In a post on X, Shiba Inu marketing lead Lucie (@LucieSHIB) highlighted the potential impact of Ethereum’s forthcoming “Pectra” upgrade on Shibarium, the layer-2 (L2) solution built by the Shiba Inu ecosystem. Slated for release in April 2025, the Pectra upgrade merges two planned improvements—Prague (execution layer) and Electra (consensus layer)—into a single overhaul designed to enhance scalability, staking, and user experience on the Ethereum network.

How Shiba Inu Will Benefit From Pectra

Lucie underscored several benefits that Ethereum’s evolution could bring to L2 platforms like Shibarium. In her post, she noted that the upgrade “will make Layer 2 solutions faster, cheaper, and easier to use,” thanks in large part to innovative features aimed at reducing friction and improving accessibility. She elaborated: “Users won’t need ETH for gas fees when moving assets, reducing costs and friction.”

Moreover, there will be easier onboarding. New users can start using Layer 2 networks without first acquiring ETH, lowering entry barriers. Ultimately, the Pectra upgrade could result in a higher adoption of Shiba Inu.

“Flexible gas payments and better user experience mean more people will use L2s, driving growth and efficiency. This upgrade makes Ethereum’s ecosystem more accessible and affordable, giving Layer 2 solutions a huge boost,” Lucie concludes.

Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade combines multiple enhancements designed to streamline the blockchain’s core operations and bolster its efficiency. This includes account abstraction (ERC-4337) which enables gas fees to be paid in any ERC-20 token rather than just ETH.

According to Shibarium Updates (@Shibizens), this could open the possibility of using Shiba Inu ecosystem tokens—SHIB, BONE, or TREAT—for transaction fees on Ethereum, though actual adoption will hinge on wallet and protocol support.

Moreover, under Pectra, validators can stake up to 2,048 ETH—a major jump from the current 32 ETH requirement. While this increase could make large-scale staking more straightforward, it also raises questions about centralization if a smaller number of validators accumulate disproportionate amounts of stake.

Planned improvements to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) aim to reduce computational costs and accelerate execution times, making transactions cheaper for users. This, in turn, could enhance the affordability of L2 activity, benefitting Shibarium and other rollup-based solutions. A new data structure, Verkle Trees optimize how information is stored and validated on-chain, cutting down on node storage requirements and thus enabling smoother network operation.

PeerDAS (Peer Data Availability Sampling), designed to bolster L2 rollups by lowering costs and increasing throughput, could give solutions like Shibarium’s L2 an even stronger competitive advantage by improving how off-chain data is handled and secured.

While the potential for SHIB, BONE, or TREAT to become viable gas fee currencies exists, besides several performance improvements for Shibarium, experts caution that wide adoption of such functionality will rely on the active participation and support of wallet providers, decentralized applications (dApps), and broader Ethereum infrastructure. “[It] depends on adoption by wallets and protocols,” @Shibizens concludes.

At press time, SHIB traded at $0.00001329.

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s increasingly favorable stance on crypto lawsuits has fueled speculation about an imminent XRP lawsuit settlement. However, experts like Jeremy Hogan believe the Ripple vs SEC case’s complexity will lead to delays, predicting a conclusion no earlier than March 14.

Notably, Hogan is maintaining his delay forecast for the XRP lawsuit, undeterred by the SEC’s recent decision to end the Tron lawsuit. Let’s unravel the lawyer’s predictions and analyze the Tron lawsuit’s potential implications on the Ripple case.

When Will XRP Lawsuit End? Lawyer Answers

Following the regulator’s move to pause the Tron lawsuit, the community is now wondering if the XRP lawsuit might be next in line for resolution. In response to the increasing speculations, legal expert Jeremy Hogan shared an X post. He reaffirmed his earlier prediction of a potential delay in the XRP lawsuit.

“Ripple is STILL a more complicated a case to resolve because of the judgment,” stated Hogan, highlighting the higher possibility in the Ripple case’s delay. In addition, Hogan identified three key dates – March 14, April 11, and May 1 – as potential milestones for the settlement of the XRP lawsuit. According to Hogan, the Ripple vs SEC case may be settled on one of these three crucial dates.

SEC’s Crypto Lawsuits and Ripple’s Future

Significantly, the SEC has been making revolutionary moves over the past few days, concluding long-standing crypto lawsuits. Many high profile cases including Coinbase, Robinhood, OpenSea, and Uniswap have been closed by the restructured SEC under President Donald Trump. And most recently, the agency decided to pause the civil fraud case against Justin Sun, the founder of Tron Foundation.

While many remain optimistic about the imminent XRP lawsuit settlement, lawyers like Hogan and MetaLawMan highlight the unlikely situation. According to them, Judge Analisa Torres’ ruling and the $125 million penalty remain significant obstacles to an earlier resolution.

Not everyone is optimistic about the SEC’s recent actions. Former official John Reed Stark has leveled criticism against these moves. Stark believes that these regulatory reforms are a harbinger of the agency’s downfall, rather than a positive development.

Three Likely Outcomes for Ripple vs SEC Case

As pointed out by Protos, the Ripple vs SEC case has three most likely outcomes including affirmation, cross-appeals settlement, and reversal of Judge Torres’ decision.

Statistically, affirming Judge Torres’ ruling is the most probable outcome of the XRP lawsuit. Aligning with the common practice of US appellate courts affirming lower court rulings, the Second Circuit will likely uphold Judge Torres’ decision.

Next on the line is the lawsuit’s probable settlement. The SEC’s progressive approach and Donald Trump’s pro-crypto stance reinforce the possibility of a settlement. With the SEC dismissing multiple crypto lawsuits, hopes for a Ripple case settlement are rising.

The third most likely outcome of the SEC vs Ripple case is a reversal of Judge Torres’ decision. Interestingly, this would result in a decisive victory for the SEC. The judge ruled that programmatic sales of XRP aren’t securities and that Ripple’s exchange of XRP for non-cash services and labor was legitimate. If the appeals court reverses either of these decisions, it could lead to the XRP lawsuit’s ultimate outcome.

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Nynu V Jamal

Nynu V Jamal is a passionate crypto journalist with three years of experience in blockchain, web3, and fintech spheres. She has established herself as a knowledgeable and engaging voice in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space. Her experience as an Assistant Professor in English Language and Literature has further added to her quest for crafting informative, well-researched, and accessible content.

Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.