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Number Of New Ethereum Validators Remains Flat Ahead Of Shanghai Upgrade

There is no marked shift in the number of new addresses depositing the required 32 ETH, the minimum amount required to be deposited into the Beacon Chain for holders who wish to operate a validator node, into the official Beacon Chain Deposit Address ahead of the Shanghai Upgrade on Ethereum.

The Shanghai Upgrade is scheduled for March 2023 and this hard fork will allow stakers to unlock ETH locked in the Beacon Chain.

Number of New ETH Depositors Falling

Apart from the spike in new deposits in the second quarter of 2021, the number of new accounts depositing 32 ETH is declining. The figure remains flat throughout the second half of 2021, the better part of 2022, and January 2023. 

Data from Cryptoquant shows that 49 new accounts deposited 32 ETH into the Beacon Chain on January 23, down from 210 recorded less than 10 days earlier on January 13. This is nothing compared to the 2,158 new depositors recorded on May 27, 2021. 

Ethereum shifted from a proof of work system to a staking system in 2022 via the Merge. During the Merge, the proof-of-work algorithm was officially switched off as the network transited to a staking system, replacing miners with validators. 

Validators are required to stake at least 32 ETH. This amount is needed to ensure that they comply with the network’s rules. Validators are tasked with confirming on-chain transactions and securing the network.

The stake amount is “slashed” whenever they try acting maliciously, or their performance drops, falling lower than the network stipulates. In extreme cases, other Ethereum validators can “slash” the offending validator, wiping out their entire stake.

Proof-of-Stake In Ethereum Fosters Decentralization

The growth in the number of unique accounts, mostly validators depositing over 32 ETH, has been linear since late 2020. To illustrate, the number of unique depositors rose from 77 on November 4, 2020, to 82,634 on January 24, 2023. This steady growth is a positive for Ethereum as a network. It could be an indicator of the positive response from the community. 

By eliminating miners for validators, the playing field is leveled for everyone, including those who couldn’t afford to buy mining gear or actively keep track of graphic card prices. Ethereum validators are required to ensure their nodes operate with high reliability and 100% up-time. This is in place of operating mining rigs which were energy intensive, scarce, and generally expensive.

As of January 25, over $25.2 billion worth of ETH was officially locked in the official Beacon Chain Deposit Address. The dollar value, however, fluctuates depending on the ETH spot rates.

Ethereum Price on January 25

After peaking in late November 2021, ETH prices have more than halved to spot rates at $1,556 on January 2023 at the time of writing. On June 18, 2022, ETH prices fell to a cycle low of $880. 

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New Findings Shows Institutional Investors Take More Interest In Ethereum

As the launching of the long-awaited Ethereum upgrade, Merge, approaches, there’s a spike in institutional investment. Ethereum products are receiving more attention from big-shot investors.

Though there is no stated period for the Merge, most developers anticipate the upgrade by September 19. However, most Ethereum derivatives are getting more investment deals as the final phase details are revealed.

James Butterfill, the Head of Research of CoinShares, stated that investors’ sentiment for Ethereum products is changing. Butterfill made this known in the latest edition of Digital Asset Fund Flows Weekly Report. He noted that the sudden intensity and desire from the investors is due to the Merge approach.

According to the report, most institutional investors make preferential investments in Ethereum products. Hence they are pushing in more funds as they believe in the great possibility of the Ethereum network.

ETH maintains a steady uptrend on the chart l Source: ETHUSDT on TradingView

To them, upgrading the global second largest cryptocurrency would create a more positive and profitable impact. Due to the change in sentiment, the report noted that Ethereum had seen more inflows amounting to about $16 million. This resulted in a seven-week pattern of inflows that accumulated up to $159 million.

So, Butterfill reports that the change in the investors’ sentiment signifies more clarity with the Merge’s timing. This would create the desired transition for the Ethereum network as it moves from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS).

Ethereum blockchain has been operating with a PoW consensus mechanism for its transaction validation and security of its network.

