Ethereum Merge date announced for ‘biggest event in crypto history’

ETH sees price surge ahead of switch to proof-of-stake, which will reduce electricity consumption by a factor of 1,000

The Ethereum ‘Merge’ will cut the cryptocurrency’s electricity consumption by a factor of 1,000 (Getty Images/ iStock)

The developers of the Ethereum cryptocurrency have announced the dates for the highly anticipated ‘Merge’ event, which will vastly reduce its electricity consumption.

The Ethereum Foundation revealed on Wednesday that the upgrade to its underlying technology will take place in two stages, with the first set to occur on 6 September, 2022. The second and final step will then be completed at some point between 10-20 September.

The event will see Ethereum switch from a proof-of-work to a proof-of-stake protocol, meaning that it will no longer require vast amounts of computing power to mint new units of the cryptocurrency and verify transactions. Instead stakeholders of the cryptocurrency will do the job of validating the network, slashing energy useage by a factor of 1,000.