Ethereum has continued to evolve and make significant strides as of 2023. One of the key developments is the introduction of staked ether withdrawals. After Ethereum’s consensus mechanism transitioned to proof-of-stake (PoS) in September’s Merge, validators began staking 32 ether (ETH) on the PoS Beacon Chain to participate in the block validation process. However, these staked ETH and any accrued rewards were locked up until Ethereum’s next upgrade, Shanghai. The staked ether withdrawals are expected to be fully operational by March 2023, allowing validators to cash out their stake.
Another anticipated development in Ethereum is “proto-danksharding”, which is derived from the concept of “sharding”. Sharding is a method that divides the network across several chains or “shards” to make the blockchain more scalable. Similarly, danksharding aims to split the network into shards but focuses on providing more space for data rather than transactions, which could potentially allow Ethereum to process more data. This could increase the amount of network activity Ethereum’s blockchain can process, potentially lowering gas fees and increasing transaction speeds. However, this upgrade is expected to take place later, in the fall of 2023.
On the legislative side, there has been a significant development in the European Union. The EU Parliament voted in favor of a bill known as the Data Act in 2022, which could require smart contracts to include a kill switch. However, this bill has sparked controversy within the Web3 community as some believe it could undermine the purpose of smart contracts. The bill is now in the negotiation stage with governments in the EU member countries to finalize the law.
In terms of practical uses, smart contracts have been demonstrating their value, particularly in the area of post-trade settlements. The traditional sequential settlement process is often slow, costly, and inefficient. Smart contracts provide a mechanism to replace this process and mitigate its inherent costs and risks. As encoded transactions, smart contracts specify the rights and obligations of each party and ensure simultaneous execution of obligations. This means that the transaction only occurs once all necessary settlement conditions are met, providing finality and certainty. Smart contracts are capable of handling complex multi-party transactions efficiently, offering transparency, security, and interoperability.
Overall, Ethereum and smart contracts have continued to rise and evolve, fostering innovation and transforming various sectors. However, it’s worth noting that this is a rapidly changing landscape and further developments are likely to occur.
Please note, the information regarding the proto-danksharding was not fully obtained due to time constraints. You may want to keep an eye on updates related to this as it is a significant upgrade in Ethereum’s roadmap.