Please fasten your belts!
Vitalik Buterin advocates for ERC-4337 in fueling decentralized fee markets
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently highlighted the importance of ERC-4337. He emphasized its role in building decentralized fee markets for smart contract wallets.
Last month saw a huge surge in activity, with nearly 3 million transactions facilitated across various chains thanks to ERC-4337.
The protocol also saw an impressive increase in active AA accounts, reaching 945,000, of which 845,000 were new accounts.
Buterin pointed out the benefits of ERC-4337. Notably its ability to create a fee market operating without centralized entities or reputation systems.
Transactions are processed in the public mempool based on fee offerings, resulting in fairness and efficiency.
ERC-4337 also enhances transaction security through its architecture, separating validation and execution layers, and prevents denial-of-service attacks by enforcing gas limits and restricting state access.
Additionally, the protocol introduces features like “paymaster” to handle payment complexity and signature aggregation to reduce on-chain data usage. This improves scalability and lowers costs.
While challenges remain, like enabling third-party funding for existing accounts or upgrading them to contracts, Buterin is optimistic about fully achieving account abstraction. He praised the community’s efforts towards these goals.
Alchemy unveils ERC-6900 plugin template alongside open beta for Embedded Accounts
Alchemy has announced the release of a straightforward yet robust template for constructing plugins compatible with the ERC-6900 standard.
The ERC-6900 plugin template is intended to assist with the creation of sophisticated capabilities within Web3 applications.
Also, the Web3 company represented Embedded Accounts — a critical step forward in user onboarding, making the notion of a “wallet” invisible to end-users.
These accounts integrate seamlessly with Web2 logins, passkeys, email recovery and provide capabilities like gas abstraction, batch transactions, and session keys.
Optimistic outlook for AA-GameFi synergy
The GameFi sector is gearing up for a big change. New technologies and market forces are setting the stage for huge growth, even after a rough 2023.
Last year, the blockchain gaming market’s value bounced between $4 billion and $7 billion, noticeably down from its peak.
But experts see a bright future, predicting the market could surge to $650 billion by 2030. This growth depends on major gaming studios jumping into the space and new, exciting gaming models drawing players in.
One key shift is towards simpler, more engaging GameFi products. For example, iGaming and move-to-earn games are gaining steam by giving players instant rewards and integrating everyday activities into play.
Platforms like UPVSDOWN and Sweatcoin show this trend, blending gaming with physical activity for next-level engagement.
New technologies are also fueling this GameFi era. Gaming-specific blockchains and advances like Polygon’s zk-proof tech are critical for scaling and lowering fees.
“White-label” blockchain games are changing how new titles are built and launched
Account abstraction could also simplify user experiences by tackling Web3 gaming’s complexities. This could majorly lower barriers to entry and open blockchain gaming to a wider audience.
As major studios like Konami and Take-Two are jumping in, new technologies smoothing out blockchain gaming’s rough edges, and innovative, easy-to-use games rising in popularity, it’s an exciting time for the industry.
How to run your own ERC-4337 bundler (tutorial)
Etherspot has released a new in-depth tutorial on how to run your own instance of Skandha, a bundler compliant with ERC-4337
By walking through the steps to deploy it anyone can now tap into the power of account abstraction and smart contract wallets.
Even those new to blockchain development can follow the tutorial to start harnessing the potential of innovations like AA.
So if you’re eager to deepen your decentralized web abilities, check out the tutorial now!
Additionally, there is a handy list of short links for ERC-4337 bundlers created by @bl00dy. Check this out!
Urgency to include EIP-7251 in Pectra upgrade for stability
Ethereum is at a crossroads as it prepares for the upcoming Pectra upgrade. Experts are seriously concerned about whether a key proposal called “maxeb” will be included. Maxeb, also known as Ethereum Improvement Proposal 7251, could be crucial for managing the network’s stability as more Ether is staked.
