Ethereum will separate the issue of gas fees from the idea of “you must have ETH.”
The core developers have officially committed to advancing a capability: users pay on-chain transaction fees without being forced to hold ETH first. This mechanism is called Frame Transactions, and last month it was just locked into the technical roadmap for the Hegotá upgrade; according to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, the related work has progressed faster than expected.
Most people’s impression of Ethereum is still stuck in older versions: to use the chain to buy assets first, gas is the “usage tax” paid in ETH. This commitment amounts to acknowledging one thing: the payment layer can exist independently of asset holding, and in the most sensitive area—transaction fees—the door is finally opening.
For ordinary users, this is a sign that the entry barrier will drop another notch. For applications in the ecosystem, it is the prelude to potentially rewriting the cost structure. But the other side of the coin is also worth thinking through: if more and more people no longer need to hold ETH to use the chain smoothly, can the narrative that “usage demand supports the coin price,” which has been told for years, still be told so smoothly? Over the past few years, the weight of this expectation in valuations has not been small.
On one side, the product becomes easier to use; on the other, cracks appear in the narrative’s load-bearing wall. The developers’ efficiency promise and the value capture of the asset itself are moving toward different timelines.
Which side do you care about more: a more usable Ethereum or a more scarce ETH?👉 8万关口反复拉锯，方向怎么选？进群聊
The core developers have officially committed to advancing a capability: users pay on-chain transaction fees without being forced to hold ETH first. This mechanism is called Frame Transactions, and last month it was just locked into the technical roadmap for the Hegotá upgrade; according to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, the related work has progressed faster than expected.
Most people’s impression of Ethereum is still stuck in older versions: to use the chain to buy assets first, gas is the “usage tax” paid in ETH. This commitment amounts to acknowledging one thing: the payment layer can exist independently of asset holding, and in the most sensitive area—transaction fees—the door is finally opening.
For ordinary users, this is a sign that the entry barrier will drop another notch. For applications in the ecosystem, it is the prelude to potentially rewriting the cost structure. But the other side of the coin is also worth thinking through: if more and more people no longer need to hold ETH to use the chain smoothly, can the narrative that “usage demand supports the coin price,” which has been told for years, still be told so smoothly? Over the past few years, the weight of this expectation in valuations has not been small.
On one side, the product becomes easier to use; on the other, cracks appear in the narrative’s load-bearing wall. The developers’ efficiency promise and the value capture of the asset itself are moving toward different timelines.
Which side do you care about more: a more usable Ethereum or a more scarce ETH?👉 8万关口反复拉锯，方向怎么选？进群聊