_persist.h \
   key.h \
   key_io.h \
   logging.h \
@@ -198,6 +199,7 @@ BITCOIN_CORE_H = \
   node/chainstate.h \
   node/coin.h \
   node/context.h \
+  node/mempool_persist_args.h \
   node/miner.h \
   node/minisketchwrapper.h \
   node/psbt.h \
@@ -366,6 +368,7 @@ libbitcoin_node_a_SOURCES = \
   kernel/checks.cpp \
   kernel/coinstats.cpp \
   kernel/context.cpp \
+  kernel/mempool_persist.cpp \
   mapport.cpp \
   mempool_args.cpp \
   net.cpp \
@@ -379,6 +382,7 @@ libbitcoin_node_a_SOURCES = \
   node/context.cpp \
   node/eviction.cpp \
   node/interfaces.cpp \
+  node/mempool_persist_args.cpp \
   node/miner.cpp \
   node/minisketchwrapper.cpp \
   node/psbt.cpp \
@@ -881,6 +885,7 @@ libbitcoinkernel_la_SOURCES = \
   kernel/checks.cpp \
   kernel/coinstats.cpp \
   kernel/context.cpp \
+  kernel/mempool_persist.cpp \
   key.cpp \
   logging.cpp \
   node/blockstorage.cpp \
diff --git a/src/Makefile.test_fuzz.include b/src/Makefile.test_fuzz.include
index 8922dda3ad4..b43816636f9 100644
--- a/src/Makefile.test_fuzz.include
+++ b/src/Makefile.test_fuzz.include
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ EXTRA_LIBRARIES += \
 TEST_FUZZ_H = \
     test/fuzz/fuzz.h \
     test/fuzz/FuzzedDataProvider.h \
+    test/fuzz/mempool_utils.h \
     test/fuzz/util.h
 
 libtest_fuzz_a_CPPFLAGS = $(AM_CPPFLAGS) $(BITCOIN_INCLUDES) $(MINIUPNPC_CPPFLAGS) $(NATPMP_CPPFLAGS) $(EVENT_CFLAGS) $(EVENT_PTHREADS_CFLAGS)
diff --git a/src/fs.h b/src/fs.h
index cc55793b951..e8b34319bbe 100644
--- a/src/fs.h
+++ b/src/fs.h
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 
 #include <cstdio>
 #include <filesystem>
+#include <functional>
 #include <iomanip>
 #include <ios>
 #include <ostream>
@@ -199,6 +200,7 @@ bool create_directories(const std::filesystem::path& p, std::error_code& ec) = d
 
 /** Bridge operations to C stdio */
 namespace fsbridge {
+    using FopenFn = std::function<FILE*(const fs::path&, const char*)>;
     FILE *fopen(const fs::path& p, const char *mode);
 
     /**
diff --git a/src/init.cpp b/src/init.cpp
index 267070a4c96..97c823fe0c1 100644
--- a/src/init.cpp
+++ b/src/init.cpp
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
 #include <init.h>
 
 #include <kernel/checks.h>
+#include <kernel/mempool_persist.h>
 
 #include <addrman.h>
 #include <banman.h>
@@ -41,6 +42,7 @@
 #include <node/chainstate.h>
 #include <node/context.h>
 #include <node/interface_ui.h>
+#include <node/mempool_persist_args.h>
 #include <node/miner.h>
 #include <policy/feerate.h>
 #include <policy/fees.h>
@@ -102,14 +104,19 @@
 #include <zmq/zmqrpc.h>
 #endif
 
+using kernel::DumpMempool;
+
 using node::CacheSizes;
 using node::CalculateCacheSizes;
 using node::ChainstateLoadVerifyError;
 using node::ChainstateLoadingError;
 using node::CleanupBlockRevFiles;
+using node::DEFAULT_PERSIST_MEMPOOL;
 using node::DEFAULT_PRINTPRIORITY;
 using node::DEFAULT_STOPAFTERBLOCKIMPORT;
 using node::LoadChainstate;
+using node::MempoolPath;
+using node::ShouldPersistMempool;
 using node::NodeContext;
 using node::ThreadImport;
 using node::VerifyLoadedChainstate;
@@ -245,8 +252,8 @@ void Shutdown(NodeContext& node)
     node.addrman.reset();
     node.netgroupman.reset();
 
-    if (node.mempool && node.mempool->IsLoaded() && node.args->GetBoolArg("-persistmempool", DEFAULT_PERSIST_MEMPOOL)) {
-        DumpMempool(*node.mempool);
+    if (node.mempool && node.mempool->GetLoadTried() && ShouldPersistMempool(*node.args)) {
+        DumpMempool(*node.mempool, MempoolPath(*node.args));
     }
 
