BNB Chain Gears Up for Pasteur: A Major Hard Fork Focused on Security and Speed

BNB Smart Chain (BSC), the core network of BNB Chain, has set a date for its significant Pasteur hard fork. The upgrade is scheduled to go live on the mainnet at 02:30 UTC on August 25. Node operators are required to upgrade their clients to version v1.7.7 prior to this time to ensure a seamless transition.

Three Key Upgrades: A Multi-Faceted Enhancement

The Pasteur hard fork introduces three BNB Evolution Proposals (BEPs) that deliver substantial improvements to the network's foundation, targeting both security robustness and operational efficiency.

  • BEP-682: Fortifying Cross-Chain Security: This proposal addresses a critical aspect of cross-chain bridge validation. By preventing duplicate counting of validator signatures, it eliminates a potential avenue for permission bypass, significantly bolstering the security framework for cross-chain asset transfers.
  • BEP-695: Refining Validator Governance: BEP-695 overhauls the validator key rotation mechanism. It ensures that old keys are completely decommissioned and retain no administrative power post-rotation. Additionally, it patches potential vulnerabilities related to slashing and governance voting, leading to more robust network governance.
  • BEP-675: Unlocking Network Performance: This is the performance cornerstone of the upgrade. It optimizes the block construction process to reduce the time validators spend on re-executing transactions, directly enhancing network throughput.

A Performance Leap: Throughput Nearly Doubles

The impact of BEP-675 is quantifiable. In BNB Chain's internal QANet test environment, implementing this optimization resulted in network throughput surging from 1,237 TPS to 2,324 TPS—an increase of nearly 100%.

This performance gain was achieved without altering the core network parameters: the block time remains at 450 milliseconds and the block gas limit at 100 million. The optimization led to a higher utilization of block space, with average gas used per block rising from approximately 46.35 million to 84.15 million.

Strategic Implications and the Road Ahead

According to BNB Chain, the Pasteur hard fork primarily targets validators and block builders. Its immediate objective is to provide greater network capacity during periods of high traffic, ensuring a smoother and more reliable experience for end-users.

Looking at the broader roadmap, this upgrade represents a crucial step toward BNB Chain's throughput scaling goals outlined for the second half of 2026. By continuously refining its core infrastructure, BNB Chain is strengthening the foundation for its ecosystem's long-term growth and wider adoption.