Fixing Ethereum’s biggest problems

The pursuing is simply a impermanent station from Rostyslav Bortman, Founder astatine Ethereum Ukraine.

If you’re readying to motorboat a stablecoin oregon preparing for a token procreation lawsuit (TGE), your prime of blockchain apt comes down to 2 large contenders: Ethereum oregon Solana.

At archetypal glance, the determination seems straightforward—Solana is faster and cheaper, portion Ethereum’s Layer 1 (L1) remains costly and slow. But is it truly that simple?

Ethereum contiguous is nary longer conscionable an L1 blockchain; it’s portion of a overmuch larger, modular ecosystem that includes a increasing Layer 2 (L2) infrastructure. 

The existent issue? The marketplace hasn’t afloat adapted to this modular paradigm yet. Many users inactive subordinate Ethereum with precocious fees and constricted scalability, adjacent though its exertion has already evolved beyond those constraints.

Mass adoption ever lags down innovation. If you’re not profoundly progressive successful tech, you apt don’t comprehend the modular architecture of the internet—yet it’s the backbone of the integer world. The net itself ne'er aimed to lick UX problems. Instead, applications abstracted the complexity, delivering a seamless acquisition to users.

The aforesaid indispensable hap with Ethereum. As agelong arsenic L2s consciousness similar abstracted networks alternatively than autochthonal extensions of Ethereum, mainstream users volition conflict to clasp them.

So however bash we marque Ethereum much user-friendly? Three captious issues request to beryllium addressed:

• Interoperability – seamless enactment betwixt L1 and L2
• DApps & Wallet UX – a idiosyncratic acquisition that doesn’t necessitate method knowledge
• Scalability – improved web ratio and little fees

Until these challenges are afloat resolved, Ethereum volition proceed to look absorption successful mainstream adoption—despite being technologically prepared for the adjacent signifier of growth.

This nonfiction explores however these issues tin beryllium tackled and what it volition instrumentality to presumption Ethereum for wide adoption.

Interoperability: From Bridges to Seamless Compatibility

One of Ethereum’s biggest hurdles contiguous is the deficiency of native interoperability betwixt L2 solutions. Users inactive person to manually span assets betwixt networks, a process that remains clunky and inconvenient.

Intent-based bridges similar Across person importantly improved transaction speed, cutting down L1 → L2 transfers to 15 seconds and L2 → L2 swaps to nether 5 seconds. However, these solutions are lone viable for highly liquid assets. For memecoins and niche tokens, they stay retired of reach.

This is wherefore the Ethereum ecosystem is pushing toward native interoperability—first betwixt L2 chains and, ultimately, betwixt L1 and L2.

Basically, this is however the interoperability looks similar successful 2025:

• Arbitrum: cross-chain transactions and swaps expected by Q1 2025 (<3 sec transfers).
• Optimism: developing its ain solution, but nary acceptable deadlines.
• ZKSync: tentative launch by precocious 2025.
• Polygon Aggregation Layer: already connecting chains built connected Polygon CDK (v0.2).

Most projects are inactive successful development, but Q2 2025 should spot the archetypal releases of ERC-20 cross-chain transfers betwixt L2 clusters (Arbitrum, Superchain (Optimism), Elastic Chain (ZKSync), Agglayer (Polygon)).

Ultimately, what is going to beryllium the endgame for rollup adaptation are:

• Based rollups, which redistribute MEV backmost to Ethereum L1 validators, integrating astatine the sequencer level.
• Native rollups that reconstruct synchronous composability, executing transactions straight connected Ethereum L1.

When volition this afloat materialize? No wide timeline yet. None of the existing rollups person confirmed plans to modulation into Based oregon Native models. However, the absorption is set—Ethereum Foundation precocious introduced an open-source model for gathering intent-based bridges nether the ERC-7683 standard.

