The Pectra update may be released by Ethereum developers in two stages

The highly anticipated Pectra upgrade may be divided into two phases by Ethereum developers in order to meet community expectations and launch as soon as possible.

In a meeting on September 12, engineers talked about the possibility of releasing the first version of Pectra by early 2025; a target date of February was agreed upon.

There was general consensus, according to a developer at the Ethereum execution layer meeting, that if they split up, the plan would be to ship Pectra One as soon as possible, with an early 2019 release date. A second developer expressed similar optimism, pointing out that considering the possible split, a February release looks feasible.

Ethereum researcher Ansgar Dietrichs cautioned that if the first phase is not sent by June, the upgrade will be deemed a failure. Developer Danno Ferrin argued that the split would only make sense if the first phase could be delivered in the first quarter of 2025. Dietrichs claimed that a split in which they shipped only the first half in June would not work.

Industry insiders agree; Galaxy crypto analyst Christine Kim pointed out that the Pectra upgrade's complexity is probably the main reason for the split. She also mentioned that if developers decide to go with a two-phase release, the upgrade's scope can alter considerably.

The upcoming Pectra upgrade will greatly improve Ethereum's scalability and efficiency. It has two main parts: the Electra upgrade for the consensus layer and the Prague upgrade for the execution layer. Due to its complexity, there are discussions about splitting it into two separate hard forks. Despite these challenges, the Ethereum community remains optimistic. Researchers like Christine Kim and educator Sassal consider Pectra one of the biggest upgrades in Ethereum's history, with Sassal calling it the largest to date.

The decision regarding the Pectra upgrade split is anticipated to be finalized during the upcoming Ethereum All Core Developers (ACD) meeting scheduled for September 19, 2024.