Leaders.com
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Business
  • Leadership
  • Wealth
  • Master Classes
  • Business
    • Entrepreneurs
    • Executives
    • Marketing and Sales
    • Social Media
    • Innovation
    • Women in Business
  • Leadership
    • Personal Growth
    • Company Culture
    • Public Speaking
    • Productivity
    • Hiring
    • Social Issues
    • Leaders
  • Wealth
    • Investing
    • Cryptocurrency
    • Retirement
    • Venture Capital
    • Loans and Borrowing
    • Taxes
    • Markets
    • Real Estate
  • Master Classes
  • Login
  • Subscribe
Cryptocurrency Ethereum

Ethereum Merge finished last night (Photo Illustration by Avishek Das/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

By Tyler Hummel Leaders Staff

Tyler Hummel

Tyler Hummel

Tyler Hummel is a news writer for Leaders Media. He was the Fall 2021 College Fix Fellow and Health Care...

Full bio


Learn about our editorial policy

Sep 15, 2022

A Major Change for Ethereum Enthusiasts 

The second largest cryptocurrency received a significant technological update last night. 

Key Details

  • Crypto enthusiasts have been awaiting a major update to Ethereum, the second largest blockchain. 
  • Ethereum has officially changed over to a new consensus method that will change the way the currency processes transactions. 
  • “And we finalized! Happy merge all. This is a big moment for the Ethereum ecosystem,” says Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.
  • Merge, part of the ongoing transition into Ethereum 2, swaps the system from a proof-of-work system to a proof-of-stake system, similar to bitcoin.  
  • The overhaul is claimed to reduce the chain’s energy costs by 99.95%, although will not improve network fees or transaction speed, Coinbase reports. 

Why it’s important

One of the largest criticisms of cryptocurrency is the power consumption required by miners who need large computer rigs to mine new currency. These rigs are a major energy consumer that offsets less environmentally demanding currencies, as estimates suggest bitcoin mining consumes 150-terawatt-hours per year. 

“For blockchain critics, it will massively reduce the energy consumption of Ethereum—maybe by 99%. For ether holders, it will reduce the emissions of that coin, which should improve price appreciation,” says Axios. 

The changeover is complicated for Ethereum users though, many of whom were required to upgrade their computer rigs in order to keep up with the new demands of the blockchain. 

“Lots of decentralized node operators actually had to update their code—none of these people are employees of Ethereum. That’s not how Ethereum works. If all these independent network users all over the world hadn’t upgraded their software to the latest version, The Merge wouldn’t have worked,” says Axios. 

The problem

Both systems are designed to protect the integrity of the blockchains and dissuade malicious users, although advocates for both sides see vulnerabilities. Critics of Proof-of-Stake site security risks with the new system. 

“PoW proponents counter that PoS staking carries its own centralization and security risks, making it possible for malicious actors to directly “buy” control of the network. They also point out that PoS is a less battle-tested system than PoW, which has proven resilient as the backbone of the two largest blockchain networks,” says Coinbase.

“Nothing catastrophic has happened yet, despite plenty of dark predictions by an army of short-sellers,” says Gizmodo. 

What’s not being said

The Merge is not going to address Ethereum’s excessively high transaction fees, although the chain owners have looked into ways to address that issue now that proof-of-stake is implemented. 

“Ethereum hopes to permanently lower gas fees on its main layer after the Merge through sharding, which would split the network into smaller pieces and distribute data settlement more efficiently. The Surge, as the transition to sharding is known, is slated to happen sometime in 2023, though that may be an optimistic estimate,” says Blockworks. 

Home / News / A Major Change for Ethereum Enthusiasts 
Share
FacebookTweetEmailLinkedIn

Related Stories

BP Backs Away From Renewables

by Savannah Young Leaders Staff
Business

6 hours ago

“At the end of the day, we’re responding to what society wants,” says BP CEO Bernard Looney as the company shifts away from renewable energy to focus on gas and oil.

BP is slowing down on the switch to renewable energy as oil continues to be the main profit driver.

Key Details

  • BP said it's slowing down on renewable energy and focusing most of its spending on oil and gas production.
  • The company reported a record profit of $28 billion for 2022 as it capitalized on soaring energy costs leaning away from renewable energy.
  • “At the end of the day, we’re responding to what society wants,” says BP CEO Bernard Looney.

Go deeper

FacebookTweetEmailLinkedIn

Google Announces ChatGPT Rival 

by Tyler Hummel Leaders Staff
Tech

7 hours ago

Google

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai has revealed his company’s alternative to the revolutionary artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot ChatGPT—Bard.  

Key Details

  • Alphabet and Google have scrambled in the past few months to prepare their alternative to Microsoft and OpenAI’s ChatGPT AI chatbot. 
  • The company was put on the back foot by the success of Microsoft’s $10 billion investment in OpenAI, which threatens to turn Bing into the most cutting-edge search engine on the market. 
  • The Financial Times reports that the company has invested $300 million into a 10% stake in Anthropic, an AI research and safety company with its own AI model called Claude. 
  • In a Monday blog post, the company finally revealed Bard—a propriety chatbot being tested that will be integrated into Google’s search engine.

Go deeper

FacebookTweetEmailLinkedIn

Amazon Reaps Gains Of Media Investments

by Hannah Bryan Leaders Staff
Entertainment

8 hours ago

amazon prime

After several years of investing in high-budget movie and show content on its Amazon Prime platform, Amazon says the investment is beginning to pay off.

Key Details

  • Since 2020, Amazon has steadily increased its budget for original video and music content from $11 billion to $16.6 billion last year.
  • In a fourth-quarter earnings call, CFO Brian Olsavsky told investors that the high-budget content drew more subscribers to Amazon’s Prime services. 
  • Amazon’s total sales last year were around $289 billion, an enormous number compared to the amount spent on content last year. 

Go deeper

FacebookTweetEmailLinkedIn
Innovation

9 hours ago

The A.I. Battle Of the Giants

by Hannah Bryan Leaders Staff
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried was the Democrat Party’s second-largest donor and now the company is asking for donations back
Cryptocurrency

Feb 6, 2023

FTX Asks For Donations Back

by Savannah Young Leaders Staff
After continued downfalls in the cryptocurrency sector, policymakers in Washington, D.C., have turned hostile on crypto, and many fear an oncoming crypto crackdown
Cryptocurrency

Feb 6, 2023

Washington’s Crypto Crackdown

by Savannah Young Leaders Staff

Recent Articles

Wealth

11 hours ago

How to Pay Sole Proprietorship Taxes and Avoid IRS Penalties

Sole proprietorship taxes include income taxes and self-employment taxes.

Entrepreneurs

Feb 6, 2023

Here’s a Step by Step Guide on How to Start a Podcast

Eliminate confusion, create a podcast in 15 detailed steps

Wealth

Feb 3, 2023

The Most Landlord-Friendly States in 2023

Invest in landlord-friendly states to make more profits

  • Business
  • Leadership
  • Wealth
Join the Leaders Community

Get exclusive tools and resources you need to grow as a leader and scale a purpose-driven business.

Subscribing indicates your consent to our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy

Leaders.com
  • Privacy Policy
  • About
  • Careers
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
  • Disclosures
  • Editorial Policy
  • Member Login

© 2023 Leaders.com - All rights reserved.

Search Leaders.com