Gnosis Chain Set to Roll Out Significant Pectra Upgrade on April 30 Following Two Successful Testnets

[PRESS RELEASE – Berlin, Germany, April 30th, 2025]

The Gnosis Chain, a robust and decentralized layer 1 blockchain, is set to execute its Pectra hard fork on April 30, arriving a week earlier than Ethereum’s corresponding scheduled upgrade. With this adoption of the complete Pectra upgrade, Gnosis will become the inaugural sidechain to implement it fully. The focus of this upgrade is to enhance usability through the integration of 11 Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), each aimed at boosting performance and feature set.

Key enhancements comprise advanced staking features, smart contract capabilities for wallets (EIP-7702), account abstraction, and the option to sponsor transaction fees. These upgrades aim to render Gnosis Chain more adaptable and user-friendly. Following two successful testnet trials in March—Chiado for Gnosis Chain and Hoodi for Ethereum—the full rollout has been slated for April 30, while Ethereum is set to undertake its own Pectra upgrade on May 7.

Philippe Schommers, Head of Infrastructure at Gnosis, noted: “Our mission at Gnosis Chain is to foster Ethereum’s adoption—we strive to be a significant contributor to its ecosystem. Pectra promises to enhance the user experience on Ethereum, which has faced challenges in the past. Through our implementation of Pectra, we hope Ethereum can benefit from our journey. We are adopting the entirety of the update, except for blob schedules, aiming to be the sole sidechain to achieve this in the near term.”

The Pectra hard fork introduces numerous advantageous features such as transaction batching, sponsored and conditional transactions, as well as delegated security, all of which aim to streamline on-chain interactions for users. Furthermore, it will elevate the validator staking limit from 1 GNO to 64 GNO, thereby inviting larger validators while still offering smaller ones the opportunity to earn compounding rewards. This is made possible by MaxEB (EIP-7251), which enhances the maximum effective balance for validators, fostering more effective staking procedures. Pectra is also set to bring a variety of user experience enhancements for users, validators, and developers.

Armagan Ercan, Validator Relations Manager at Gnosis, stated: “The advantages include improved scalability and user-friendliness for both validators and users. We do not expect any interruptions or downtime during the upgrade. We will maintain open lines of communication with our users, developers, and validators throughout the process, and we’ll host a public stream during the hard fork to keep everyone informed about the developments.”

Gnosis foresees substantial boosts in efficiency post-upgrade, which will reduce the energy requirements for node operation and minimize missed attestations. Additionally, features like automatic compounding and account abstraction will be included. A public stream detailing the implementation will be accessible to all.

About Gnosis

Gnosis is dedicated to developing open-source applications and infrastructure to support the emerging economy. The Gnosis ecosystem is built on Gnosis Chain, a secure, reliable, and decentralized blockchain that enhances Ethereum by offering lower transaction fees. Gnosis Studios serves as a product incubator focused on payments, identity, and internet freedom, while GnosisVC invests in early-stage projects concentrated on decentralized infrastructure, real-world assets, and financial systems.

Website | X (Twitter) | Discord | Blog