Developers expect the upgrade to go live on the mainnet in early April.

Source: cryptoslate

Compiled by: Blockchain Knight

Ethereum developers have confirmed key testing dates for the long-awaited Pectra upgrade, which will bring the blockchain closer to its first major update in nearly a year.

If the planned Holesky and Sepolia testnet tests proceed as scheduled, developers expect the upgrade to go live on the mainnet in early April.

During the recent call with all core developers, Ethereum's core builders plan to conduct the first test of Pectra on the Holesky testnet on February 26, followed by a second test on the Sepolia testnet on March 5.

If the tests go smoothly, developers will hold another meeting on March 6 to finalize the mainnet activation date. Tim Beiko, head of protocol support at the Ethereum Foundation, stated that early April is the most likely target.

Pectra is a hybrid of the Prague and Electra upgrades, introducing eight Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) aimed at enhancing wallet functionality and validator efficiency.

EIP-7702 is one of the most anticipated changes, designed to simplify the user experience by allowing externally owned accounts (including most crypto wallets) to operate more like smart contracts.

This improvement is part of a broader push for account abstraction, a blockchain trend aimed at making wallets more flexible by allowing users to pay transaction fees with assets other than ETH.

EIP-7251 is another significant update, raising the validator staking limit from 32 ETH to 2048 ETH.

This change is expected to alleviate network congestion, allowing large validators to consolidate operations and reduce the long queues currently required to establish new nodes.

The Pectra upgrade comes at a time when Ethereum has been underperforming in its competition with BTC and other smart contract networks.

In recent months, competitors like Solana have gained strong momentum, attracting attention and talent from the Ethereum ecosystem.

Meanwhile, the Ethereum Foundation is also undergoing significant leadership changes, further increasing uncertainty about the project's long-term direction.

In recent months, the foundation has faced criticism for selling ETH, especially during market downturns.

Through Pectra, developers hope to reaffirm Ethereum's dominance as the leading smart contract blockchain.

If everything goes as planned, the upgrade will strengthen Ethereum's technical advantages, increase user adoption, and address some of the network's biggest pain points.

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