ETH news: Ethereum’s four-minute settlement plan could lower the cost of moving crypto
Summary
Ethereum researchers proposed separating validator votes for block selection and finalization, aiming to cut transaction finality from about 16 minutes to roughly four. Faster settlement could reduce the capital transfer services must keep tied up while bridging funds; an example in the proposal estimates that a service advancing $1 million per hour would have about $67,000 awaiting repayment instead of $267,000. The draft also says the design could ease a future transition to quantum-resistant signatures. It remains unfinished, with voting timings, penalties and security analysis unresolved, and has no activation date. Solana’s newly activated upgrade targets finality of about 150 milliseconds.