Ryan Berckmans, a major investor and engineer in the Ethereum community, strongly warns of potential problems if maxeb is not added.
Without it, Ethereum may struggle to handle growing amounts of staked Ether (risking instability and future functionality).
Maxeb would eliminate the current 32 ETH limit and allow validators to stake an unlimited amount. This would strengthen the beacon chain by reducing risks from too many fragmented validators.
While a beacon chain change for Pectra isn’t realistic, experts say maxeb provides a strategic solution to lower validator numbers without hurting decentralization or monetary policy.
The proposal also promises operational benefits for staking services. It would automatically reinvest rewards and lower costs and complexity.
SEC delays decision on BlackRock and Fidelity’s Ethereum ETF applications
The SEC has again postponed its decision on spot Ethereum ETF applications from big players like BlackRock and Fidelity. In filings on March 4th, the SEC extended the timeline for deciding on their iShares Ethereum Trust and Fidelity’s Ethereum Fund — another delay after pushing it back in January.
This push follows the SEC greenlighting a few spot Bitcoin ETFs, suggesting they’re being extra careful about financial products related to Ethereum. The SEC can delay up to three times before making a final ruling. Industry watchers have pegged May 23rd as a pivotal date since that’s the deadline for VanEck’s spot ETH ETF proposal.
In the meantime, the possibility of ETF approvals has buoyed Ether’s price performance. It’s up over 56% in the last month, trading at around $3,754 as of this week. That increase happened despite the SEC’s latest announcement kicking the can down the road again.
Some question how much impact an Ether ETF would really have compared to Bitcoin ones. Bloomberg analyst Eric Blachunas points out the huge gap between potential ETH funds and something like BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF, which already has over $10 billion in assets.
Blachunas plans to weigh in with predictions on ETH ETF approval chances, but says don’t expect the same scale as Bitcoin funds.
Etherspot CTO highlights crucial L2 prerequisites for the mempool’s success
The CTO at Etherspot is sounding the alarm about a big issue for Layer 2 solutions that could really mess with the mempool if it doesn’t get fixed. They shared a super helpful deep dive by Yoav Weiss explaining why these L2 platforms desperately need to implement eth_sendRawTransactionConditional. Otherwise, it’s going to cause failed transactions and major losses for bundlers.
So here’s the deal:
- Arbitrum has fully embraced the necessary capability and is prepared for the mempool’s demands.
- Optimism is close to implementation, with the feature present in a separate branch pending integration. The Etherspot CTO requests assistance to expedite this process.
- Base has acknowledged the requirement and expressed their support.
- Scroll is engaged in discussions regarding the implementation, with an update anticipated soon.
- Linea is weighing an alternative approach with eth_sendBundle.
- Polygon zkEVM requires assistance to address this area.
For those interested in contributing or seeking additional information, feel free to reach out to Partha on Twitter @ch4r10t33r.
Join us at the 🏰House of Account Abstraction in London
Etherspot, the ERC-4337 team, and Rhinestone are hosting an event centered around account abstraction in London on March 15th.
Whether you’re an enthusiast eager to learn or a professional looking to network, the House of Account Abstraction offers a unique opportunity to glimpse the next wave of innovation.
The event starts at 5 PM GMT with talks from prominent voices in the space, followed by drinks and socializing with your peers.
Dive into topics like Shared Mempool, Modular Smart Accounts, ERC-7579, and beyond.
👉 But first, secure your spot: https://lu.ma/house_of_account_abstraction_london
Start exploring Account Abstraction with Etherspot!
- Learn more about account abstraction here.
- Head to our docs and read all about the Etherspot SDK.
- Skandha - a developer-friendly Typescript ERC4337 Bundler.
- Explore our TransactionKit, a React library for fast & simple Web3 development.
- For a plug & play integration, review the BUIDLer react component.
- Follow us on Twitter and join our Discord.
Is your dApp ready for Account Abstraction? Check it out here: https://eip1271.io/
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