The excitement surrounding the release of Ethereum (ETH) Blockchain’s latest software update, Ethereum Merge, appears to be fading at the moment. While the price of Ethereum increased by about 50% in late July after the developers revealed that September 19, 2022, was the tentative date for the release of Ethereum Merge, the price has since fallen.
According to Coinmarketcap data, Ethereum was trading at $1,609.44 at 8:00 a.m. IST on August 3, 2022, a 0.04 percent decrease.
Though several enthusiasts are now questioning Merge’s efficacy, some believe that the new update will result in Ethereum, the second largest crypto coin by market cap, posing significant competition to the market leader, Bitcoin (BTC).
Everything about the Merge
According to Ethereum’s website, the current Ethereum Mainnet will shortly merge with the Beacon Chain proof-of-stake system. This will be the end of Ethereum’s proof-of-work system.
The Merge is the most remarkable upgrade in Ethereum’s history. Extensive testing and bug bounties were conducted to assure a safe transition to proof-of-stake, according to the website.
Fresh issues
Despite the energy, there are some reservations about the Merge in some quarters. There are numerous possible risks with ETH Merge, Wintermute CEO Evgeny Gaevoy tweeted. Just because people have been working on it for years doesn’t mean it will turn out perfectly.
The blockchain advantage
The Ethereum Blockchain differs fundamentally from the Bitcoin (BTC) Blockchain in that it allows the deployment of smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps) to be built and run without any third-party fraud, control, or interference.
The most noticeable distinction is block time. The ETH Blockchain can validate a transaction in seconds, whereas the Bitcoin Blockchain takes minutes.
Presently, both Blockchains utilize the proof-of-work system to create a block and validate a transaction, but the Ethereum Mainnet will merge with the Beacon Chain proof-of-stake system shortly (possibly September 19, 2022). On December 1, 2020, the Beacon chain was established. Proof-of-stake validators will be solely responsible for determining the validity of transactions and proposing new blocks in this Blockchain.
Environmental Impact Edge
The Merge is anticipated to reduce Ethereum’s energy consumption by approximately 99.95%. This will also help to establish ETH as an environmentally friendly Blockchain. According to Digiconomist, one ETH transaction currently emits 105.98 kg CO2, and Ethereum’s annual carbon footprint is 47.43 Mt CO2.
Supply Edge
There will be no Bitcoin available for mining at the end of BTC’s roadmap. At the moment, 19 million BTCs have been mined, with only two million remainings, implying that Bitcoin may become a rare commodity in the future. On the other hand, there is no cap on the number of ETHs that can be mined over time. Vitallik recently stated that by the end of the year, Ethereum will be able to process 100,000 transactions per second.
Will Ethereum Surpass Bitcoin?
This has been on almost each crypto enthusiast’s mind since word of the Merge spread. Now, some industry experts believe it is possible, at least in the medium term. There is a high likelihood that Ethereum (ETH) will become the largest cryptocurrency in the medium term, according to Vikram Subburaj, Giottus Crypto Platform’s CEO. To continue its rise, the ecosystem must deliver on additional roadmap promises.
ETH has demonstrated relative strength against Bitcoin (BTC) in the last 2-3 weeks, generating hopes among ETH maximalists of an impending ‘flippening,’ he continues. The term ‘flippening,’ coined in 2017, refers to the possibility of ETH’s market capitalization exceeding that of BTC, making it the largest cryptocurrency.
It is worth noting that the ETH/BTC ratio must cross 0.15 in order for flipping to occur (a 120% increase from today’s rate). Given that BTC tends to surpass ETH near the end of the year, we expect BTC to regain strength in the fourth quarter of 2022. Both have their own fan bases, and such rivalry is beneficial to the crypto ecosystem as a whole.
