Ethereum

FAQ's

What is the Ethereum Vision?
A digital future on a global scale.
To grow Ethereum until it’s powerful enough to help all of humanity.
What is Ethereum 2.0?

The term ‘Ethereum 2.0’ is being phased out in preparation for The Merge.

• The terms Eth1 and Eth2 (Ethereum 2.0) are being phased out
• Execution layer (Eth1) and Consensus layer (Eth2) are the new terminologies
• The roadmap to scale Ethereum in a decentralized way remains the same
• You don’t need to do anything

Where did Ethereum 2.0 come from?

Ethereum always had, as part of its roadmap, plans to scale the network in a decentralized way and to transition to proof-of-stake. Early on, researchers worked on these efforts separately, but around 2018 they were combined into a single roadmap under the “Ethereum 2.0” umbrella.

As part of that roadmap, the existing proof-of-work chain (Eth1) would eventually be deprecated via the difficulty bomb. Users & applications would migrate to a new, proof-of-stake Ethereum chain, known as Eth2.

So why did it change?

As work began on the Beacon Chain, it became clear that the phased Ethereum 2.0 roadmap would take several years to deliver fully. This led to a revival of research initiatives on the proof-of-work chain such as Stateless Ethereum, a paradigm that would remove the untouched state from the network to bound its growth rate.

The increased focus on making the proof-of-work chain long-term sustainable paired with the realization that the Beacon Chain would be ready much earlier than other components of the Ethereum 2.0 roadmap led to an “Early Merge” proposal. This proposal would launch the existing EVM chain as “Shard 0” of the Ethereum 2.0 system. Not only would this expedite the move to proof-of-stake, but it would also make for a much smoother transition for applications, as the move to proof-of-stake could happen without any migration on their end.

For more information on the ‘Great Renaming’, read this.

What are Ethereum upgrades?

The vision is to bring Ethereum into the mainstream and serve all of humanity.

To do this, Ethereum needs to be made more scalable, secure, and sustainable.

Ethereum upgrades refers to the next generation of Ethereum which  involves interconnected protocol upgrades that will make the network more scalable, more secure, and more sustainable. These upgrades are being built by multiple teams from across the Ethereum ecosystem. The upgrades are being worked on in parallel and they have certain dependencies that determine when they will be deployed.

The key upgrades are:

• Launch the Beacon Chain (Completed)
• Mainnet Ethereum Merge with the Beacon Chain (Now)
• Sharding (ETA 2023-2024)

To learn more about the Ethereum upgrades, you can learn more here.

When are these upgrades happening?

The Ethereum upgrades are launching in several phases, with the first upgrade, called the Beacon Chain, having gone live on December 1, 2020. The Beacon Chain introduces native staking to the Ethereum blockchain, a key feature of the network’s shift to a PoS consensus mechanism. As the name suggests, it is a separate blockchain from the Ethereum mainnet.

The second phase, called “The Merge” is happening now and will merge the Beacon Chain with the Ethereum mainnet.

The final phase is sharded chains, which will play a key role in scaling the Ethereum network. Instead of settling all operations on one single blockchain, sharded chains spread these operations across 64 new chains.

This also means that it will become much easier from a hardware perspective to run an Ethereum node because there will be far less data that needs to be stored on a machine.

The full upgrades are expected to take place by 2023, according to the Ethereum Foundation.

What is The Merge?

The Merge represents the joining of the existing execution layer of Ethereum (the Mainnet we use today) with its new proof-of-stake consensus layer, the Beacon Chain. It eliminates the need for energy-intensive mining and instead secures the network using staked ETH.

Let’s consider an analogy. Imagine Ethereum is a spaceship that isn’t quite ready for an interstellar voyage. With the Beacon Chain, the community has built a new engine and a hardened hull. After significant testing, it’s almost time to hot-swap the new engine for the old mid-flight. This will merge the new, more efficient engine into the existing ship, ready to put in some serious lightyears and take on the universe.

When is The Merge?

The Merge is projected to take place on the 14 of September 2022.

Check out our countdown timer here.

Will The Merge cause downtime on the chain?

No. The Merge upgrade is designed to transition to proof-of-stake with zero downtime.

The Merge is like changing an engine on a rocketship mid-flight and is designed to be performed without needing to pause anything during the switch. The Merge will be triggered by terminal total difficulty (TTD), which is a cumulative measure of the total mining power that has gone into building the chain. When the time comes, and this criterion is met, blocks will go from being built using proof-of-work in one block to being built by proof-of-stake in the next.

