Pectra, the next major Ethereum update, includes significant improvements to both the mainnet and the second layer of the blockchain ecosystem.
Ethereum launched its last major upgrade, Dencun, in March of this year, and now developers are already preparing to welcome Pectra, the network’s next major upgrade at the execution layer and consensus layer.
According to the meeting held by the developers last week, the next major Ethereum upgrade could be implemented early next year. Specifically, the Ethereum team raised the launch of Pectra for the first quarter of 2025.
Ethereum developers plan to optimize the user experience of the blockchain network with the implementation of Pectra, as well as improve the scalability and efficiency of the chain and simplify the user experience of digital wallets, among other important improvements and changes.
A new proposal for account abstraction in Ethereum
The Ethereum development team noted that Pectra includes, among other improvements, a new account abstraction proposal. At the last meeting, the team agreed to remove the EIP-3074 improvement proposal from Pectra Devnet 0 and include the EIP-7702 proposal in the next devnet for the upgrade, Pectra Devnet 1.
La EIP-7702 It was proposed by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin to improve the user experience of Ethereum wallets by implementing smart contract capabilities, making the use of these wallets easier and simpler for end users.
According to Ethereum lead developer Tim Beiko, while there are many questions to be addressed regarding the replacement of EIP-3074 with EIP-7702, the team was generally in agreement with the inclusion of the latter in the Pectra upgrade.
On the other hand, the next major Ethereum update also includes the EIP-7251 improvement proposal, which seeks to limit the set of active Ethereum validators by increasing the staking balance limit of validators from 32 ETH to 2.048 ETH, in order to restrict the growth of the number of validators on the blockchain.
In a section In a Q&A, the Ethereum Foundation explains that the continued growth of the Ethereum validator pool can cause instability in the existing consensus layer due to the load it places on the network, so limiting the number of validators could be a possible solution to keep the network stable and accessible.
According to Beiko, the meeting also discussed the integration of EIP-2935 into the upcoming developer testnet, Pectra Devnet 1, the implementation of the EOF specifications and other proposed improvements, and in general, the scope of this upcoming upgrade to increase the efficiency and security of the blockchain.
Ethereum takes a more cautious approach to its development
Ethereum developers have agreed not to rush the implementation of Pectra later this year and to take a more cautious approach, allowing them to assess the impact of all the changes and improvements proposed in this new update.
Last week, the developers launched the Pectra Devnet 0 developer testnet during the Nyota Interop event in Kenya. The team is now preparing for the deployment of Pectra Devnet 1, which will see intensive testing of EIP-2935.
Pectra is an acronym for Prague and Electra, which are the names given to Ethereum's upcoming execution and consensus layer upgrades, respectively.