     // Drop transactions we were still watching, and record fee estimations.
@@ -1669,7 +1676,7 @@ bool AppInitMain(NodeContext& node, interfaces::BlockAndHeaderTipInfo* tip_info)
     }
 
     chainman.m_load_block = std::thread(&util::TraceThread, "loadblk", [=, &chainman, &args] {
-        ThreadImport(chainman, vImportFiles, args);
+        ThreadImport(chainman, vImportFiles, args, ShouldPersistMempool(args) ? MempoolPath(args) : fs::path{});
     });
 
     // Wait for genesis block to be processed
diff --git a/src/kernel/mempool_persist.cpp b/src/kernel/mempool_persist.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..1a1cf2bbdc1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/kernel/mempool_persist.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,189 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2022 The Bitcoin Core developers
+// Distributed under the MIT software license, see the accompanying
+// file COPYING or http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php.
+
+#include <kernel/mempool_persist.h>
+
+#include <clientversion.h>
+#include <consensus/amount.h>
+#include <fs.h>
+#include <logging.h>
+#include <primitives/transaction.h>
+#include <serialize.h>
+#include <shutdown.h>
+#include <streams.h>
+#include <sync.h>
+#include <txmempool.h>
+#include <uint256.h>
+#include <util/system.h>
+#include <util/time.h>
+#include <validation.h>
+
+#include <chrono>
+#include <cstdint>
+#include <cstdio>
+#include <exception>
+#include <functional>
+#include <map>
+#include <memory>
+#include <set>
+#include <stdexcept>
+#include <utility>
+#include <vector>
+
+using fsbridge::FopenFn;
+
+namespace kernel {
+
+static const uint64_t MEMPOOL_DUMP_VERSION = 1;
+
+bool LoadMempool(CTxMemPool& pool, const fs::path& load_path, CChainState& active_chainstate, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function)
+{
+    if (load_path.empty()) return false;
+
+    FILE* filestr{mockable_fopen_function(load_path, "rb")};
+    CAutoFile file(filestr, SER_DISK, CLIENT_VERSION);
+    if (file.IsNull()) {
+        LogPrintf("Failed to open mempool file from disk. Continuing anyway.\n");
+        return false;
+    }
+
+    int64_t count = 0;
+    int64_t expired = 0;
+    int64_t failed = 0;
+    int64_t already_there = 0;
+    int64_t unbroadcast = 0;
+    auto now = NodeClock::now();
+
+    try {
+        uint64_t version;
+        file >> version;
+        if (version != MEMPOOL_DUMP_VERSION) {
+            return false;
+        }
+        uint64_t num;
+        file >> num;
+        while (num) {
+            --num;
+            CTransactionRef tx;
+            int64_t nTime;
+            int64_t nFeeDelta;
+            file >> tx;
+            file >> nTime;
+            file >> nFeeDelta;
+
+            CAmount amountdelta = nFeeDelta;
+            if (amountdelta) {
+                pool.PrioritiseTransaction(tx->GetHash(), amountdelta);
+            }
+            if (nTime > TicksSinceEpoch<std::chrono::seconds>(now - pool.m_expiry)) {
+                LOCK(cs_main);
+                const auto& accepted = AcceptToMemoryPool(active_chainstate, tx, nTime, /*bypass_limits=*/false, /*test_accept=*/false);
+                if (accepted.m_result_type == MempoolAcceptResult::ResultType::VALID) {
+                    ++count;
+                } else {
+                    // mempool may contain the transaction already, e.g. from
+                    // wallet(s) having loaded it while we were processing
+                    // mempool transactions; consider these as valid, instead of
+                    // failed, but mark them as 'already there'
+                    if (pool.exists(GenTxid::Txid(tx->GetHash()))) {
+                        ++already_there;
+                    } else {
+                        ++failed;
+                    }
+                }
+            } else {
+                ++expired;
+            }
+            if (ShutdownRequested())
+                return false;
+        }
+        std::map<uint256, CAmount> mapDeltas;
+        file >> mapDeltas;
+
+        for (const auto& i : mapDeltas) {
+            pool.PrioritiseTransaction(i.first, i.second);
+        }
+