Do I need to migrate to Ethereum 2.0 ?
You do not need to do anything to protect your funds entering The Merge.
As a user or holder of ETH or any other digital asset on Ethereum, as well as non-node-operating stakers, you do not need to do anything with your funds or wallet before The Merge.
Take Note
• As we approach The Merge of Ethereum Mainnet, you should be on high alert for scams trying to take advantage of users during this transition. Do not send your ETH anywhere in an attempt to “upgrade to ETH2.” There is no “ETH2” token, and there is nothing more you need to do for your funds to remain safe.
• Beware of scammers messaging you on Telegram, Twitter or Discord.
How can I stake my ETH?

It all depends on how much you are willing to stake. You will need 32 ETH to activate your own validator, but it is possible to stake less.

There are four main options to stake your ETH:

• Solo home staking

Solo staking on Ethereum is the gold standard for staking. It provides full participation rewards, improves the decentralization of the network, and never requires trusting anyone else with your funds.

Those considering solo staking should have at least 32 ETH and a dedicated computer connected to the internet ~24/7. Some technical know-how is helpful, but easy-to-use tools now exist to help simplify this process.

Learn more about solo staking here.

• Staking as a service

If you don’t want or don’t feel comfortable dealing with hardware but still want to stake your 32 ETH, staking-as-a-service options allow you to delegate the hard part while you earn native block rewards.

These options usually walk you through creating a set of validator credentials, uploading your signing keys to them, and depositing your 32 ETH. This allows the service to validate on your behalf.

This method of staking requires a certain level of trust in the provider. To limit counter-party risk, the keys to withdrawal your ETH are usually kept in your possession.

Learn more about staking as a service here.

• Pooled staking

Several pooling solutions now exist to assist users who do not have or feel comfortable staking 32 ETH.

Many of these options include what is known as ‘liquid staking’ which involves an ERC-20 liquidity token that represents your staked ETH.

Liquid staking enables easy and anytime exiting and makes staking as simple as a token swap. This option also allows users to hold custody of their assets in their own Ethereum wallet.

Pooled staking is not native to the Ethereum network. Third parties are building these solutions, and they carry their own risks.

Learn more here.

• Centralised exchanges

Many centralized exchanges provide staking services if you are not yet comfortable holding ETH in your own wallet. They can be a fallback to allow you to earn some yield on your ETH holdings with minimal oversight or effort.

The trade-off here is that centralized providers consolidate large pools of ETH to run large numbers of validators. This can be dangerous for the network and its users as it creates a large centralized target and point of failure, making the network more vulnerable to attack or bugs.

How long is my staked ETH locked up for?

Staking withdrawals are not yet enabled with The Merge. The following Shanghai upgrade will enable staking withdrawals.

Staked ETH, staking rewards to date, and newly issued ETH immediately after The Merge will still be locked on the Beacon Chain without the ability to withdraw.

Withdrawals are planned for the Shanghai upgrade, the next major upgrade following The Merge. This means that newly issued ETH, though accumulating on the Beacon Chain, will remain locked and illiquid for at least 6-12 months following The Merge

If you are interested in having liquidity on your ETH, check out Ethereum Staking Derivatives here.

How much can I earn for staking my ETH?

Check out the reward rate at the top of the Ethereum page.

Will Validators receive liquid ETH rewards before the Shanghai upgrade?

Fee tips/MEV will be credited to a Mainnet account controlled by the validator, available immediately.

The protocol issues ETH as a reward to validators for contributing to consensus. This Beacon Chain accounts for the newly issued ETH, where a validator has a unique address that holds its staked ETH and protocol rewards. This newly issued ETH is locked until the Shanghai upgrade.

ETH on the execution layer (Ethereum Mainnet as we know it today) is accounted for separately from the consensus layer. When users execute transactions on Ethereum Mainnet, ETH must be paid to cover the gas, including a tip to the validator. This ETH is already on the execution layer, is NOT being newly issued by the protocol, and is available to the validator immediately (given a proper fee recipient address is provided to the client software).

Is there a risk to stake ETH?
Depending on the type of Ethereum staking you choose to do, each option has unique and varying  risks, rewards, and trust assumptions. Some are more decentralized, battle-tested and/or risky than others.
Risks to Solo Staking:
• Your ETH is at stake
• There are penalties, which cost ETH, for going offline
• Malicious behavior can result in ‘slashing’ of larger amounts of ETH and forced ejection from the network
Risks to Staking as a Service
• Same risks as solo staking plus counter-party risk of service provider
• Use of your signing keys is entrusted to someone else who could behave maliciously
Risks to Pooled Staking
• Risks vary depending on the method used
• In general, risks consist of a combination of counter-party, smart contract and execution risk