Prior to “the Merge,” Ethereum has just finished its final upgrade.
Tuesday saw the debut of Bellatrix, the Ethereum’s most recent hardfork.
The update brought the second-largest blockchain one step closer to the long-awaited Merge update.
Many personalities around Ethereum celebrated the update as it was released, including Prysmatic Labs developer Terence Tsao, host of The Daily Gwei Anthony Sassano, and numerous other well-known Ethereum community members.
Ethereum’s Two Phases Ahead of The Merge
The Beacon Chain, the network’s consensus layer also known as the first part, Bellatrix, upgraded today, in anticipation of the Merge.
Once the Total Terminal threshold barrier reaches 58750000000000000000000, Ethereum will start creating blocks using Proof-of-Stake in the second phase, which was given the name “Paris”.
The difficulty needed to mine the last Proof-of-Work block is referred to as the Total Terminal Difficulty.
It’s still unknown exactly when the upgrade will launch because it’s impacted by the network’s shifting hash rate. Nevertheless, current predictions place it around September 13 to 15.
Merge Countdown
The Bellatrix update begins the last step before Ethereum transitions its consensus network for proof-of-stake.
In anticipation of the last upgrade before the Ethereum network switches to proof of stake, the market has also reacted.
As the Merge draws closer, Ether’s (ETH) mood has turned positive after fighting against heavy market headwinds. The second-largest cryptocurrency was trading above $1,665 after rising by about 7% during the previous day.
Many anticipate what will happen to Ether after the merge is complete. Specialists anticipate that, in the long run, the currency will increase in value.
Even though it’s impossible to predict where Ethereum will go following the merge, the excitement around it suggests that although demand for the cryptocurrency may rise, its supply may fall sharply.
Given that Ethereum will not issue new coins with the velocity as it did with mining, Ether is believed to go through a “deflationary process”, meaning that the cryptocurrency’s supply will decrease because fewer coins will be created.
