Modular Accounts¶

Compare ERC-6900 and ERC-7579 for building smart wallet systems.¶

Modular account standards define how smart accounts can be extended with plug-ins, permissions, and upgradeable logic. Two main proposals in the ecosystem are ERC-6900 and ERC-7579.

This page compares them from a developer perspective.

🖇️ What Is Modularity?¶

A modular smart account: - Delegates logic to external modules (e.g., signature validation, permission checks) - Enables upgrades or feature toggles without full redeployments - Improves auditability by isolating logic

💡 Modular accounts benefit from RIP-7712, which enables plugin-specific nonces and parallel execution lanes.

✳️ ERC-6900: Generalized Permission Graphs¶

Proposes a universal registry for modules and permissions
Emphasizes graph-based delegation (who can do what, on behalf of whom)
Enables fine-grained and reusable access control

Use case: protocol-governed wallets, DAOs, nested delegation

Pros:

Very flexible
Shared registry enables interoperability
Deep control over auth trees

Cons:

More complex to reason about
New mental model for devs unfamiliar with graphs

❇️ ERC-7579: Wallet-Centric Modules¶

Defines runtime module loading for smart accounts
Compatible with ERC-4337; enables session key enforcement via wallet-controlled module validation
Modules attach to wallets and expose specific interfaces

Use case: app-specific wallets, extensible UX, plugins

Pros:

Simple to integrate
Plug-and-play UX modules (e.g., multisig, rate limiting)
Deployed in production (Candide)

Cons:

Modules are not shared across wallets
Less granular permissioning than 6900

🌍 Ecosystem Adoption¶

For up-to-date information on ecosystem support and implementation of modular smart account standards, refer to the following official sources:

ERC-6900: Plugin-based modular account registry and validation
ERC-7579: Minimal modular interface layer for smart accounts

These pages track real-time contributions and adoption by wallet teams, infra providers, and AA tooling projects.

✅ Summary¶

Both ERC-6900 and ERC-7579 push smart accounts toward a modular future. 6900 prioritizes permission graphs and registry-level reuse, while 7579 focuses on local extensibility and simple UX. Choose based on your app’s architecture and user control requirements.