The upcoming Ethereum blockchain upgrade has received different reactions and comments within the crypto industry. The launch of the upgrade, also known as the Merge, is to be within August 2022.
Many experts in the system have confidence that Merge could be a that would positively impact the blockchain. But there are still some concerns about the possible post-merge hard forks on the network.
When it comes to the cryptocurrency space, every network has a consensus mechanism for its operations. This is what helps in the validation of transactions and to maintain the security of the ecosystem.
Also, it ensures the positive sustainability of the network by creating new blocks and tokens. The most popularly used mechanisms are the Proof-of-Work (PoW) and Proof-of-Stake (PoS).
The Ethereum blockchain has been using the PoW mechanism, which requires a mining process for its transaction validation. The process consumes a lot of electricity or energy as it requires using computing machines. Also, most miners use fossil fuels to generate power, creating environmental pollution through carbon emissions.
But the Merge is a formidable change for Ethereum as the network would finally shift from PoW to PoS consensus mechanism. Moreover, the transition would solve the issues of energy usage inefficiency and reduce carbon threats in the atmosphere.
The blockchain must rely on staking for transaction validations and adding new blocks. But some setbacks could follow the transition.
Most of the concerns are centered on miners’ hard fork of the Ethereum network. According to Kevin Zhou of Galois Capital, there could be up to three hard forks on the blockchain with the launch of Merge.
Concerns About Post Ethereum Merge Hard Forks Increase
There are growing concerns in post-merge hard forks as the launch of Merge gets closer. The founder of Tron and Poloniex Exchange, Justin Sun, has pledged his support for any Ethereum hard forks.
However, for Barry Silbert, the founder of Digital Currency Group, support is only for Ethereum and Ethereum Classic. He maintained that he has no support for any post-merge hard fork on the blockchain.
On its part, Chainlink has stated its support for Ethereum’s Proof-of-Stake layer. The protocol made its stance public through a blog post. It mentioned that it would not facilitate any hard fork from the Ethereum blockchain. Furthermore, Chainlink confirmed that Ethereum’s move to PoS is a unanimous decision by the community, and it agrees with such a change.
Also, in its advice, Chainlink pointed out how smart contracts could circumvent possible issues with post-merge. However, there should be a hold on their operations once they lack a distinctive strategy for migration after the Merge.
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