Ethereum's Holesky Testnet Achieves Finality After Pectra Upgrade

According to CoinDesk, Ethereum's Holesky testnet has finally reached finality, marking a significant milestone nearly two weeks after the Pectra upgrade was implemented. This achievement occurred at Epoch 119,090 around 19:00 UTC, with more than two-thirds of validators actively participating in the network validation process. An epoch in blockchain terms refers to a specific period during which a set number of blocks are completed. Finality, which ensures transactions are locked irreversibly within two epochs or approximately 13 minutes, had been missing since February 24 due to a configuration bug in the client software, unrelated to the Pectra upgrade itself. Efforts to restore the network over the past weeks have been successful, allowing for this recovery. Developers are now focused on stabilizing nodes and pruning outdated states to fully restore the testnet for further Pectra testing. Meanwhile, the Sepolia testnet, which is also running the Pectra upgrade, initially achieved finality but later encountered issues with empty blocks due to a flawed deposit contract. This vulnerability was exploited by an attacker who sent zero-token transfers, a problem that Ethereum developers have since resolved with the help of client teams. The Pectra upgrade brings several key enhancements to the Ethereum network, including the ability to make gas payments using non-ETH tokens, account abstraction, and increased staking limits. These improvements are expected to enhance the network's functionality and efficiency, providing a more robust platform for developers and users alike. As the Ethereum community continues to work on these upgrades, the successful finality of the Holesky testnet represents a crucial step forward in the ongoing development and optimization of the Ethereum blockchain.