Ethereum has activated the Pectra update, bringing major changes to the network with 11 new Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs). This update is one of the largest since the Ethereum Merge in 2022 and is focused on enhancing user experience, optimizing validator operations, and improving scalability.

The update went live at epoch 364032, around 6:05 a.m. Eastern time. Despite some configuration issues on test networks like Holesky and Sepolia, the successful deployment of the Hoodi network in March 2025 enabled the activation on the mainnet. The Pectra update builds on the Dencun update from March 2024, which introduced proto-sharding through EIP-4844. This lays the foundation for Ethereum's future scalability improvements, such as those planned for the Fusaka update, which will incorporate Werksley and PeerDAS trees.


Here are the key elements of the Pectra update and their impact:


EIP-7702: Account Abstraction

One of the major additions is account abstraction, which allows wallets to act like smart contracts, enabling users to pay gas fees via third parties. This simplifies cryptocurrency transactions and reduces gas costs, making Ethereum more accessible. It also opens the door to features like social media-based key recovery for lost accounts.


EIP-7251: Validator Limit Increase

EIP-7251 raises the maximum effective balance for validators from 32 ETH to 2048 ETH. This makes it easier for large stakeholders to consolidate validators, streamlining the network but also potentially encouraging centralization as bigger players might dominate.


EIP-7691: Increased Blob Throughput

This proposal boosts the throughput of blobs from 3 to 6 and from 6 to 9 at the maximum, enhancing the scalability of second-layer solutions like Arbitrum and Optimism. This leads to lower transaction fees, making Ethereum more efficient.


EIP-7002: Validator Output Management

EIP-7002 focuses on managing validator outputs directly from the execution layer, reducing reliance on active keys and enhancing security. This change also simplifies the withdrawal process and guards against attacks on hot keys.


EIP-2935: Storing Block Hashes

With EIP-2935, Ethereum will store the hashes of the latest blocks on-chain rather than in temporary memory, making them more accessible for smart contracts and improving interactions with oracles, cross-layer communication, and historical data verification.


EIP-6110: Faster Validator Activation

EIP-6110 reduces the time it takes to activate new validators from 12 hours to just 13 minutes, speeding up the onboarding of new participants and reducing delays for large staking operators.


Additional proposals include:



  • EIP-7623: Raises the cost of data transmission to encourage the use of blobs.


  • EIP-2537: Introduces pre-compilation to reduce cryptographic gas costs.


  • EIP-7685: Simplifies the validator query process and deposit management.


  • EIP-7549: Improves validator operations at the consensus level.


  • EIP-7840: Adds basic blob tariffs to stabilize second-layer user fees.


These changes will make the Ethereum network more stable, scalable, and cost-effective. Users will benefit from faster and cheaper interactions with dApps, and developers will be able to create more efficient applications. However, there are concerns that these updates might lead to greater centralization of the network.


What are your thoughts on these changes? Do they affect your view of Ethereum's future?

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