Ethereum Pectra upgrade in 2025: Key features and their impact on the crypto ecosystem

Original title:Ethereum's 2025 Pectra Upgrade: Key Features and Impact on the Crypto Ecosystem

Original author: Azeez Mustapha

Original translation: vernacular blockchain

The Ethereum Pectra upgrade is an important update expected to be launched in March 2025, aiming to improve the scalability, security and availability of the network. The upgrade was proposed in November 2023 and is the third major upgrade since Ethereum switched to the Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism in 2022.

Since Ethereum successfully switched to Proof of Stake (PoS) in 2022, the network has continued to evolve, continuously improving scalability, security and efficiency. The upcoming Pectra upgrade, which will be launched in March 2025, will be another important milestone in the process. The upgrade was proposed in November 2023, following the Dencun upgrade in March 2024, and is the third major network upgrade since the merger (The Merge).

Pectra combines two upgrades, Prague and Electra, aiming to optimize network performance and user experience. The most anticipated features include account abstraction, smart contract improvements, and enhanced staking mechanisms. For stakers, Pectra will increase the stake cap of verifiers from 32 ETH to 2048 ETH, and provide more flexible withdrawal options, making Ethereum's staking model more efficient and easy to use.

This upgrade not only further improves Ethereum's infrastructure, but also consolidates its position as a leading smart contract platform. As the Pectra launch date approaches, its impact on transaction efficiency, network participation and overall ecological development is becoming the focus of hot discussion in the crypto community.

1. What is the upgrade of Ethereum Pectra?

Expected to be launched in March 2025, the Pectra upgrade is a key update for Ethereum, aiming to improve the scalability, security and overall efficiency of the network. The upgrade was first proposed in November 2023 and is the third major optimization since Ethereum’s historic shift to the Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus in 2022. Pectra is expected to further improve blockchain performance, improve user experience, and consolidate Ethereum’s position as a leading smart contract platform.

2. Core features of Pectra upgrade:

• Account Abstract: Simplifies user interaction, supports more flexible transaction types, and improves the overall user experience.

• Smart Contract Optimizations: Reduce Gas fees, improve transaction throughput, and make the network more efficient.

• Enhanced staking mechanism: Improve staking operations, encourage more users to participate, and strengthen network security.

3. Ethereum’s future plan:

Pectra upgrade is part of Ethereum's overall development roadmap, and it will also include multiple important optimization directions in the future:

• Improve scalability: Improve transaction processing capabilities through sharding and Rollup technologies to reduce network latency.

• Security enhancement: Continuous updates to prevent emerging threats and ensure network integrity and security.

• Sustainable development: Based on the PoS mechanism, further reduce energy consumption and optimize the environmental impact of the network.

These upgrades are designed to make Ethereum a more robust and efficient platform to meet the ever-changing needs of global users.

4. When will the Ethereum Pectra upgrade be carried out?

The Ethereum Pectra upgrade is expected to be launched in mid-March 2025 and will be carried out in two phases.

The first phase will introduce a series of key optimizations, including increasing the Layer-2 data sharding (blob) capacity from 3 to 6 to reduce network congestion and transaction fees. In addition, Account Abstract allows users to pay Gas fees using stablecoins such as DAI and USDC, making transactions more flexible. Another important improvement is the increase in the staking cap from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH, significantly simplifying the validator operation process for institutions and large-scale stakeholders.

The second phase is expected to start at the end of 2025 or early 2026, focusing mainly on more advanced network optimization. At that time, technologies such as PeerDAS and Verkle Trees will be introduced to improve data storage efficiency and overall network performance, laying the foundation for further expansion of Ethereum.

5. The last major upgrade of Ethereum: Dencun

The last major upgrade of Ethereum, Dencun, was officially launched on March 13, 2024, and the Proto-Danksharding mechanism was introduced. This technology significantly reduces Layer-2 transaction costs by using temporary binary large objects (blobs) instead of permanent on-chain storage. This innovation not only alleviates network congestion problems, but also lays the foundation for Pectra and further optimization in the future.

6. What EIPs are included in Pectra upgrade?

Pectra upgrade integrates several Ethereum improvement proposals (EIPs) to enhance wallet functions, improve staking efficiency, and further optimize network scalability.

Here are the key Pectra EIPs:

• EIP-7702: Allows external accounts (EOAs) to act temporarily as smart contracts during a specific transaction period, simplifying transaction processes while serving as an alternative to the abandoned EIP-3074.

• EIP-7251: Increase the stake limit for each verifier from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH, reducing network congestion and improving staking efficiency.

• EIP-7002: Optimize the verifier exit process and improve the fluency of staking providers.

• EIP-7742: Enhance Layer-2 scalability, improve transaction throughput, double the capacity of data sharding (blobs), and further reduce fees.

• EIP-2537: Introduce encryption optimization technology to improve network performance and security.

• EIP-2935: Establish an on-chain historical block hash storage system to improve the accessibility of historical data.

• EIP-6110: Simplify the verifier deposit process and improve the access efficiency of verifiers.

These upgrade solutions will jointly strengthen the Ethereum infrastructure, make it more scalable and user-friendly, and optimize the staking mechanism to promote the sustainable development of the Ethereum ecosystem.