Largest Network Upgrade Since 2022 Changes Rules for Users and Validators
Ethereum has successfully completed the activation of the Pectra update on the mainnet, marking the most significant technological improvement to the blockchain since the historic transition to Proof-of-Stake in 2022. The update was launched at epoch 364032 around 6:05 AM Eastern Time and includes 11 Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) aimed at increasing validator efficiency, improving user experience, and expanding the capabilities of Layer 2 solutions. The new features will substantially change the network’s economics, wallet management processes, and the scalability of the entire Ethereum ecosystem, ultimately leading to reduced fees and improved usability for end users.
Account Abstraction: A New Era in Wallet Management
One of the key innovations in Pectra is the implementation of EIP-7702, providing an important step toward full Account Abstraction. This technological change allows Ethereum wallets to execute smart contract logic, radically expanding their functionality.
“Account abstraction is perhaps the most revolutionary change in Ethereum’s user experience in the network’s history,” comments Alex Petrov, CTO of EtherSafe wallet. “Developers can now create wallets with fundamentally new security and convenience features that were previously impossible.”
For ordinary users, this innovation brings several practical benefits:
- Third-party fee payment: decentralized applications (dApps) will be able to pay gas for users, removing one of the main barriers for cryptocurrency newcomers. Users will no longer need to acquire ETH in advance just to perform transactions.
- Batch transaction processing: multiple actions can be combined into a single transaction, significantly reducing aggregate gas costs. For example, token swapping, providing liquidity, and staking can be performed at once.
- Social recovery: users will be able to set up mechanisms to recover wallet access through trusted contacts or multi-factor authentication, reducing the risk of irreversible loss of funds due to lost private keys.
“These capabilities could potentially lead to a surge in mass adoption of Ethereum,” notes Maria Sergeeva, blockchain market analyst at consulting company DeFi Insights. “When users don’t have to worry about gas and complex mnemonic phrases, the entry barrier is significantly lowered.”
However, full implementation of all account abstraction capabilities will take time, as wallet developers and dApps need to integrate these features into their products.
Validator Limit Increase and Staking Changes
Another significant change introduced by Pectra is the implementation of EIP-7251, which increases the maximum validator balance from 32 ETH to an impressive 2048 ETH. This change substantially impacts staking economics and network structure.
Before the update, staking operators had to create a separate validator for every 32 ETH, resulting in high operational costs and management complexities. Now, large staking services and pools will be able to consolidate funds into fewer, more powerful validators.
“This change will significantly reduce operational costs for large staking operators,” explains Dmitry Volkov, head of staking service EtherStake. “Instead of managing thousands of individual validators, they can now consolidate them into dozens while maintaining the same staking power. This improves efficiency and reduces infrastructure costs.”
However, some experts express concern about the potential impact of this change on network decentralization. Increasing the maximum validator balance could lead to further consolidation of staking in the hands of a few large operators.
“While network efficiency will improve, we risk seeing increased centralization,” warns Anna Kovaleva, decentralized systems researcher at the Blockchain Institute. “As validators become larger, the entry barrier for independent operators effectively increases, contradicting Ethereum’s ethos of decentralization.”
For individual stakers and staking pool users, this change will likely lead to some increase in returns in the long term as operational costs for staking services decrease. However, in the short term, there may be an adaptation period as large operators reorganize their infrastructure.
Increasing Layer 2 Throughput and Impact on the Ecosystem
The third key component of the Pectra update is the implementation of EIP-7691, which doubles the throughput of blobs—special data used by Layer 2 solutions to confirm transactions. The limit has been increased from 3 to 6 (target) and from 6 to 9 (maximum) blobs per block.
This change directly affects the scalability and economics of popular Layer 2 solutions such as Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base, which process the majority of transactions in the Ethereum ecosystem.
“The increase in blob throughput is a direct response to growing demand from Layer 2 solutions,” explains Sergei Ivanov, lead developer at L2 Labs. “With this update, L2s can publish more data to the Ethereum mainnet for less money, which directly translates to lower fees for end users and faster transaction finalization.”
Analysts estimate that this change could reduce fees on major L2 solutions by 30-50% during periods of high activity, making them even more attractive to users. Additionally, the increased throughput will allow L2s to process more transactions without needing to raise fees during peak load periods.
“We expect this update to accelerate the adoption of Layer 2 as the primary way to interact with the Ethereum ecosystem,” predicts Elena Morozova, head of research at cryptocurrency exchange CryptoExchange. “For the average user, this means a smoother and more economical experience using dApps, especially in the DeFi and NFT segments.”
Notably, the update comes during a period of growing competition between various Layer 2 solutions and alternative Layer 1 blockchains. Increasing throughput could strengthen the competitive advantage of the Ethereum ecosystem as a whole.
The implementation of Pectra also creates the technical foundation for future updates, including the long-awaited EIP-4844 (Proto-Danksharding), which should further increase network scalability.
“Pectra is not an endpoint, but rather an important milestone in Ethereum’s development,” emphasizes Ivanov. “This update lays the foundation for even more significant improvements in the coming years.”
Overall, the activation of Pectra represents a significant step forward for Ethereum, improving both the technical infrastructure and user experience. While some benefits will be noticeable immediately, the full impact of the update will manifest over the coming months as developers and service providers integrate the new capabilities into their products.