+        std::set<uint256> unbroadcast_txids;
+        file >> unbroadcast_txids;
+        unbroadcast = unbroadcast_txids.size();
+        for (const auto& txid : unbroadcast_txids) {
+            // Ensure transactions were accepted to mempool then add to
+            // unbroadcast set.
+            if (pool.get(txid) != nullptr) pool.AddUnbroadcastTx(txid);
+        }
+    } catch (const std::exception& e) {
+        LogPrintf("Failed to deserialize mempool data on disk: %s. Continuing anyway.\n", e.what());
+        return false;
+    }
+
+    LogPrintf("Imported mempool transactions from disk: %i succeeded, %i failed, %i expired, %i already there, %i waiting for initial broadcast\n", count, failed, expired, already_there, unbroadcast);
+    return true;
+}
+
+bool DumpMempool(const CTxMemPool& pool, const fs::path& dump_path, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function, bool skip_file_commit)
+{
+    auto start = SteadyClock::now();
+
+    std::map<uint256, CAmount> mapDeltas;
+    std::vector<TxMempoolInfo> vinfo;
+    std::set<uint256> unbroadcast_txids;
+
+    static Mutex dump_mutex;
+    LOCK(dump_mutex);
+
+    {
+        LOCK(pool.cs);
+        for (const auto &i : pool.mapDeltas) {
+            mapDeltas[i.first] = i.second;
+        }
+        vinfo = pool.infoAll();
+        unbroadcast_txids = pool.GetUnbroadcastTxs();
+    }
+
+    auto mid = SteadyClock::now();
+
+    try {
+        FILE* filestr{mockable_fopen_function(dump_path + ".new", "wb")};
+        if (!filestr) {
+            return false;
+        }
+
+        CAutoFile file(filestr, SER_DISK, CLIENT_VERSION);
+
+        uint64_t version = MEMPOOL_DUMP_VERSION;
+        file << version;
+
+        file << (uint64_t)vinfo.size();
+        for (const auto& i : vinfo) {
+            file << *(i.tx);
+            file << int64_t{count_seconds(i.m_time)};
+            file << int64_t{i.nFeeDelta};
+            mapDeltas.erase(i.tx->GetHash());
+        }
+
+        file << mapDeltas;
+
+        LogPrintf("Writing %d unbroadcast transactions to disk.\n", unbroadcast_txids.size());
+        file << unbroadcast_txids;
+
+        if (!skip_file_commit && !FileCommit(file.Get()))
+            throw std::runtime_error("FileCommit failed");
+        file.fclose();
+        if (!RenameOver(dump_path + ".new", dump_path)) {
+            throw std::runtime_error("Rename failed");
+        }
+        auto last = SteadyClock::now();
+
+        LogPrintf("Dumped mempool: %gs to copy, %gs to dump\n",
+                  Ticks<SecondsDouble>(mid - start),
+                  Ticks<SecondsDouble>(last - mid));
+    } catch (const std::exception& e) {
+        LogPrintf("Failed to dump mempool: %s. Continuing anyway.\n", e.what());
+        return false;
+    }
+    return true;
+}
+
+} // namespace kernel
diff --git a/src/kernel/mempool_persist.h b/src/kernel/mempool_persist.h
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..9a15ec6dcaf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/kernel/mempool_persist.h
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2022 The Bitcoin Core developers
+// Distributed under the MIT software license, see the accompanying
+// file COPYING or http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php.
+
+#ifndef BITCOIN_KERNEL_MEMPOOL_PERSIST_H
+#define BITCOIN_KERNEL_MEMPOOL_PERSIST_H
+
+#include <fs.h>
+
+class CChainState;
+class CTxMemPool;
+
+namespace kernel {
+
+/** Dump the mempool to disk. */
+bool DumpMempool(const CTxMemPool& pool, const fs::path& dump_path,
+                 fsbridge::FopenFn mockable_fopen_function = fsbridge::fopen,
+                 bool skip_file_commit = false);
+
+/** Load the mempool from disk. */
+bool LoadMempool(CTxMemPool& pool, const fs::path& load_path,
+                 CChainState& active_chainstate,
+                 fsbridge::FopenFn mockable_fopen_function = fsbridge::fopen);
+
+} // namespace kernel
+
+
+#endif // BITCOIN_KERNEL_MEMPOOL_PERSIST_H
diff --git a/src/node/blockstorage.cpp b/src/node/blockstorage.cpp
index cadafcaa8db..103f4f0d7f8 100644
--- a/src/node/blockstorage.cpp
+++ b/src/node/blockstorage.cpp
@@ -823,7 +823,7 @@ struct CImportingNow {
     }
 };
 
