Ethereum Merge

It's slim pickings for equity investors looking to trade one of the biggest events in the crypto industry, but there are a few options, including Coinbase ...

[Goldman Sachs](https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/09/08/crypto-exchange-coinbase-to-benefit-near-term-from-staking-revenues-after-ethereum-merger-goldman-says/) and [JPMorgan](https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/08/17/coinbase-will-be-meaningful-beneficiary-of-ethereum-merge-jpmorgan-says/) analysts also saw the Merge as potential short-term positive catalyst for Coinbase. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of [Digital Currency Group](https://dcg.co/), which invests in [cryptocurrencies](https://dcg.co/#digital-assets-portfolio) and blockchain [startups](https://dcg.co/portfolio/). [potential impact](https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2022/08/17/tornado-cash-fallout-can-ethereum-be-censored/) of the U.S. [strict set of editorial policies](/ethics/). This might bring the debate over environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects of PoW versus PoS to the forefront because it could allow some institutional investors, who were barred from buying tokens that run on PoW, to purchase ether for the first time, Bank of America analysts said in a [report](https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2022/09/12/bank-of-america-says-the-ethereum-blockchains-upgrade-may-lead-to-greater-institutional-adoption-of-ether/) this week. 18, that he prefers [not censoring](https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/08/18/coinbase-ceo-suggests-exchange-wont-censor-transactions-on-pos-ethereum/) transactions to and from those addresses after the transition to proof-of-stake. Chipmakers such as Nvidia (NVDA) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) for the GPUs may also see knock-on effects resulting from the Merge. The company focuses on yield generation and providing infrastructure that supports the Ethereum ecosystem, according to its website. “Staking rewards continue to represent attractive revenue opportunities for long-term investors as they provide returns that are paid in kind,” investment bank Stifel Canada analyst Bill Papanastasiou said in an Aug. “At current [ether] ETH price/staked ETH we estimate COIN could generate $250MM revenue and $60MM contribution profit annualized,” said investment bank Cowen’s analysts led by Stephen Glagola in a Sept. Nevertheless, there are some potential plays in equity markets, crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN) among them, according to Wall Street analysts. “Many institutional investors are looking forward to [trading]

Ethereum is changing: moving from proof of work to proof of stake. But what does this mean to ordinary users? Here's what you need to know.

The move to proof of stake will add deflationary pressure to the cryptocurrency. Over time, it is possible that more ETH is burned than is issued on a yearly basis, but the merge alone will not make this happen. This combined with a drop in the issuance rate will add deflationary pressure to the cryptocurrency—but it won’t automatically make it deflationary. With proof of work, the total amount of miners are rewarded ~13,000 Ethereum per day. “You are giving your stake to someone else, who may decide to attack with that stake,” he said. Validators can be anyone with at least 32 ETH available to “stake,” or pledge, to the network. “ It is doable by anyone with a sufficiently good computer, electricity, and internet,” he said. “It hurts the network rather than helping, and the return on investment at the moment probably isn't worth it.” Right now, the cryptocurrency’s network uses the same consensus network as [Bitcoin](/resources/what-is-bitcoin-four-minute-instant-guide-explainer): proof of work. But this isn’t true—at least not yet, anyway, according to the Ethereum Foundation and experts who spoke to Decrypt. The long-awaited upgrade to the second biggest cryptocurrency by market cap is expected to take place tonight, based on [current estimates](https://ultrasound.money/). [proof of stake](https://decrypt.co/resources/proof-of-work-vs-proof-of-stake).

Circle, the issuer of USDC — the largest dollar-backed stablecoin issued on Ethereum blockchain with a market capitalization of more than $45 billion — ...

When Ethereum Classic and Ethereum went through a hard fork — a foundational event that triggers a crypto protocol to splinter into two or more blockchains — in 2016, developers for both parties were reluctant to alter their respective identification mechanisms. DeFi projects employing USDC for collateral, as such, ought to have virtually zero value on the PoW chain. “With its staking yields, it will generate an infinitely scalable, long-term source of revenue for digital asset institutions, lenders and exchanges.” “Uniswap doesn’t require oracles,” Aggarwal said. “The exact time will be announced 1 hour before launch with a countdown timer and everything including final code, binaries, config files, nodes info, RPC, explorer, etc. [preparing to fork](https://twitter.com/EthereumPoW/status/1569427804764405761) the protocol recently [tweeted](https://twitter.com/EthereumPoW/status/1569428021437935617?s=20) “ETHW mainnet will happen within 24 hours after the Merge.”

