Ethereum. Dive in Pectra Upgrade

📌 In March, we can expect a major Ethereum network update with the integration of the Pectra upgrade. Below, I've prepared a description and practical examples of the improvements:

• Gas Sponsorship: If your wallet holds tokens (e.g., USDC) but no ETH, you normally wouldn’t be able to complete a transaction since gas fees are paid in ETH. Now, other users or services can cover your gas fees for you.
  Example: You send 100 USDC to a friend without holding ETH, and your wallet allows a sponsor (a dApp or exchange) to cover the fee.
• Batch Transactions: In DeFi applications, multiple consecutive actions are often required—such as approving tokens and then swapping them. Each action is a separate transaction requiring gas fees. Now, multiple transactions can be bundled into one, reducing fees.
  Example: A single transaction can now cover both "approve" and "swap" actions.
• Account Recovery: Losing the private key to a regular EOA wallet means losing access permanently. Now, recovery mechanisms can be set up—for example, through trusted contacts or hardware keys.
• dApps Session Keys: Interacting with a dApp (e.g., a blockchain game) typically requires manually signing each transaction. Now, you can grant a dApp temporary permission (e.g., for 1 hour) to avoid signing every action

• Cheaper Transactions on L2 (Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, etc.): Rollups (L2 solutions) are limited in how much data they can post to Ethereum. When this limit is reached, fees spike. Doubling the limit allows more data to be posted at once, lowering fees.
  Example: USDC transfer fees on Arbitrum or Optimism during network congestion could reach $0.5—now they will drop to $0.1–$0.2.
• Faster & Cheaper DeFi Swaps on L2: The same principle applies, making swaps more efficient.
• Cheaper Withdrawals from L2 to Ethereum: Currently, withdrawing from Arbitrum to Ethereum costs around $7 on average. With this upgrade, the cost will drop to $3–$4.

• Higher Yield for Large Stakers: Since the max stake per validator is 32 ETH, large stakers must run multiple validators, increasing overhead costs. Now, a single validator can hold up to 2048 ETH, and rewards can be auto-compounded, boosting returns.
• Reduced Load on the Ethereum Network: Fewer validators will be needed, but each will manage larger amounts, optimizing network operations.
• Shorter Entry & Exit Queue for Staking: Previously, unstaking from Puffer nodes could take 20+ days—this process will now be significantly faster.

• Rollups Will Switch to Cheaper Blobs Instead of Calldata: Many rollups (Arbitrum, Optimism, zkSync) store data on Ethereum using calldata, which is more expensive than blob data. With this change, calldata costs will rise, forcing rollups to switch to blob storage, reducing their expenses and lowering user fees.
  Example: Before the upgrade, Arbitrum and Optimism spent $10M/month on calldata—this cost will now be significantly lower.
• Improved Ethereum Scalability & Reduced Network Load: Previously, rollups storing data in calldata clogged the Ethereum blockchain, reducing throughput. Now, switching to blobs will free up block space, increasing network capacity.
  Example: Ethereum currently handles ~15–20 TPS—this number will increase post-upgrade.
• Optimized Data Storage for Rollups: Calldata is stored permanently, increasing strain on Ethereum's archive nodes. In contrast, blob data is automatically deleted after 18 days, reducing long-term network congestion.

• Faster & More Convenient Staking Withdrawals: Previously, validators depended on the consensus layer (Beacon Chain) to withdraw staked ETH or rewards, making the process more complex. Now, withdrawals can be done directly via the execution layer, making it faster and more user-friendly.
• Reduced Dependence on Staking Pools (Lido, Rocket Pool, etc.): Due to the complexity of withdrawals, many users opted for centralized staking services like Lido or Rocket Pool, which charge fees. With this change, validators can withdraw on their own, reducing centralized influence and improving Ethereum’s decentralization.
• Easier Integration for Developers & Wallets: Previously, developers had to implement complex mechanisms to interact with the consensus layer for withdrawals. Now, ETH withdrawals via the execution layer can be directly built into standard wallets (MetaMask, Rabby, Ledger, etc.).
  Essentially, users will get a simple "Withdraw Staking" button in their wallet interface.

