Scheduled Testing of Ethereum’s ‘Pectra’ Upgrade on Holesky and Sepolia Testnets
According to the latest announcement from core developers, Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade is scheduled to go live on the Holesky and Sepolia testnets in February and March. On February 6, Ethereum (ETH) core developers confirmed that the Pectra upgrade will be launched on the Ethereum test networks Holesky on February 24, 2025, and Sepolia on March 5, 2025. If everything goes well, the highly anticipated network update will be implemented on the mainnet in April. Previous timelines had the mainnet scheduled for March.
Tim Beiko, an Ethereum core developer and Ethereum Foundation support lead, provided details on the timeline. Holesky is expected to fork at slot 3710976, while Sepolia will fork at slot 7118848.
“If Sepolia goes smoothly, we will decide on the mainnet slot on the March 6 ACD call,” the developer stated. On March 6, 2025, Ethereum’s All Core Developers will meet to finalize the decision on Pectra’s mainnet launch.
Pectra is expected to introduce eight key improvements to the Ethereum network, with a focus on wallets and validators. The most notable proposals include EIP-7702 and EIP-7251, which aim to enhance security and efficiency for these components.
The announcement of the Holesky and Sepolia testnet dates for Pectra, and the possibility of a mainnet launch, brings the first major upgrade for Ethereum closer since the Dencun upgrade in March 2024. Dencun played a key role in significantly reducing layer 2 gas fees.
If Pectra is launched as planned, the next focus will be the Fusaka upgrade, expected in Q4.
ETH, the native token of the Ethereum network, has faced significant challenges in the past few months, underperforming Bitcoin (BTC) and other top altcoins. Much of the downward pressure has been due to controversy surrounding the Ethereum Foundation. However, after dropping to a low of $2,100 during a market sell-off in response to tariffs news, ETH has rebounded to $2,900.
Could the upcoming Pectra testnets and the possibility of a release in April act as a catalyst?