Ethereum, the second-largest blockchain behind bitcoin, is expected to begin a technical upgrade dubbed the "merge." Here are four things investors should ...

"The merge will definitely make Ethereum more secure," says Gorbunov. Due to that barrier, Gorbunov expects Ethereum to become a lot safer. [Ether](https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/ETH.CM=) is valued at about $1,600 per coin as of Sept. And as the supply of ether decreases, the value of individual coins could increase, which would be welcome news for investors. However, this model is expected to be much less energy intensive. Both are algorithms used to allow users to add new cryptocurrency transactions and keep a record of them on a blockchain network.

It's one of the biggest events in the history of crypto and blockchain and although there won't be any literal fireworks when the Ethereum blockchain moves ...

Bitcoin pioneered the proof of work model of establishing consensus across its distributed network. [The Merge](https://www.forbes.com/sites/seansteinsmith/2022/09/13/ethereums-paris-upgrade-starts-today-kicking-off-historical-final-merge-process/)” and it marks the moment that Ethereum moves from a system that requires the “validators” that keep the blockchain running to work through a computing problem to simply staking eth tokens as collateral for the privilege. [Ethereum blockchain](https://www.forbes.com/newsletters/forbescryptoassetadvisor/2022/09/14/ethereums-merge-is-happening-tonight/) moves from proof of work to proof of stake, true believers in eth are still celebrating around the world.

The historic upgrade casts aside the miners who had previously driven the blockchain, with promises of massive environmental benefits.

CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of [Digital Currency Group](https://dcg.co/), which invests in [cryptocurrencies](https://dcg.co/#digital-assets-portfolio) and blockchain [startups](https://dcg.co/portfolio/). “Now the market is roughly 70/30 in favor of this being a positive event for ETH.” [replaced by new ones](https://www.coindesk.com/layer2/2022/04/20/is-ethereum-staking-pool-lidos-growth-an-omen-of-centralization/). In general, it is impossible to predict with certainty how the markets will react to a successful Merge. In crypto markets, the Merge had become an object of speculation since at least mid-July, with traders initially viewing the event as a catalyst for a steep rally in the price of ETH. After around 15 long minutes, the Merge officially [finalized](https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2022/09/14/monitoring-the-merge-what-a-successful-ethereum-upgrade-will-look-like/), meaning it could be declared a success. “Proof-of-work is a mechanism by which you take physical resources and you convert them into security for the network. Edgington pointed to the environmental impact of the Merge upgrade as the benefit he is personally the most excited about. “I like to think of it as kind of like the switch from gasoline to electric.” “I mean, it's kind of hard to defend ‘stickers for grownups’ that emit, by some estimates, a megaton of [carbon dioxide] a week.” From an energy costs perspective, it's like Finland suddenly shut off its power grid, according to [one estimate](https://digiconomist.net/ethereum-energy-consumption). “The metaphor that I use is this idea of switching out an engine from a running car,” said Justin Drake, a researcher at the non-profit Ethereum Foundation who spoke to CoinDesk before the Merge happened.

Ethereum is launching its much awaited software upgrade. Here are the things you should know about Merge.

PoS system, alternatively, has the ability to limit the number of miners which in turn lessens the power consumption resulting in a reduction of power consumed. The primary reason for this was the final transition to a Proof of Stake consensus model, which drastically reduces the energy consumption by 99.95%, as compared to just prior to the transition. Considering the complexity of such a transition, it is going to take a lot of time. Used by the likes of Bitcoin, PoW allows miners to validate crypto transactions by lending computer power which leads to massive energy usage. 'Forking' is inevitable when it comes to the real use case of The Merge. The new software upgrade of Ethereum called 'Merge' is set to go live.

The impending Ethereum (ETH) Merge is a massive upgrade that will help the blockchain run efficiently while adding new features.

It is the process of locking up your ETH and keeping it on the Ethereum network to earn rewards in the form of new tokens. The Ethereum Merge is designed to make the blockchain more secure by addressing some of the key issues that have plagued the network in recent months. Users who currently use the ETH blockchain will continue to do so once the upgrade is complete, but the new network will be a better version of the old one. The price of ETH has dropped significantly over the past few months, which will make it easier to attract new development teams. The underlying technology for the Ethereum Merge is designed to be backward compatible. The Ethereum network is about to get a lot more interesting.

Ethereum transitioned to proof of stake shortly after the network reached “terminal total difficulty” early Thursday.

