The next major upgrade of Ethereum may be postponed until 2025, and EIP-7702 is a key issue.

According to Blockworks, the timing of the next major upgrade of Ethereum is still uncertain, but it is expected to be between November and early 2025, although the latter seems more likely now. The first thing to be determined is the specification of all Ethereum Improvement Proposals for the 'Pectra' upgrade. Although most of the work has been completed, during Thursday's All Core Developers (ACD) call, EIP-7702: Set EOA Account Code for a Transaction was identified as the primary unresolved specification issue for 'Pectra'. This proposal allows an externally owned account (EOA) - such as a regular wallet like MetaMask - to temporarily act as a smart contract in a transaction. EIP-7702 aims to merge some of the functionalities of both, enhancing flexibility and security. For example, a transaction that doesn't require gas fees, where a dapp sets up an EOA that allows a third party (such as an operator or sponsor) to pay for the transaction. EIP-7702 was proposed by Ethereum developers, including Vitalik Buterin, in early May, and is expected to replace previous attempts at similar functionality that sparked controversy.