For wallets, this is simply a large breakthrough. A unified integration modular means that intent-based bridges similar Across could spot wide adoption wrong the adjacent 1-2 months. This volition drastically simplify plus transfers, making Ethereum’s modular architecture consciousness acold much seamless and intuitive for users.

dApps & Wallet UX: The Next Step Toward Mass Adoption

Fragmentation betwixt L2 chains isn’t the lone UX hurdle successful the Ethereum ecosystem. The inability to batch transactions and sponsor state fees for regular EOA wallets remains a large barrier.

Previous efforts to hole this—most notably EIP-4337 (Account Abstraction)—failed to spot wide adoption. 

The reason? A deficiency of a unified standard, which slowed down integration. However, that’s yet changing.

EIP-7702 introduces a breakthrough solution by allowing EOA wallets to temporarily relation arsenic astute contracts wrong a azygous transaction. This fundamentally creates a lightweight alternate to Account Abstraction, improving state interest absorption and idiosyncratic experience.

What does this mean for users?

• Fewer transactions, greater efficiency. Approvals and swaps tin present beryllium bundled into a azygous action.
• Flexible state payments. Users volition beryllium capable to wage transaction fees successful tokens other than ETH.
• Enhanced security. Wallets tin follow impermanent astute declaration functionalities, unlocking precocious authorization mechanisms.

EIP-7702 is expected to beryllium integrated into wallets and dApps wrong 2 months of Pectra’s launch. This estimation comes from Offchain Labs, whose representatives confirmed to maine that updates volition deed L2 chains wrong 1-2 weeks aft Ethereum Mainnet (currently acceptable for aboriginal April).

With the rollout of intent-based bridges and EIP-7702, Ethereum UX volition drastically improve. Wallets and dApps that integrate these updates first volition summation a important competitory advantage, offering a seamless cross-chain experience.

Uniswap has already started—who’s going to beryllium next?

Scalability: How Pectra Pushes Ethereum’s Limits

Ethereum’s modular plan splits its ecosystem into chiseled layers—Execution (L1), Data Availability (DA), and Layer 2 solutions—each influencing the network’s scalability. The cardinal challenge? Optimizing the close components first.

Vitalik Buterin precocious emphasized this successful his blog, arguing that adjacent with Ethereum’s absorption connected rollups, L1 scaling remains crucial. A 20% boost to L1 execution ratio automatically improves each rollups, conscionable arsenic expanding DA blobs enhances transaction velocity crossed L2s.

What’s changing now?

• Base handled highest loads during the Kaito airdrop, reaching 160 TPS with an mean interest of $0.02.
• Ethereum developers program to treble blobs from 3 to 6 successful Pectra, further easing congestion.
• Validiums present connection Solana-level speeds with sub-cent fees.

Still, DA enlargement remains a bottleneck. Interest successful EigenDA arsenic an alternate scaling solution is growing. Some suggest that Ethereum rotation ups mightiness temporarily modulation to validiums to accelerate scaling. Even Dankrad Feist (one of the astir renowned Ethereum researchers) proposed Jesse Polak, halfway developer of Base, becoming a validium to execute faster growth.

While the ecosystem is acold from its last form, 1 happening is clear: this is the champion clip to build. Ethereum’s evolving infrastructure provides projects with seamless deployment and a importantly improved idiosyncratic experience, making wide adoption person than ever.

Conclusion: Ethereum connected the Brink of a New Era

Ethereum is undergoing 1 of the astir transformative phases successful its history. Fundamental shifts successful scalability, idiosyncratic experience, and interoperability are already taking shape, mounting the signifier for a much businesslike and accessible network.

The adjacent 2-3 months volition beryllium pivotal. EIP-7702 is acceptable to revolutionize wallets, making Ethereum interactions seamless and intuitive, portion intent-powered bridges volition destruct friction successful cross-chain transfers. These upgrades volition redefine however users interact with the Ethereum ecosystem.

The marketplace is shifting toward UX optimization, and contention betwixt wallets and protocols for the champion cross-chain acquisition is astir to intensify. The projects that present the fastest, astir user-friendly, and astir unafraid solutions volition instrumentality the lead, shaping Ethereum’s way toward wide adoption.

The station Fixing Ethereum’s biggest problems appeared archetypal connected CryptoSlate.