-void ThreadImport(ChainstateManager& chainman, std::vector<fs::path> vImportFiles, const ArgsManager& args)
+void ThreadImport(ChainstateManager& chainman, std::vector<fs::path> vImportFiles, const ArgsManager& args, const fs::path& mempool_path)
 {
     SetSyscallSandboxPolicy(SyscallSandboxPolicy::INITIALIZATION_LOAD_BLOCKS);
     ScheduleBatchPriority();
@@ -893,6 +893,6 @@ void ThreadImport(ChainstateManager& chainman, std::vector<fs::path> vImportFile
             return;
         }
     } // End scope of CImportingNow
-    chainman.ActiveChainstate().LoadMempool(args);
+    chainman.ActiveChainstate().LoadMempool(mempool_path);
 }
 } // namespace node
diff --git a/src/node/blockstorage.h b/src/node/blockstorage.h
index e017f3f4279..9b76371aaec 100644
--- a/src/node/blockstorage.h
+++ b/src/node/blockstorage.h
@@ -211,7 +211,7 @@ bool ReadRawBlockFromDisk(std::vector<uint8_t>& block, const FlatFilePos& pos, c
 
 bool UndoReadFromDisk(CBlockUndo& blockundo, const CBlockIndex* pindex);
 
-void ThreadImport(ChainstateManager& chainman, std::vector<fs::path> vImportFiles, const ArgsManager& args);
+void ThreadImport(ChainstateManager& chainman, std::vector<fs::path> vImportFiles, const ArgsManager& args, const fs::path& mempool_path);
 } // namespace node
 
 #endif // BITCOIN_NODE_BLOCKSTORAGE_H
diff --git a/src/node/mempool_persist_args.cpp b/src/node/mempool_persist_args.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..4e775869c64
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/node/mempool_persist_args.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2022 The Bitcoin Core developers
+// Distributed under the MIT software license, see the accompanying
+// file COPYING or http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php.
+
+#include <node/mempool_persist_args.h>
+
+#include <fs.h>
+#include <util/system.h>
+#include <validation.h>
+
+namespace node {
+
+bool ShouldPersistMempool(const ArgsManager& argsman)
+{
+    return argsman.GetBoolArg("-persistmempool", DEFAULT_PERSIST_MEMPOOL);
+}
+
+fs::path MempoolPath(const ArgsManager& argsman)
+{
+    return argsman.GetDataDirNet() / "mempool.dat";
+}
+
+} // namespace node
diff --git a/src/node/mempool_persist_args.h b/src/node/mempool_persist_args.h
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f719ec62ab2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/node/mempool_persist_args.h
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2022 The Bitcoin Core developers
+// Distributed under the MIT software license, see the accompanying
+// file COPYING or http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php.
+
+#ifndef BITCOIN_NODE_MEMPOOL_PERSIST_ARGS_H
+#define BITCOIN_NODE_MEMPOOL_PERSIST_ARGS_H
+
+#include <fs.h>
+
+class ArgsManager;
+
+namespace node {
+
+/**
+ * Default for -persistmempool, indicating whether the node should attempt to
+ * automatically load the mempool on start and save to disk on shutdown
+ */
+static constexpr bool DEFAULT_PERSIST_MEMPOOL{true};
+
+bool ShouldPersistMempool(const ArgsManager& argsman);
+fs::path MempoolPath(const ArgsManager& argsman);
+
+} // namespace node
+
+#endif // BITCOIN_NODE_MEMPOOL_PERSIST_ARGS_H
diff --git a/src/rpc/mempool.cpp b/src/rpc/mempool.cpp
index 84d43e78188..3b53ec82e4b 100644
--- a/src/rpc/mempool.cpp
+++ b/src/rpc/mempool.cpp
@@ -5,9 +5,12 @@
 
 #include <rpc/blockchain.h>
 
+#include <kernel/mempool_persist.h>
+
 #include <chainparams.h>
 #include <core_io.h>
 #include <fs.h>
+#include <node/mempool_persist_args.h>
 #include <policy/rbf.h>
 #include <policy/settings.h>
 #include <primitives/transaction.h>
@@ -18,7 +21,11 @@
 #include <univalue.h>
 #include <util/moneystr.h>
 
+using kernel::DumpMempool;
+
 using node::DEFAULT_MAX_RAW_TX_FEE_RATE;
+using node::MempoolPath;
+using node::ShouldPersistMempool;
 using node::NodeContext;
 
 static RPCHelpMan sendrawtransaction()
@@ -653,7 +660,7 @@ UniValue MempoolInfoToJSON(const CTxMemPool& pool)
     // Make sure this call is atomic in the pool.
     LOCK(pool.cs);
     UniValue ret(UniValue::VOBJ);
-    ret.pushKV("loaded", pool.IsLoaded());
+    ret.pushKV("loaded", pool.GetLoadTried());
     ret.pushKV("size", (int64_t)pool.size());
     ret.pushKV("bytes", (int64_t)pool.GetTotalTxSize());
     ret.pushKV("usage", (int64_t)pool.DynamicMemoryUsage());
@@ -717,16 +724,18 @@ static RPCHelpMan savemempool()
     const ArgsManager& args{EnsureAnyArgsman(request.context)};
     const CTxMemPool& mempool = EnsureAnyMemPool(request.context);
 
-    if (!mempool.IsLoaded()) {
+    if (!mempool.GetLoadTried()) {
         throw JSONRPCError(RPC_MISC_ERROR, "The mempool was not loaded yet");
     }
 
-    if (!DumpMempool(mempool)) {
+    const fs::path& dump_path = MempoolPath(args);
+
+    if (!DumpMempool(mempool, dump_path)) {
         throw JSONRPCError(RPC_MISC_ERROR, "Unable to dump mempool to disk");
     }
 
