Ethereum has finally completed The Merge, starting a new era of Ethereum 2.0. With this process, the Ethereum blockchain has officially moved from a proof-of-work (PoW) model to a proof-of-stake (PoS) model, which aims to improve the security and scalability of the network.
The transition took place at block 15537393 on September 15 at 06:42:42 UTC. The event took place without any hiccups, barring one missing block, which some have described as the best-case scenario.
With the move from a proof-of-work (PoW) model to a proof-of-stake (PoS) model, the Ethereum mining will no longer take place. There won't be a need to use energy-intensive computers to create or mine new Ether. As a result, the energy consumption by the Ethereum network will be reduced by 99.95%.
Instead of mining, Ethereum will rely on stakers to secure the network, and this will also open up the act to more individuals. Mining pools have been taking steps to ensure their revenue remains somewhat protected during the transition, as Ethereum was one of their bigger sources. Several have now turned their attention to Ethereum Classic (ETC) and Ravencoin (RVN).
The shift to PoS has long been planned, but the technical scale of the change was something that developers have had to keep in mind. The PoS model is believed to make Ethereum's network more secure and scalable.
Ether's price and the crypto market, in general, have remained relatively unchanged in the hours following 'The Merge,' but its real impact will only be noted in the months to come.
The PoS mechanism is one part of the effort to make Ethereum more scalable, and analysts believe that the months to come will showcase the positive effects.
While 'The Merge' does not focus on reducing
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