• Faster DeFi Protocols: DeFi protocols (Aave, Compound, MakerDAO) previously relied on Chainlink oracles to fetch Ethereum network data, causing delays and extra fees. Now, DeFi smart contracts can query the consensus layer directly, making them faster and more efficient.
  Example: Liquid Staking (LST) projects like stETH (Lido) will now update token prices faster, as they no longer need to wait for Chainlink oracles.
• Lower Gas Fees & Better UX for Users: Before, fetching Ethereum network data required multiple API calls or third-party services, increasing fees and processing times. Now, smart contracts can retrieve this data directly, reducing network congestion and lowering gas costs.
  Example: Wallets will now update balances and exchange rates faster without relying on centralized APIs.

• Faster & Cheaper Rollups: Rollups (Arbitrum, Optimism, zkSync, StarkNet) use zk-proofs and BLS signatures for data verification, but these operations are gas-intensive. Now, optimized cryptographic functions will reduce gas consumption, leading to lower fees and faster transactions.
  Example: zk-SNARKs and BLS signatures will require fewer computational resources, making rollups more efficient.
• Cheaper Cross-Chain Bridges: Blockchain bridges (Wormhole, Hop Protocol, Stargate) use zk-proofs for transaction validation, which is expensive. With BLS signature optimization, cross-chain transactions will be faster and cheaper.
  Example: Moving assets between chains will become almost instant.
• Growth of zk-Privacy dApps: Privacy-focused blockchain applications using zk-proofs (Tornado Cash, Railgun) have suffered from high computational costs and slow processing. Now, zk-proofs will be cheaper and faster, improving privacy transactions.
• Better DAO & Multisig Wallets: Multisig wallets (Gnosis Safe, Argent) and DAOs use BLS signatures for transaction approvals, which can be expensive. Optimized BLS signatures will allow faster and cheaper multisig transactions.

• Faster and cheaper data verification for rollups: Rollups (Arbitrum, Optimism, zkSync) previously had to store old blocks themselves or rely on centralized APIs (Infura, Alchemy) to verify transaction history. Now, block history will remain available on-chain for a longer period (8192 blocks ≈ 27 hours), making data verification easier without external services.
• Improved decentralized wallets and DeFi platforms: DeFi applications (Aave, Uniswap, Curve) and wallets (MetaMask, Rabby) depend on centralized APIs to display transaction history. Now, applications can retrieve transaction data directly from the network. Wallet transaction histories will load faster, even if several hours have passed. Users will be able to check past DeFi trades without relying on Infura or Alchemy APIs.
• Better support for stateless clients and lightweight nodes: Lightweight clients (Trust Wallet, Status, immersive dApps) cannot store full block history, which complicates their functionality. With increased block history, lightweight clients will be able to verify transactions without downloading the entire network, making them more efficient.

• Faster activation of new validators: After depositing 32 ETH into staking, validators currently wait several hours (12+ on average) or even days for their request to be processed by Beacon Chain. Now, deposits will be recorded immediately on the blockchain, reducing activation time to just a few minutes.

• Faster and cheaper block verification: Previously, each validator signed blocks individually, creating thousands of signatures, which consumed storage and required more computational power for verification. Now, validator signatures are aggregated into a single compact signature, reducing costs. This will be especially beneficial for light clients (MetaMask, Rabby, Trust Wallet), which will sync with the network more quickly. Deposits and withdrawals in DeFi protocols (Uniswap, Aave, etc.) will also be faster and cheaper due to lower gas costs.
• Lower Ethereum network fees: Signature verification requires significant gas, increasing fees during high network congestion. Signature aggregation will drastically reduce computational costs and lower transaction processing expenses.

• Predictable fees for rollup transactions: Blob data sizes were previously fixed, causing fees to fluctuate significantly based on network load. Now, blob data sizes can be dynamically adjusted, making rollup transaction costs more predictable. Users of Arbitrum, Optimism, and zkSync will pay stable fees, even during high network demand. NFT purchases on OpenSea and Blur will become cheaper, as rollups can better optimize fees.
• Flexibility for future Ethereum upgrades: Any blob size changes previously required protocol modifications, making network adaptation difficult. Now, Ethereum can dynamically adjust blob parameters without complex hard forks, making future upgrades easier. As rollups become the primary scaling solution, Ethereum will be able to adapt more efficiently.

Of course, all these improvements will not take effect immediately after the Ethereum network upgrade. L2 developers, wallet providers, and dApp creators will need some time for integration, but all the necessary capabilities will already be available.

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