RIP-7212 is the first Rollup Improvement Proposal that introduces a precompiled contract for secp256r1 elliptic curve signature verification on Ethereum Layer 2 networks. Proposed by Ulaş Erdoğan and Doğan Alpaslan in June 2023, this protocol enhancement enables gas-efficient P256 curve verification at just 3450 gas units—representing a dramatic 100x reduction compared to smart contract implementations.
How RIP-7212 Enables Account Abstraction
The secp256r1 curve, also known as P-256 or prime256v1, is the cryptographic standard used by modern devices like Apple's Secure Enclave and Android's hardware security modules. By implementing the P256VERIFY precompiled contract at address 0x100, RIP-7212 allows smart contract wallets to utilize native biometric signers, eliminating the need for traditional seed phrases and recovery keys.
This breakthrough enables users to authenticate transactions using Face ID, Touch ID, or other biometric methods directly from their mobile devices. For platforms building secure wallet infrastructure, this represents a significant advancement in user experience and security.
Gas Cost Optimization and Performance
Traditional secp256r1 signature verification through smart contracts costs approximately 180,000-350,000 gas units, making it prohibitively expensive for most applications. RIP-7212's precompiled implementation reduces this to 3450 gas units, achieving similar performance efficiency to Ethereum's existing ECRECOVER precompile for secp256k1 signatures.
The proposal demonstrates that secp256r1 signature verification is approximately 15% slower than secp256k1 signature recovery, justifying the gas cost through comprehensive benchmarking against existing precompiled contracts.
Widespread Rollup Adoption
Major Layer 2 networks have rapidly adopted RIP-7212, including Polygon, Optimism, zkSync, and Arbitrum. Ethereum clients supporting the implementation include Geth, Erigon, Besu, and Reth, demonstrating broad ecosystem commitment to this standard.