To those who have been trying to keep up to date with the complex world of crypto, they might be aware that Ethereum is one of the most valuable cryptocurrencies in the world right now, sitting second just behind Bitcoin. While Ethereum was already a great platform, there is no doubt that that were some issues with this that was holding it back from being great enough to give Bitcoin a run for its money. Of course, they can both still be used for purchasing and selling, and even the gambling industry has adopted certain cryptocurrencies. Those who want o deposit using Ethereum have some more options here, making it clear that cryptocurrency has the potential to affect most industries.
However, the previous Ethereum platform had things that needed addressing. There were previously speed, efficiency, and scalability issues on the first Ethereum platform that made it lag behind rivals such as Bitcoin. However, this has all been changed with Ethereum 2.0, also known as Serenity. This is not a completely different platform, rather it is an upgrade of the original Ethereum.
When is Ethereum 2.0 coming out?
The new upgrade is rolling out over a rather scattered schedule. Instead of releasing as one complete update, there will be several phases that each contain part of the Ethereum 2.0. The first is called Beacon Chain, which went live on December 1st, 2020. Around a year and a half later, the second update will roll out which is scheduled to take place sometime in the second quarter of 2022. This will be called The Merge, and it is appropriately named considering that it aims to merge the Ethereum blockchain with the Beacon Chain blockchain.
The final phase of Ethereum 2.0 will be called Shard Chains, which aims to increase the scalability of the Ethereum network. It will do this by spreading blockchain operations across 64 chains instead of a single one. This is far better as it means hardware that runs Ethereum nodes will have to do less work as there will be less data stored on machines. This update is expected this year, but there is no clear information on when in 2022 this might be. Judging by the release date of The Merge, it is likely to be towards the end of the year.
Proof of Stake and Sharding
These two terms refer to the main changes that Ethereum 2.0 will bring. Instead of crypto miners, the upgrade will see a rise in validators, who propose new blocks, provide processing power, storage, and the bandwidth to validate transactions. They are paid for this periodically in Ethereum.
Sharding describes the process of splitting a blockchain into multiple blockchains – which are called shards. This allows the work to be split up more efficiently between validators, overall increasing the efficiency of the Ethereum platform.
There is no doubt that Ethereum 2.0 is something to get excited over. The original platform was already valued highly, but the advancements that the newest iteration brings will surely pique investor interests, and the applications the newest platform offers will certainly appeal to those who already enjoyed using Ethereum before.