Ethereum's Pectra Upgrade: Launch Date Set for April 30

The Ethereum Pectra mainnet upgrade is provisionally set for April 30, 2025, following a successful deployment on the Hoodi testnet on March 26. The upgrade was confirmed by developers on the All Core Developers Execution (ACDE) call #208 to be activated at slot 11,599,872, due at 14:14:47 UTC.

The Pectra upgrade combines improvements from the Prague and Electra proposals to enhance scalability, lower transaction fees, and streamline developer and user workflows. The main features are making it possible to pay transaction fees in cryptocurrencies other than ETH and introducing smart contract capabilities to wallets.

Hoodi has been introduced to replace the Holesky testnet, which struggled, and Sepolia, which also faced interruptions. A successful Hoodi deployment was a key milestone for Pectra's deployment after previous failures. Finalization of the April 30 deployment date will be addressed in future developer meetings while infrastructure teams gear up for coordination.