Ethereum to Cut L1 to L2 Deposit Time to 13 Seconds

Key Insights

• Ethereum to introduce FCR, which will cut deposit time from L1 to L2 and exchanges to 13 seconds.
• The feature will be implemented by consensus clients, and no hard fork is required.
• ETH is back on the rise, gaining almost 20% over the past 30 days.

The speed of bridging funds from the Ethereum mainnet to its Layer-2 networks is set to increase as the network launches Fast Confirmation Rule (FCR). Ethereum Foundation researcher Julian Ma announced this on X, noting around an 80-98% reduction.

The post explained that FCR will cut the time required to transfer from the Ethereum mainnet to L2 or to centralized exchanges to around 13 seconds.

FCR Upgrade Set to Happen Without any Hardfork

According to the announcement, the FCR update is set to launch in the coming months. It does not require any hard fork or devnet as it is a consensus client feature. This means that all that is needed for any client to implement is that the nodes will run it automatically.

It said:

“No hard fork. No devnet. FCR is a consensus client feature. Enable it with a configuration flag and query a single API endpoint.”

The post noted that the new feature will improve user experience and market efficiency for everyone. Parties that will benefit the most are exchanges, L2s, Bridges, Solvers, and RPCs due to the faster confirmation time and attendant benefits.

The faster deposit is possible because FCR relies on counting attestations rather than blocks, which takes around 12 minutes. Thus, the fast confirmation block is not finalized until there are sufficient attestations, assuming no adversary controls 25% of the stake.

Interestingly, the feature has a fallback mode for certain instances. When the network is slow, it may take more than 13 seconds to confirm, and when the network detects the need for extra security, it would require more certainty to fast confirm.

However, FCR can still fall back to finality, and in the worst-case scenario where the network is completely asynchronous or has an adversary with more than 25% stake, a fast-confirmed block can be reorged. The odds of that, however, are slim, as Ethereum has never been completely asynchronous before.

Nevertheless, the post noted that finality remains Ethereum’s strongest guarantee, but FCR is much faster and has proven guarantees.

It said:

“Finality is Ethereum’s strongest guarantee. It works in an asynchronous manner and as long as there is no adversary with more than a 33% stake. FCR does not provide the same guarantee. Instead, it’s a trade-off between waiting time and reorg risk. Waiting time reduces from 13 minutes to 13 seconds. Reorg risk increases slightly in the event FCR’s assumptions do not hold.”

Ethereum Sees Resurgence in Price

Meanwhile, there is no set date for the new feature yet, but the announcement noted that consensus clients are implementing it. The Ethereum Foundation team is also engaging with exchanges, L2, and other stakeholders to ensure a smooth rollout.

The development represents a positive step for Ethereum, which is currently enjoying a price rebound after weeks of struggle. In the past seven days, ETH has risen more than 14% to over $2,300.

Ethereum Price Performance. Source: CoinMarketCap

The token is up almost 20% over the past 30 days, making it one of the best-performing cryptocurrencies in that period. However, it remains down by 22% year to date, with the majority of ETH holders still in loss.

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