Smart WalletsVerified Reference • August 2026
ERC-4337 Account Abstraction & Paymasters
ERC-4337 introduces smart contract wallets to Ethereum without consensus-layer protocol changes, utilizing an alternative mempool for UserOperations.
Core Architectural Highlights:
Replaces EOAs (Externally Owned Accounts) with programmable smart contract accounts.
Paymasters sponsor transaction gas fees, enabling zero-ETH USDT transfers.
Bundlers package UserOperations and submit them to canonical EntryPoint contracts.
1. UserOperation Execution Pipeline
Users sign a UserOperation struct containing sender, callData, gas limits, and paymasterAndData. Bundlers simulate the validation on Alt-Mempools before submitting to the EntryPoint contract.