Ethereum developers activate Pectra upgrade on Holesky testnet, finalization pending

The Pectra upgrade, a major update to the Ethereum network, was activated on the Holesky test network yesterday at 4:55 pm ET.

This activation occurred at epoch 115,968, marking the first major step in stress-testing this upgrade before it reaches Ethereum’s mainnet.

Holesky is one of Ethereum’s test networks, designed to simulate real-world conditions and allow developers to iron out issues in a controlled environment.

The Pectra launch on Holesky hasn’t gone smoothly. While the upgrade launched as planned, the block explorer shows that the network slot from the moment of activation has yet to be finalized.

Ethereum developers are investigating the root cause of the finalization hurdle.

The next step for Pectra is activation on the Sepolia testnet, which is expected on March 5. However, if Holesky’s issues persist, developers might delay Sepolia to allow more time for fixes and additional testing.

Assuming both testnets eventually succeed, the Ethereum team would then choose a mainnet activation date, likely eyeing April.

Pectra brings several changes aimed at improving Ethereum’s scalability, security and usability. These include improving user experience in crypto wallets and account abstraction (EIP-7702), increasing the maximum validator stake limit from 32 to 2,048 ETH (EIP-7251), and doubling the max blob count to boost rollup scalability (EIP-7691).

This follows the Dencun upgrade from March 2024, which significantly reduced Layer 2 fees by introducing blobs.