[some](https://ethereum.org/en/upgrades/merge/) have analogized to changing the engine of a rocket ship mid-flight. The transition is anticipated to be faster, more scalable, and Up until the moment of the merge, ETH was generated by “mining,” an energy-intensive process by which individuals directed huge amounts of computer power at difficult-to-solve puzzles.

The upgrade, known in the industry as the “Merge”, which changes how new transactions are verified on the Ethereum blockchain, completed early Thursday, co- ...

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The blockchain network completed the crypto world's biggest and most ambitious software upgrade to date, according to its co-founder Vitalik Buterin in a ...

Ethereum Merge, the much-awaited event in the history of the world's second-largest cryptocurrency, went live on 15 September 2022.

At its core, this is the main reason for transitioning from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS).” The Ethereum Foundation estimates energy usage will drop from around 112 terawatt-hours per year to just 0.1,” he added. According to Etherscan, a block explorer and analytics platform for ETH, more than 13.71 million coins have been staked under the deposit contract of ETH 2.0. As the Ethereum ecosystem has grown, scaling solutions have been called upon to keep dapps fast and cheap to use in terms of the transaction or ‘gas’ costs. This is a big moment for the Ethereum ecosystem. Ethereum Merge, the much-awaited event in the history of the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, went live on 15 September 2022.

Something called “the Merge” is happening this week, and it might be the most important thing to happen to the idea of decentralized currencies since the ...

[teased](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-23/ethereum-closes-in-on-long-sought-fix-to-cut-energy-use-over-99) and [delayed](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-13/ethereum-developer-says-upgrade-will-be-later-than-june?sref=C3P1bRLC), [teased](https://www.binance.com/en/news/top/6693821) and [delayed](https://academy.moralis.io/blog/the-ethereum-2-0-delay). [Future Tense](http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2012/03/future_tense_emerging_technologies_society_and_policy_.html) is a partnership of [Slate](https://slate.com), [New America](https://www.newamerica.org/), and [Arizona State University](https://www.asu.edu/?feature=research) that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society. [Weren’t Bitcoin and ETH doing badly this year?](https://slate.com/technology/2022/06/celsius-crypto-crash-bitcoin-coinbase-layoffs.html) Is that going to affect the Merge? [difficulty bomb](https://news.coincu.com/98140-ethereum-breaks-promise-the-merge-delayed/),” a program that will make it harder for users to mine ETH coins on Execution unless they connect their devices to Beacon Chain. [Bellatrix](https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2022/09/06/the-final-countdown-to-the-ethereum-merge-has-officially-begun/)” upgrade, which prepares Beacon Chain’s technology to combine with the broader network. [roadmap for implementing a new version of their blockchain](https://blog.chainsafe.io/ethereum-2-0-a-complete-guide-d46d8ac914ce): Ethereum 2.0. Considering [how much hardware proof of work requires for operations](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-07/bitcoin-miners-thwarted-by-data-center-crunch-amid-profit-boom), it’s also far more physically and spatially efficient to use proof of stake instead. [all-member validation system](https://valid.network/post/decentralized-applications-the-good-the-bad-and-why-should-enterprises-care) is meant to prevent any bad actors from hijacking the system on their own. [The blocks](https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/block-bitcoin-block.asp) on Ethereum can hold more than just coins—they can represent levels and items for a certain game, certificates for membership in an online organization, or a [drawing of an ape](https://slate.com/technology/2022/06/bored-ape-yacht-club-thefts-nfts-cryptocurrency.html). Bitcoin’s energy use alone was bad enough, and when you also added in all the coins and NFTs and miscellany mined on Ethereum using a Bitcoin-style system, well, you’ve got quite the hefty footprint—like, [entire countries’ worth](https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/environment/as-cryptocurrency-becomes-mainstream-its-carbon-footprint-can-t-be-ignored-81118). (However, during this year’s Bitcoin 2022 conference, Thiel railed against Ethereum and claimed it was the “ [extreme opposite](https://decrypt.co/97251/peter-thiel-unleashes-ethereum-warren-buffett-enemies-bitcoin-2022)” of his beloved Bitcoin.) To maxis, the benefit of this system is that it’s “decentralized” in its control—as opposed to a central banking system governed by a few bureaucrats—and the collective buy-in supposedly ensures Bitcoin won’t undergo the same economic tribulations that rock fiat currency.

Ethereum, the world's second most valuable cryptocurrency, has completed a massive software upgrade that its backers claim will slash its carbon footprint.

