We will soon witness a historic transformation for the Ethereum cryptocurrency. The Merger is scheduled to arrive between September 13 and 15, and its release is eagerly awaited! The first Bellatrix stage went off without a hitch on September 6th. The Beacon Chain is now compliant with the new Proof of Stake system.
While waiting for the decisive date, investors are prepared to anticipate the possible rise of Ethereum in the coming days. You may have heard about the changes planned for Ethereum without understanding all the details. In this article, we present to you all the recurring questions people might have about The Merge!
The Merger, what?
The Merge is the name given to the transfer of Ethereum from its system Proof of Work (PoW) to Proof of Stake (PoS) system.. Both make it possible to validate transactions between two actors, such as a bank in traditional finance.
But PoW has a major flaw. Transactions are validated through calculations that increase in difficulty as tokens are generated. The Proof of Stake system eliminates the need for computation and replaces it with validators (nodes) that verify the transactions themselves. In both systems, the collector or miner is rewarded for participating in the system with tokens.
What are the tangible benefits of The Merge
By eliminating mining to validate transactions, Ethereum will gain a lot of efficiency. First, the cost of energy to generate signals will almost drop to 0. In addition, the speed of transaction fees will be greatly improved. However, it will take some time before this depends on average users.
Is the PoS system secure?
If PoS is considered necessary for the blockchain, it still is a critical opinion can be given. Despite all of PoW’s flaws, it has proven itself over the years by proving its resilience against the ravages of time. As for PoS, it is still a relatively new technology, and not all the details are available to the experts.
Some Experts fear that PoS may allow some monopoly by collectors. Because, in fact, it encourages them to own as many tokens as possible to make maximum profit through their participation in the blockchain. With PoS, the more tokens you have, the more you get rewarded when you validate transactions.
Can I become an Ethereum collector?
Yes, provided you can question 32 ETH. This amount corresponds to a block of Ethereum that will give you fixed returns. But currently it is impossible for you to collect your rewards before 6 months or 1 year after The Merge.
Staker 32 ETH is not available for everyone, that is why it is possible participate in pools of multiple collectors which together represent a block of 32 ETH. To do this, you can go to platforms like Coinbase or Kraken.
Should Ethereum holders do anything for The Merge?
No. If you currently have ETH tokens, you do not need to do anything for this transfer. Your balance will remain the same and you will be able to use the new network as you see fit.
But, Ethereum nodes and software providers need to be updated to be eligible for the new PoS system. Last I heard, almost 25% of the nodes had not yet been updated for The Merge according to Vitalik, co-founder of Ethereum. This one encourages them to do it before the merge!
The merger is expected to take place around September 13-15. What’s happening today is Bellatrix’s hard fork, which *prepares* the chain for the merge. Still important though – make sure to update your customers!
— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) September 6, 2022
Can the Merger be a failure?
Yes, but not likely. The Merger is an unprecedented event that has caused much ink to flow. But, all the tests performed on the networks connected to Ethereum have been successful with Goerli being the latest. In total, almost a dozen simulations were performed before the transition to The Merge. So there is very little chance that The Merge will have any issues when it is released.
Will owning Ethereum give me money for nothing?
Some Ethereum miners are not very happy with the transition from crypto to PoS. Therefore, they plan forming a network parallel to the ETH network postMerge. To do this, they plan to clone the main blockchain while continuing to operate the PoW network. If you held ETH before The Merge then you may have to receive signals from this PoW network. But the terms and conditions for getting your due are not yet clear. You will have to keep yourself informed of the progress to find out more about this.
Where you can invest in the new Ethereum 2.0
As previously stated, you only need to buy ETH a normal way to invest in The Merge’s new ETH post. So, all you have to do is go to classic exchange platforms like Binance or Coinbase for example. You can also buy it through an encrypted wallet like MetaMask or TrustWallet.
Crypto-assets are a risky investment.
