Ethereum Readies for Largest Code Update Since the Merge with Pectra Upgrade

Ethereum developers are gearing up for the highly anticipated Pectra upgrade scheduled for Wednesday, marking a significant shift in the blockchain’s code since the 2022 Merge.

The name “Pectra” fuses the terms Prague and Electra, capturing the essence of two concurrent upgrades that will target Ethereum’s consensus and execution layers.

This enhancement aims to streamline user experience and efficiency on the Ethereum blockchain. Comprised of 11 key code amendments, referred to as “Ethereum improvement proposals” (EIPs), Pectra will enhance the staking process, introduce new wallet functionalities, and modernize blockchain operations.

One notable modification is EIP-7702, which provides smart contract features for wallets, aligning them with the growing trend of “account abstraction.” This enhancement enables users to pay gas fees using currencies beyond ether (ETH).

In addition, EIP-7251 simplifies the staking process for validators. Post-Pectra, validators will have the option to boost their maximum ETH stakes from 32 to 2,048, allowing for consolidation across multiple validators into a single node. This change is expected to expedite the process of launching new nodes and reduce the challenges associated with equipment setup.

Many elements of Pectra have been in the pipeline for several years, with an initial rollout timeline set for 2024. However, due to the intricate nature of the changes, the upgrade was postponed to early 2025. Following this delay, developers ran tests on two different testnets, both of which encountered bugs, necessitating a further test that pushed back the upgrade again.

Ethereum Foundation devops engineer Parithosh Jayanthi shared an update on X, encouraging users to ensure their nodes are up-to-date in anticipation of the Pectra fork.

Over the last year, the value of ETH has plummeted nearly 42%, contrasted with a slight decline of approximately 1.5% for the broader market indicator, the CoinDesk 20 Index.