The next major Ethereum network upgrade, known as "Pectra" (combining the Prague and Electra upgrades), is planned for May 7th, 2025. We want to provide you with key details on the upgrade and what support to expect from Paxos.
What is the Pectra Upgrade?
The “Pectra” Upgrade is a planned hard fork to upgrade the Ethereum network. This upgrade includes several Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) aimed at enhancing the network, particularly focusing on improving the staking experience (e.g., EIP-7251 increasing validator effective balances), potentially enabling new account features (like Account Abstraction via EIP-7702 or EIP-3074), and adding new capabilities (like EIP-2537 BLS precompile). It is a community-supported, non-contentious planned upgrade that has undergone extensive testing on multiple test networks.
When will the upgrade occur?
The upgrade is set to happen automatically at the slot 11649024 and 364032 epoch, which is currently targeted for May 7th, 2025 10:05:11 UTC.
How long is the maintenance window expected to be?
While the Pectra upgrade itself occurs over a single block (~12 seconds), Paxos anticipates a maintenance window of approximately 2-4 hours for pausing and resuming on-chain ETH/ERC-20 transfers. This window allows us time to safely manage the transition and verify network stability post-upgrade. The exact duration may vary based on network conditions at the time of the fork.
How will this impact you?
Please note that no action is required on your part for this upgrade. Your balances will not be impacted, and all assets held with Paxos remain safe. The corresponding amount of ETH and ERC-20 assets will be reflected on the upgraded Ethereum chain.
Should I expect trading interruptions?
We do not expect any interruption to trading during this period. You will continue to be able to trade all Paxos-supported crypto assets on the Paxos platform.
Will Paxos have a maintenance window during this time?
Paxos does not expect any interruption or pause to trading. However, Paxos will pause on-chain Ethereum network deposits and withdrawals at approximately May 7th, 2025 09:30 UTC. We will resume transfer activity once we’ve determined that the upgraded network is stable, which we estimate will be within the 2-4 hour total maintenance window above. Ensuring network stability is paramount, and the exact resumption time may be adjusted based on real-time network conditions during the upgrade. On-chain transfers for other networks are not expected to experience interruptions.
Where can I receive updates?
We will communicate all updates before, during, and after the Pectra upgrade through the Paxos status page found at https://status.paxos.com/. To receive real-time updates, select “Subscribe to Updates” in the upper right-hand corner of the page.
For Transfers Customers Only
During the Pectra upgrade maintenance window, Paxos will pause on-chain transfer processing on the Ethereum network. Specifically:
- Create Crypto Withdrawal - Withdrawals can be created, but they will remain in PENDING status until we resume blockchain processing.
- Create Deposit Address - Customers can continue to generate deposit addresses.
- Detection/Crediting of Deposit - Until Paxos resumes processing, deposits will not be recognized. At that point, we will process all deposits that have been made during the Pectra upgrade.
On-chain transfer processing for other networks is not expected to experience any interruption.
What does Paxos recommend to do in order to prepare for the Pectra upgrade?
Paxos recommends pausing ETH and ERC-20 withdrawal initiation on your application. We believe that pausing this feature will reduce price risk for your end users that might arise from transfers remaining in a pending state during an extended maintenance window. In addition, it is recommended that you inform users that any crypto deposits made on the Ethereum network during the downtime will not be reflected on their account until the downtime has concluded
As a reminder, you will be able to monitor or receive updates on Paxos’ on-chain transfer processing availability through https://status.paxos.com/.
Note: This recommendation is not a requirement.
How do I get more information about the Ethereum Pectra upgrade?
We are closely monitoring all developments related to the Pectra upgrade and will continue to inform you of any significant changes or confirmations regarding the timeline. Please ensure you are subscribed to the Paxos Status page for the latest operational updates.
We expect minimal disruption, but in the event that there are any issues that impact your ability to trade or use our services, you can file a support ticket via the following link: https://support.paxos.com/hc/en-us/requests/new.