Ethereum developers have decided not to prioritize a key proposal for the upcoming Hegota upgrade, despite support from co-founder Vitalik Buterin. The “frame transactions” proposal, aimed at improving user experience and quantum resistance, was deemed too complex by client developers. Instead, it will be considered as a secondary feature, while the controversial FOCIL proposal remains the upgrade’s primary headliner slated for the latter half of 2026.
Ethereum developers declined to prioritize a user-experience proposal for the forthcoming Hegota upgrade during a meeting. Despite support from Vitalik Buterin and others, client developers argued “frame transactions” were too complex to be a mandatory headliner for the upgrade expected in late 2026.
The upgrade’s first headliner is the controversial Fork-Choice Enforced Inclusion Lists (FOCIL) proposal. Frame transactions were instead tagged as “considered for inclusion,” a secondary status meaning they will undergo further review but are not guaranteed for the fork.
Frame transactions are designed to prepare Ethereum for quantum computing threats and enable robust account abstraction. This technology would allow for more traditional web logins and could enable fee-free transactions on the blockchain.
Developer Parthasarathy Ramanujam expressed concern about the decision on the call, stating “Native account abstraction on Ethereum is long overdue… the worry is that we may never implement native account abstraction in the near future.” Biconomy co-founder Ahmed Al-Balaghi called better user experience critical for Ethereum’s success.
Client developers from teams like Nethermind and Besu maintained the proposal’s complexity was a major hurdle. “We think it’s too complex for what it delivers,” said Besu‘s Daniel Lehrner. The call’s emcee, Ethereum Foundation leader Ansgar Dietrichs, noted informal agreement that account abstraction remains an important area needing attention.
