FBP-Eth2.0: A Fast Block Propagation in Ethereum 2.0 via Parallel Execution and Proactive Compaction

Ethereum 2.0 has adopted Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus to replace the energy-intensive Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus in Ethereum 1.0. Under PoS, each block must be processed within a fixed 12-second slot, with a strict 4-second propagation window to ensure security and stability. Fast block propagation is therefore critical not only to meet this requirement but also to maximize throughput by allowing more transactions per block. However, our investigation on Ethereum 2.0 MainNet reveals that approximately 9% of blocks exceed the 4-second propagation threshold, leading to forks that undermine network reliability. This propagation delay is primarily caused by two factors: (1) serial transaction execution, which prolongs validation time; and (2) large transaction payloads, which increase transmission time. To address these challenges, we propose FBP-Eth2.0 (Fast Block Propagation in Ethereum 2.0), a novel approach that integrates two core innovations: (1) a practical parallel transaction execution scheme by classifying transactions into independent and dependent sets to reduce validation latency; and (2) a proactive compact block protocol that leverages the fixed 12-second slot to proactively exchange transaction pool snapshots among nodes, precisely identifying and replacing redundant transactions with ultra-short hashes. This proactive compaction design compresses the block while eliminating the additional communication overhead typically associated with compact block protocols, significantly improving transmission efficiency. Extensive experiments on Ethereum 2.0 MainNet demonstrate that FBP-Eth2.0 accelerates block propagation by up to 3× over existing schemes. Importantly, it reduces the ratio of blocks exceeding the 4-second threshold to below 1%.