Ethereum developers tested the Pectra upgrade on the Sepolia testnet, the most important upgrade to Ethereum since 2024, to improve the blockchain's efficiency, user experience, and validator system. The initial test appeared to be successful, but a few hours later, the Sepolia network began experiencing errors, causing empty blocks to be added to the chain. The Ethereum Foundation attributed the problem to a "permissioned deposit contract configuration error in Sepolia" that prevented many execution layer client sides from including transactions in blocks. The foundation said developers "identified the root cause" and deployed a fix within minutes, restoring the network's normal functionality. However, this is the second time the Pectra upgrade has encountered problems in testing. Earlier tests on the Holesky testnet also failed due to a validator misconfiguration. These issues have raised concerns among some developers about whether Pectra has been adequately tested. "The issues on the Holesky and Sepolia testnets are really worth delaying Pectra mainnet activation," said Christine Kim, vice-president of research at Galaxy Digital. She noted that while developers may be ready, the wider Ethereum ecosystem, which includes major smart contract applications and wallet providers, still needs time to adapt. Kim suggested that Ethereum developers should "spend time setting up additional testing infrastructure" before releasing the upgrade. Ethereum core developers plan to hold a meeting on March 7 to set an official release date for Pectra.