     UniValue ret(UniValue::VOBJ);
-    ret.pushKV("filename", fs::path((args.GetDataDirNet() / "mempool.dat")).u8string());
+    ret.pushKV("filename", dump_path.u8string());
 
     return ret;
 },
diff --git a/src/test/fuzz/mempool_utils.h b/src/test/fuzz/mempool_utils.h
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..bfe12e30ba0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/fuzz/mempool_utils.h
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2022 The Bitcoin Core developers
+// Distributed under the MIT software license, see the accompanying
+// file COPYING or http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php.
+
+#ifndef BITCOIN_TEST_FUZZ_MEMPOOL_UTILS_H
+#define BITCOIN_TEST_FUZZ_MEMPOOL_UTILS_H
+
+#include <validation.h>
+
+class DummyChainState final : public CChainState
+{
+public:
+    void SetMempool(CTxMemPool* mempool)
+    {
+        m_mempool = mempool;
+    }
+};
+
+#endif // BITCOIN_TEST_FUZZ_MEMPOOL_UTILS_H
diff --git a/src/test/fuzz/tx_pool.cpp b/src/test/fuzz/tx_pool.cpp
index 2d88ee295bb..63fbf0516a2 100644
--- a/src/test/fuzz/tx_pool.cpp
+++ b/src/test/fuzz/tx_pool.cpp
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 #include <node/miner.h>
 #include <test/fuzz/FuzzedDataProvider.h>
 #include <test/fuzz/fuzz.h>
+#include <test/fuzz/mempool_utils.h>
 #include <test/fuzz/util.h>
 #include <test/util/mining.h>
 #include <test/util/script.h>
@@ -34,15 +35,6 @@ struct MockedTxPool : public CTxMemPool {
     }
 };
 
-class DummyChainState final : public CChainState
-{
-public:
-    void SetMempool(CTxMemPool* mempool)
-    {
-        m_mempool = mempool;
-    }
-};
-
 void initialize_tx_pool()
 {
     static const auto testing_setup = MakeNoLogFileContext<const TestingSetup>();
diff --git a/src/test/fuzz/validation_load_mempool.cpp b/src/test/fuzz/validation_load_mempool.cpp
index 9532610f8da..90c1a71d9f5 100644
--- a/src/test/fuzz/validation_load_mempool.cpp
+++ b/src/test/fuzz/validation_load_mempool.cpp
@@ -2,10 +2,14 @@
 // Distributed under the MIT software license, see the accompanying
 // file COPYING or http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php.
 
+#include <kernel/mempool_persist.h>
+
 #include <chainparamsbase.h>
 #include <mempool_args.h>
+#include <node/mempool_persist_args.h>
 #include <test/fuzz/FuzzedDataProvider.h>
 #include <test/fuzz/fuzz.h>
+#include <test/fuzz/mempool_utils.h>
 #include <test/fuzz/util.h>
 #include <test/util/setup_common.h>
 #include <txmempool.h>
@@ -15,6 +19,10 @@
 #include <cstdint>
 #include <vector>
 
+using kernel::DumpMempool;
+
+using node::MempoolPath;
+
 namespace {
 const TestingSetup* g_setup;
 } // namespace
@@ -33,9 +41,12 @@ FUZZ_TARGET_INIT(validation_load_mempool, initialize_validation_load_mempool)
 
     CTxMemPool pool{MemPoolOptionsForTest(g_setup->m_node)};
 
+    auto& chainstate{static_cast<DummyChainState&>(g_setup->m_node.chainman->ActiveChainstate())};
+    chainstate.SetMempool(&pool);
+
     auto fuzzed_fopen = [&](const fs::path&, const char*) {
         return fuzzed_file_provider.open();
     };
-    (void)LoadMempool(pool, g_setup->m_node.chainman->ActiveChainstate(), fuzzed_fopen);
-    (void)DumpMempool(pool, fuzzed_fopen, true);
+    (void)chainstate.LoadMempool(MempoolPath(g_setup->m_args), fuzzed_fopen);
+    (void)DumpMempool(pool, MempoolPath(g_setup->m_args), fuzzed_fopen, true);
 }
diff --git a/src/txmempool.cpp b/src/txmempool.cpp
index aeaa10034eb..7eff6bdbe32 100644
--- a/src/txmempool.cpp
+++ b/src/txmempool.cpp
@@ -1210,14 +1210,14 @@ void CTxMemPool::GetTransactionAncestry(const uint256& txid, size_t& ancestors,
     }
 }
 
-bool CTxMemPool::IsLoaded() const
+bool CTxMemPool::GetLoadTried() const
 {
     LOCK(cs);
-    return m_is_loaded;
+    return m_load_tried;
 }
 
-void CTxMemPool::SetIsLoaded(bool loaded)
+void CTxMemPool::SetLoadTried(bool load_tried)
 {
     LOCK(cs);
-    m_is_loaded = loaded;
+    m_load_tried = load_tried;
 }
diff --git a/src/txmempool.h b/src/txmempool.h
index 6e37f59f2e9..d7d308038c2 100644
--- a/src/txmempool.h
+++ b/src/txmempool.h
@@ -451,7 +451,7 @@ protected:
 
     void trackPackageRemoved(const CFeeRate& rate) EXCLUSIVE_LOCKS_REQUIRED(cs);
 
