Ethereum developers postponed the blockchain's biggest upgrade since 2024. The decision came Thursday after two test networks encountered bugs during implementation.

Pectra, designed to improve Ethereum's speed and usability, faced problems on both the Holesky and Sepolia test networks. Developers originally planned to set a March launch date during their Thursday call.

"It seems like we need more information before we can really set a concrete date," said Alex Stokes, an Ethereum Foundation researcher who led the meeting.

The bugs resulted from test misconfigurations rather than issues with Pectra itself. These problems forced many of Holesky's validators offline, rendering the network unable to record transactions properly. Developers will create a "shadow fork" of the Holesky network while working to restore the main test network. This temporary copy will allow stakeholders to test their code with Pectra.

"Anyone who wants to test on Holesky can test there," Stokes said. Developers expect the primary Holesky network to resume normal operations around March 28.

Pectra introduces several significant improvements. EIP-7702 gives crypto wallets smart contract capabilities, moving toward "account abstraction" that allows for more user-friendly features like alternative fee payment options.

Another proposal, EIP-7251, increases the maximum ETH one validator can stake from 32 to 2,048. This change reduces operational complexity for validators who currently must split larger holdings across multiple nodes.

The delay comes amid growing criticism from community members. Some argue Ethereum lacks a cohesive roadmap to compete with emerging networks like Solana. Critics point to ether's price performance as evidence of weakening market confidence.

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