The merger moves ethereum to a mechanism called “proof-of-stake,” which is much more energy efficient. The world’s most valuable cryptocurrency, bitcoin, was down almost 1%, trading at $20,174, according to CoinDesk. blockchain called the Beacon Chain,” it added.

Popular cryptocurrency blockchain Ethereum has completed its long-awaited switch to proof-of-stake. That upgrade process, better known as 'The Merge', ...

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The much-awaited overhaul of Ethereum known as the Merge has finally arrived to take the digital machinery at the core of the second-largest cryptocurrency ...

“The metaphor that I use is this idea of switching out an engine from a running car,” said Justin Drake, a researcher at the non-profit Ethereum Foundation who spoke to CoinDesk before the Merge happened. But the transition was a complicated technical effort – an endeavor so risky that many doubted it would happen at all. “I like to think of it as kind of like the switch from gasoline to electric.”

With the switch to proof-of-stake, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, has reduced its energy requirements. For the typical Ethereum user, ...

News continues after this ad Now that the technological aspect is complete, we can watch what happens. With the switch to proof-of-stake, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, has reduced its energy requirements.

Ethereum's core developers already have their eyes set on the network's next upgrade, Shanghai. What it will consist of, however, is up for debate.

[rolling collections of transactions into a unit](https://decrypt.co/resources/what-are-ethereum-rollups-scaling-solution-cut-transaction-costs) that is presented to the Ethereum blockchain as a single transaction. Van Der Wijden is confident though that the upgrade will occur within the next year. “Some of the more research-focused people don't really consider that all of this has to be implemented and tested,” said Van Der Wijden. There have been no updates made to the EVM in over two years, in part because incorporating those improvements into the merge would have created a massive headache for developers. Staking ETH will allow these entities to generate and collect new ETH as a reward for proving the computing power necessary to validate transactions and secure the network. And once again, the decision will have multi-billion dollar implications.

Two major news events could rock the crypto market this month. Here's what experts think, and why it matters for crypto investors.

[ethereum](https://time.com/nextadvisor/investing/cryptocurrency/price/ethereum-eth/) [merge](https://time.com/nextadvisor/investing/cryptocurrency/ethereum-merge-price-this-week/) took place on Thursday, completing one of the largest events in crypto to date. One thing’s for sure: If the last couple years have taught us anything, it’s that crypto prices are highly volatile and difficult to predict. “We believe bitcoin should ultimately be used as a proxy for direction in the broader crypto market,” Kruger said. The market is particularly volatile right now, as inflation numbers send crypto and stock prices tumbling ahead of another likely rate increase next week at the Fed meeting. [saw similar tumbling](https://time.com/nextadvisor/investing/latest-stock-market-news/) following the CPI release, and the crypto market has increasingly tracked the stock market in recent months. “Given how things have been correlating, and considering this latest inflation data, we expect more downside pressure in crypto as investors are forced to contend with the reality of higher for longer monetary policy that strains growth prospects and weighs on sentiment. The Fed is essentially attempting to cool down the economy in order to rein in rising prices. “There’s no doubt the CPI report has triggered a fallout in risk assets and crypto markets by extension,” said Joel Kruger, Market Strategist at LMAX Group, a financial technology firm headquartered in London that operates foreign currency and crypto exchanges. The ethereum merge has been highly anticipated in the crypto community, and it was finally completed in the wee hours of the morning on Thursday. The change could cut ethereum’s electricity expenditure by an estimated 99.95%, [according to the Ethereum Foundation](https://ethereum.org/en/upgrades/merge/#main-content). Among other concerns, unforeseen bugs in the blockchain could cause outages, which could lead to significant price drops. [Bitcoin’s](https://time.com/nextadvisor/investing/cryptocurrency/price/bitcoin-btc/) prices have gyrated similarly.

The price stability that prevailed after Ethereum's shift to a more energy-efficient "proof-of-stake" network suddenly evaporated as ether slid 9.1%, ...

CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of [Digital Currency Group](https://dcg.co/), which invests in [cryptocurrencies](https://dcg.co/#digital-assets-portfolio) and blockchain [startups](https://dcg.co/portfolio/). In the weeks before the Merge, bitcoin and ether appeared to be traveling on separate trajectories. [strict set of editorial policies](/ethics/). In total, 12%, or 305, nodes appeared to be recalcitrant, with the transition with the majority from the Geth network. “We expect this volatility for at least the next 24 hours.” Investors should definitely be cautious, as always, and expect volatility in price and narrative," he added. “I think that you wouldn’t have to throw many rocks to find a fund that has a healthy nine-figure position on the merge, long spot short derivatives or something like that," said Abraham Chaibi, co-founder of Dexterity Capital. “ETH peaked at $2,000 one month ago and has seen a sharp drop today once the Merge was deemed successful. [blockchain data](https://twitter.com/ASvanevik/status/1570268736229199872) showing that investors were sending ETH to crypto exchanges in droves – often taken as a sign that holders are getting ready to dump. The [CoinDesk Market Index](https://www.coindesk.com/indices/cmi/) was down about 4%. “We’ve also seen market depth decrease and spreads increase, so that will likely factor into larger price movements.” [quoted on the "Bankless" podcast as saying](https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/22/07/28238848/vitalik-buterin-the-merge-isnt-priced-in-yet) the Merge was “not going to be priced in pretty much until after it happens.” [According to EtherNodes](https://www.ethernodes.org/merge), 88% of ether nodes were Merge-ready and synced in the moments leading up to the event.

“Graphics processing units (GPU) mining is dead less than 24 hours after the Merge,” tweeted Ben Gagnon, chief mining officer at bitcoin miner Bitfarms (BITF).

CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of [Digital Currency Group](https://dcg.co/), which invests in [cryptocurrencies](https://dcg.co/#digital-assets-portfolio) and blockchain [startups](https://dcg.co/portfolio/). [strict set of editorial policies](/ethics/). Alongside a rising hashrate, however, is rising difficulty, meaning miners are less likely to successfully mine a block and reap the block reward. [what households in the U.S. However, the software update – dubbed the Merge – also meant that miners were no longer needed to secure the network, and so rig operators moved their machines to other PoW blockchains. [proof-of-stake](https://www.coindesk.com/learn/2020/12/30/what-is-proof-of-stake/) from [proof-of-work](https://www.coindesk.com/learn/2020/12/16/what-is-proof-of-work/) in order to boost efficiency and lower energy consumption.

Until now, both ethereum and bitcoin were running on proof-of-work, which requires high-powered computers to verify transactions and “mine” new coins across a ...

[Sign up](https://www.cnn.com/specials/nightcap?source=article) and you'll get all of this, plus some other funny stuff we liked on the internet, in your inbox every night. The unions have agreed not to strike while votes are being tallied, which means the negotiators have bought themselves a couple of weeks. Even though it's technically possible for bitcoin to alter its infrastructure, as ethereum just demonstrated, "bitcoiners view proof-of-work as a superior way of securing the network." In short, the merge would put the core infrastructure of ethereum on a more environmentally sustainable path, reducing its carbon footprint by 99%, according to the nonprofit behind the network. The workers who operate America's freight trains were at their breaking point, often working 14 days in a row, with no sick days (paid or unpaid) and constant fear of termination if they miss work for medical reasons. Similarly, workers at Kellogg continued to strike in December after negotiators thought they'd reached a settlement. (OK, most nights — we believe in a four-day work week around here.) Here's the deal: It's been a rough year for cryptocurrencies and their legions of fans. Per Biden's statement: "These rail workers will get better pay, improved working conditions, and peace of mind around their health care costs — all hard-earned." - (Ugh, I realize that still might sound like sci-fi, but the longer explanation would seriously put everyone to sleep. - But medical time off won't be paid. Bitcoin, by far the largest token, has fallen roughly 70% from its high nearly a year ago.

Ethereum's merge, which transitioned to an eco-friendly consensus model, was successfully completed overnight. A report from the Crypto Carbon Ratings ...

It’s just not tied to Ethereum itself anymore, which should help the network shed the [environmental concerns](https://decrypt.co/109623/ethereum-merge-ends-environmental-debate-nfts) that will continue to be linked to Bitcoin and other such cryptocurrencies. [Digiconomist](https://digiconomist.net/ethereum-energy-consumption), a site from noted crypto critic Alex de Vries. Whether ETHW retains long-term interest remains to be seen, but in the short term, some former Ethereum miners hope to profit in that space. According to an initial report out this morning, [Ethereum](https://decrypt.co/resources/what-is-ethereum-quickly-explained-four-minute-guide)’s energy needs and carbon footprint have both fallen even more than anticipated. As a result, Ethereum’s estimated annual CO2 emissions have dropped from over 11 million tons to just under 870—less than the combined total of 100 average American homes, It also suggests the blockchain's carbon footprint has dropped by just over 99.99% as well.