-    bool m_is_loaded GUARDED_BY(cs){false};
+    bool m_load_tried GUARDED_BY(cs){false};
 
     CFeeRate GetMinFee(size_t sizelimit) const;
 
@@ -728,11 +728,17 @@ public:
      */
     void GetTransactionAncestry(const uint256& txid, size_t& ancestors, size_t& descendants, size_t* ancestorsize = nullptr, CAmount* ancestorfees = nullptr) const;
 
-    /** @returns true if the mempool is fully loaded */
-    bool IsLoaded() const;
+    /**
+     * @returns true if we've made an attempt to load the mempool regardless of
+     *          whether the attempt was successful or not
+     */
+    bool GetLoadTried() const;
 
-    /** Sets the current loaded state */
-    void SetIsLoaded(bool loaded);
+    /**
+     * Set whether or not we've made an attempt to load the mempool (regardless
+     * of whether the attempt was successful or not)
+     */
+    void SetLoadTried(bool load_tried);
 
     unsigned long size() const
     {
diff --git a/src/util/time.h b/src/util/time.h
index 9df69a953c6..fc49f23ce31 100644
--- a/src/util/time.h
+++ b/src/util/time.h
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ struct NodeClock : public std::chrono::system_clock {
 };
 using NodeSeconds = std::chrono::time_point<NodeClock, std::chrono::seconds>;
 
+using SteadyClock = std::chrono::steady_clock;
 using SteadySeconds = std::chrono::time_point<std::chrono::steady_clock, std::chrono::seconds>;
 using SteadyMilliseconds = std::chrono::time_point<std::chrono::steady_clock, std::chrono::milliseconds>;
 using SteadyMicroseconds = std::chrono::time_point<std::chrono::steady_clock, std::chrono::microseconds>;
diff --git a/src/validation.cpp b/src/validation.cpp
index 4c694a2c21c..6840753cd4a 100644
--- a/src/validation.cpp
+++ b/src/validation.cpp
@@ -5,6 +5,9 @@
 
 #include <validation.h>
 
+#include <kernel/coinstats.h>
+#include <kernel/mempool_persist.h>
+
 #include <arith_uint256.h>
 #include <chain.h>
 #include <chainparams.h>
@@ -17,8 +20,8 @@
 #include <consensus/validation.h>
 #include <cuckoocache.h>
 #include <flatfile.h>
+#include <fs.h>
 #include <hash.h>
-#include <kernel/coinstats.h>
 #include <logging.h>
 #include <logging/timer.h>
 #include <node/blockstorage.h>
@@ -47,12 +50,14 @@
 #include <util/rbf.h>
 #include <util/strencodings.h>
 #include <util/system.h>
+#include <util/time.h>
 #include <util/trace.h>
 #include <util/translation.h>
 #include <validationinterface.h>
 #include <warnings.h>
 
 #include <algorithm>
+#include <chrono>
 #include <deque>
 #include <numeric>
 #include <optional>
@@ -61,7 +66,9 @@
 using kernel::CCoinsStats;
 using kernel::CoinStatsHashType;
 using kernel::ComputeUTXOStats;
+using kernel::LoadMempool;
 
+using fsbridge::FopenFn;
 using node::BLOCKFILE_CHUNK_SIZE;
 using node::BlockManager;
 using node::BlockMap;
@@ -3861,13 +3868,11 @@ void PruneBlockFilesManual(CChainState& active_chainstate, int nManualPruneHeigh
     }
 }
 
-void CChainState::LoadMempool(const ArgsManager& args)
+void CChainState::LoadMempool(const fs::path& load_path, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function)
 {
     if (!m_mempool) return;
-    if (args.GetBoolArg("-persistmempool", DEFAULT_PERSIST_MEMPOOL)) {
-        ::LoadMempool(*m_mempool, *this);
-    }
-    m_mempool->SetIsLoaded(!ShutdownRequested());
+    ::LoadMempool(*m_mempool, load_path, *this, mockable_fopen_function);
+    m_mempool->SetLoadTried(!ShutdownRequested());
 }
 
 bool CChainState::LoadChainTip()
@@ -4638,153 +4643,6 @@ bool CChainState::ResizeCoinsCaches(size_t coinstip_size, size_t coinsdb_size)
     return ret;
 }
 
