Ethereum has a concurrent Pectra upgrade scheduled for May 7th, 2025, at epoch 364032. This event represents a huge step forward in the continued evolution of the blockchain. The upgrade represents a major effort to increase scalability, streamline efficiency and deliver new functionality to users and developers alike. This update includes a number of Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) that improve the network’s overall performance. Additionally, Astaria expands Ethereum accounts’ ability to accumulate assets further.

Key Upgrades and Enhancements

Here’s what’s new. One big change is the elimination of the Proof of Work (PoW) follow distance rule. This change means it will take less time to fill a deposit, making it easier and more efficient for users.

The second key piece of the Pectra upgrade EIP-7702 is an opera to help make everyone’s Pectra great. Smart account features for standard accounts This upgrade extends [smart contract] capabilities to regular accounts.

"EIP-7702 allows standard Ethereum accounts (EOAs) to be extended with smart contract functionality, enabling use cases like transaction batching, gas sponsorship, or social recovery, all without migrating your assets 🔑 [pic.twitter.com/zXs5iPLVfH]" - timbeiko.eth (@TimBeiko)

Impact on Layer 2 Networks

Another aspect of the Pectra upgrade that’s poised to have a major positive impact on Layer 2 (L2) networks, such as Optimism and Arbitrum. Through permitting these networks to handle greater volumes of data with every transaction, Pectra allows for faster downstream scaling. This increased efficiency will deliver a greater foundation through Layer 2 projects, spurring innovation and enabling wider adoption.

Pectra will increase the maximum number of data blobs per block from 100 to 200. This increase builds upon the Layer 2 scalability, allowing these networks to process even more transactions and data.

Stability and Validator Improvements

In order to maintain network reliability at times of high demand, the Pectra upgrade includes EIP-7623, which adds block size limits. These limits are meant to control the network in times of peak demand to avoid congestion and uphold the level of service. On the validator side, the upgrade introduces significant improvements as well.

These improvements are intended to increase throughput and mitigate expected rising op costs for validators. Crypto-economic incentives Ethereum validators can increase their reward efficiency by increasing their effective staking balance to 2048 ETH. This method allows them to sidestep the difficulties of having to manage numerous validator keys.