On August 26, Ethereum researchers proposed a draft to rebuild the validator deposit contract in preparation for the future introduction of quantum-resistant signature mechanisms, allowing for a gradual phase-out of the existing BLS signature format. This proposal enables the deposit contract to support keys of different sizes and public key types, assigning labels for each cryptographic scheme, with the current BLS signature labeled as 0, and future quantum-resistant schemes to be assigned additional labels. Currently, approximately 42.4 million ETH, valued at around $10.4 billion, are staked in Ethereum, all relying on BLS validator keys. The draft remains in its early stages and must be implemented alongside subsequent consensus layer upgrades, with the Ethereum Foundation's overall quantum resistance roadmap targeting around 2029.
All Comments