Unfortunately, this involves using the mining process that consumes more energy or electricity. But the Merge would transform the system of operation for the blockchain. First, it would start using the more energy-efficient staking process that requires the staking of ETH tokens.

Plan For Ethereum Merge Has Been A Tough One

The plan for the shift has been delayed for several months. But as the date for the launch approaches, Ethereum proponents are having their fun-filled season. The journey has taken several rough routes that include changes in roadmaps, ambiguous terminology, and, lastly, the recent opposition to the Merge.

On the part of its founder, Vitalik Buterin, he kept announcing all the possible hard forks to the transition. This action is an excellent advantage for any PoW blockchain that may opt for a change in the future.

However, some prominent personalities in the industry don’t mind a hard fork. For example, Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, pledged the listing of both ETHs and ETHw tokens on his Poloniex exchange. Also, BitMEX revealed its support for any ETHPoW fork.

Once it finally happens, it will link the Ethereum mainnet and the Ethereum 2.0 Beacon Chain for a complete transition to PoS. Hence, Ethereum 2.0 would receive increased efficiency and security in its execution of transactions.’

Also, there would be a drastic reduction of carbon emission into the environment by over 99% as the network become energy efficient. This was one of the main criticisms against Ethereum as a PoW network.

Featured image from Pixabay, Chart from TradingView.com

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Ethereum Price Surges Following The Final Testnet Details

The Ethereum community has been anticipating the move from the Proof-of-Work (PoW) to the Proof-of-Stake mechanism. Luckily for everyone, the Merge will soon occur, and reports show that the developers are approaching the final test phase before the significant event.

Tim Beiko, the lead developer on Ethereum, disclosed these details on July 28. According to him, the testnet transition will take place on the Goerli testnet, a close simulation of the Ethereum mainnet.

Goerli/Prater Merge Announcement

Prater will run through the Bellatrix upgrade on August 4th, and merge with Goerli between August 6-12th: if you run a node or validator, this is your last chance to go through the process before mainnet https://t.co/JAz5AJe12B

— Tim Beiko | timbeiko.eth (@TimBeiko) July 27, 2022

This version is known as Prator, and the date will be between August 6 and 12. The network upgrade will be called Paris, but another upgrade, Bellatrix, will position Prater well for the Goerl Merge.

According to Beiko, the date for the Bellatrix upgrade will be on August 4. However, the lead developer also stated that validators and those who run nodes on Ethereum should pass through the process to prepare thoroughly for the mainnet move to PoS.

Final Preparations Before Moving To PoS

According to the information released, the network has to complete one more testnet. The developers have completed many devnets, merges, and shadow forks on deprecated testnets. For instance, early in July, the developers ended the ninth shadow fork testing the MEV boost feature.

In the announcement, the lead developer stated that node operators must update their execution and consensus layer clients in tandem. But for stakers and holders of Ethereum, there’s nothing to do now. Those to take action are the testnet participants and node operators.

Regarding the significant Merge, the community already knows it will take place on September 19, as the developers previously announced. But if there is an issue with the Goerli testing phase, the date might be pushed forward again.

Merge Becomes The Most Significant Ethereum Upgrade

Since Ethereum started operating on July 30, 2015, this is the highest upgrade on the network. But the plans to migrate to the Poof-of-Work mechanism have been ongoing for some years. Unfortunately, the developers have had many delays, which haven’t been okay with the community.

ETH price is moving upwards on the chart. Source: ETHUSDT Tradingview

Thankfully, September 2022 will mark the end of the frustrations. For instance, traders have staked 13.1 million ETH on Beacon Chain, worth $21.5 billion. Even though these stakers earn 4.6% APY in Ether, withdrawing the gains will only occur many months after the Merge.

The announcement also brought another price surge for ETH as it gained by 15% on July 28 to sell at $1,667 during the morning hours of the Asian trading session. This position shows a 47% increase over two weeks, even though it has yet to reach its 2021 highest price point.

Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView.com