-static const uint64_t MEMPOOL_DUMP_VERSION = 1;
-
-bool LoadMempool(CTxMemPool& pool, CChainState& active_chainstate, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function)
-{
-    int64_t nExpiryTimeout = std::chrono::seconds{pool.m_expiry}.count();
-    FILE* filestr{mockable_fopen_function(gArgs.GetDataDirNet() / "mempool.dat", "rb")};
-    CAutoFile file(filestr, SER_DISK, CLIENT_VERSION);
-    if (file.IsNull()) {
-        LogPrintf("Failed to open mempool file from disk. Continuing anyway.\n");
-        return false;
-    }
-
-    int64_t count = 0;
-    int64_t expired = 0;
-    int64_t failed = 0;
-    int64_t already_there = 0;
-    int64_t unbroadcast = 0;
-    int64_t nNow = GetTime();
-
-    try {
-        uint64_t version;
-        file >> version;
-        if (version != MEMPOOL_DUMP_VERSION) {
-            return false;
-        }
-        uint64_t num;
-        file >> num;
-        while (num) {
-            --num;
-            CTransactionRef tx;
-            int64_t nTime;
-            int64_t nFeeDelta;
-            file >> tx;
-            file >> nTime;
-            file >> nFeeDelta;
-
-            CAmount amountdelta = nFeeDelta;
-            if (amountdelta) {
-                pool.PrioritiseTransaction(tx->GetHash(), amountdelta);
-            }
-            if (nTime > nNow - nExpiryTimeout) {
-                LOCK(cs_main);
-                const auto& accepted = AcceptToMemoryPool(active_chainstate, tx, nTime, /*bypass_limits=*/false, /*test_accept=*/false);
-                if (accepted.m_result_type == MempoolAcceptResult::ResultType::VALID) {
-                    ++count;
-                } else {
-                    // mempool may contain the transaction already, e.g. from
-                    // wallet(s) having loaded it while we were processing
-                    // mempool transactions; consider these as valid, instead of
-                    // failed, but mark them as 'already there'
-                    if (pool.exists(GenTxid::Txid(tx->GetHash()))) {
-                        ++already_there;
-                    } else {
-                        ++failed;
-                    }
-                }
-            } else {
-                ++expired;
-            }
-            if (ShutdownRequested())
-                return false;
-        }
-        std::map<uint256, CAmount> mapDeltas;
-        file >> mapDeltas;
-
-        for (const auto& i : mapDeltas) {
-            pool.PrioritiseTransaction(i.first, i.second);
-        }
-
-        std::set<uint256> unbroadcast_txids;
-        file >> unbroadcast_txids;
-        unbroadcast = unbroadcast_txids.size();
-        for (const auto& txid : unbroadcast_txids) {
-            // Ensure transactions were accepted to mempool then add to
-            // unbroadcast set.
-            if (pool.get(txid) != nullptr) pool.AddUnbroadcastTx(txid);
-        }
-    } catch (const std::exception& e) {
-        LogPrintf("Failed to deserialize mempool data on disk: %s. Continuing anyway.\n", e.what());
-        return false;
-    }
-
-    LogPrintf("Imported mempool transactions from disk: %i succeeded, %i failed, %i expired, %i already there, %i waiting for initial broadcast\n", count, failed, expired, already_there, unbroadcast);
-    return true;
-}
-
-bool DumpMempool(const CTxMemPool& pool, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function, bool skip_file_commit)
-{
-    int64_t start = GetTimeMicros();
-
-    std::map<uint256, CAmount> mapDeltas;
-    std::vector<TxMempoolInfo> vinfo;
-    std::set<uint256> unbroadcast_txids;
-
-    static Mutex dump_mutex;
-    LOCK(dump_mutex);
-
-    {
-        LOCK(pool.cs);
-        for (const auto &i : pool.mapDeltas) {
-            mapDeltas[i.first] = i.second;
-        }
-        vinfo = pool.infoAll();
-        unbroadcast_txids = pool.GetUnbroadcastTxs();
-    }
-
-    int64_t mid = GetTimeMicros();
-
-    try {
-        FILE* filestr{mockable_fopen_function(gArgs.GetDataDirNet() / "mempool.dat.new", "wb")};
-        if (!filestr) {
-            return false;
-        }
-
-        CAutoFile file(filestr, SER_DISK, CLIENT_VERSION);
-
-        uint64_t version = MEMPOOL_DUMP_VERSION;
-        file << version;
-
-        file << (uint64_t)vinfo.size();
-        for (const auto& i : vinfo) {
-            file << *(i.tx);
-            file << int64_t{count_seconds(i.m_time)};
-            file << int64_t{i.nFeeDelta};
-            mapDeltas.erase(i.tx->GetHash());
-        }
-
-        file << mapDeltas;
-
-        LogPrintf("Writing %d unbroadcast transactions to disk.\n", unbroadcast_txids.size());
-        file << unbroadcast_txids;
-
-        if (!skip_file_commit && !FileCommit(file.Get()))
-            throw std::runtime_error("FileCommit failed");
-        file.fclose();
-        if (!RenameOver(gArgs.GetDataDirNet() / "mempool.dat.new", gArgs.GetDataDirNet() / "mempool.dat")) {
-            throw std::runtime_error("Rename failed");
-        }
-        int64_t last = GetTimeMicros();
-        LogPrintf("Dumped mempool: %gs to copy, %gs to dump\n", (mid-start)*MICRO, (last-mid)*MICRO);
-    } catch (const std::exception& e) {
-        LogPrintf("Failed to dump mempool: %s. Continuing anyway.\n", e.what());
-        return false;
-    }
-    return true;
-}
-
 //! Guess how far we are in the verification process at the given block index
 //! require cs_main if pindex has not been validated yet (because nChainTx might be unset)
 double GuessVerificationProgress(const ChainTxData& data, const CBlockIndex *pindex) {
diff --git a/src/validation.h b/src/validation.h
index aa9fcf9f2da..a21d9e3a28d 100644
--- a/src/validation.h
+++ b/src/validation.h
@@ -68,8 +68,6 @@ static const bool DEFAULT_CHECKPOINTS_ENABLED = true;
 static const bool DEFAULT_TXINDEX = false;
 static constexpr bool DEFAULT_COINSTATSINDEX{false};
 static const char* const DEFAULT_BLOCKFILTERINDEX = "0";
-/** Default for -persistmempool */
-static const bool DEFAULT_PERSIST_MEMPOOL = true;
 /** Default for -stopatheight */
 static const int DEFAULT_STOPATHEIGHT = 0;
 /** Block files containing a block-height within MIN_BLOCKS_TO_KEEP of ActiveChain().Tip() will not be pruned. */
@@ -679,7 +677,7 @@ public:
     void CheckBlockIndex();
 
