Ethereum Team Tests Fast Confirmation Rule to Reduce Cross-Chain Bridge Time to ~13 Seconds

According to Cointelegraph, the Ethereum client teams are testing a mechanism called Fast Confirmation Rule (FCR), designed to reduce confirmation times for deposits from L1 to L2 networks and exchanges to approximately 13 seconds—a reduction of up to 98% compared to current methods. The mechanism was proposed by Ethereum researcher Julian Ma. FCR determines whether a block can be considered confirmed by evaluating validator attestations, rather than relying on the traditional method of counting block confirmations. Its operation is based on two assumptions: that network message propagation is sufficiently fast, and that no single entity holds more than 25% of staked ETH. Currently, most users rely on the canonical bridge for asset transfers, a process that typically requires waiting about 13 minutes. While some exchanges and L2s use a "k-deep" confirmation rule to shorten wait times, this approach lacks formal security guarantees. FCR can be deployed without a hard fork, allowing nodes to enable it independently without requiring network-wide coordination. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has expressed support, stating that under specific network conditions, the mechanism can provide "hard guarantees" for transactions within a single slot (approximately 12 seconds). However, some community members remain skeptical, expressing concerns about whether the trust assumptions underlying FCR can hold under network stress. Work on client and API integrations is currently ongoing.