     /** Load the persisted mempool from disk */
-    void LoadMempool(const ArgsManager& args);
+    void LoadMempool(const fs::path& load_path, fsbridge::FopenFn mockable_fopen_function = fsbridge::fopen);
 
     /** Update the chain tip based on database information, i.e. CoinsTip()'s best block. */
     bool LoadChainTip() EXCLUSIVE_LOCKS_REQUIRED(cs_main);
@@ -1014,14 +1012,6 @@ bool DeploymentEnabled(const ChainstateManager& chainman, DEP dep)
     return DeploymentEnabled(chainman.GetConsensus(), dep);
 }
 
-using FopenFn = std::function<FILE*(const fs::path&, const char*)>;
-
-/** Dump the mempool to disk. */
-bool DumpMempool(const CTxMemPool& pool, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function = fsbridge::fopen, bool skip_file_commit = false);
-
-/** Load the mempool from disk. */
-bool LoadMempool(CTxMemPool& pool, CChainState& active_chainstate, FopenFn mockable_fopen_function = fsbridge::fopen);
-
 /**
  * Return the expected assumeutxo value for a given height, if one exists.
  *
diff --git a/test/functional/mempool_persist.py b/test/functional/mempool_persist.py
index 58f4c913434..b6fa7fbd919 100755
--- a/test/functional/mempool_persist.py
+++ b/test/functional/mempool_persist.py
@@ -141,6 +141,16 @@ class MempoolPersistTest(BitcoinTestFramework):
             self.nodes[2].syncwithvalidationinterfacequeue()  # Flush mempool to wallet
             assert_equal(node2_balance, wallet_watch.getbalance())
 
+        mempooldat0 = os.path.join(self.nodes[0].datadir, self.chain, 'mempool.dat')
+        mempooldat1 = os.path.join(self.nodes[1].datadir, self.chain, 'mempool.dat')
+
+        self.log.debug("Force -persistmempool=0 node1 to savemempool to disk via RPC")
+        assert not os.path.exists(mempooldat1)
+        result1 = self.nodes[1].savemempool()
+        assert os.path.isfile(mempooldat1)
+        assert_equal(result1['filename'], mempooldat1)
+        os.remove(mempooldat1)
+
         self.log.debug("Stop-start node0 with -persistmempool=0. Verify that it doesn't load its mempool.dat file.")
         self.stop_nodes()
         self.start_node(0, extra_args=["-persistmempool=0"])
@@ -153,8 +163,6 @@ class MempoolPersistTest(BitcoinTestFramework):
         assert self.nodes[0].getmempoolinfo()["loaded"]
         assert_equal(len(self.nodes[0].getrawmempool()), 7)
 
-        mempooldat0 = os.path.join(self.nodes[0].datadir, self.chain, 'mempool.dat')
-        mempooldat1 = os.path.join(self.nodes[1].datadir, self.chain, 'mempool.dat')
         self.log.debug("Remove the mempool.dat file. Verify that savemempool to disk via RPC re-creates it")
         os.remove(mempooldat0)
         result0 = self.nodes[0].savemempool()
diff --git a/test/lint/lint-circular-dependencies.py b/test/lint/lint-circular-dependencies.py
index 5d157eb4b1b..f44ed8f7c7e 100755
--- a/test/lint/lint-circular-dependencies.py
+++ b/test/lint/lint-circular-dependencies.py
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ EXPECTED_CIRCULAR_DEPENDENCIES = (
     "wallet/fees -> wallet/wallet -> wallet/fees",
     "wallet/wallet -> wallet/walletdb -> wallet/wallet",
     "kernel/coinstats -> validation -> kernel/coinstats",
+    "kernel/mempool_persist -> validation -> kernel/mempool_persist",
 )
 
 CODE_DIR = "src"