Ethereum Holders Shake Off Losses As Merge Draws Closer

Ethereum addresses in profit reach one month high.

According to On-chain market intelligence Glassnode, the number of Ethereum addresses in profit has reached a month high of 57.6%, breaking the previous high recorded on August 3. This means most Ethereum holders now hold the token at a higher price than they bought.

? #Ethereum $ETH Percent Addresses in Profit (7d MA) just reached a 1-month high of 57.641%

Previous 1-month high of 57.638% was observed on 03 August 2022

View metric:https://t.co/BUbkntqvVb pic.twitter.com/apuzuBByWy

— glassnode alerts (@glassnodealerts) August 8, 2022

While there is no telling what exactly is pushing the bullish run of the coin, the upcoming Ethereum merge, which will see the blockchain become a Proof-of-Stake (PoS), could pass as one of the reasons. 

Gradual market recovery

Barely a month ago, Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, was hitting all-time lows as the “crypto-winter” persisted. At its height, the token went as low as $1,019, according to data from CoinMarketCap. 

However, the market is now gradually recovering from the downturn at the start of the year, with Ethereum as one of the highest gainers since then. The token worth $1,0119 in July is now changing hands at $1,769, which many experts expect to increase significantly.

According to Arthur Hayes, BitMEX’s founder, the price of Ethereum in the coming days will be determined by the Merge. A successful merge, he predicted, could see the price go as high as $5,000, while a merge failure will see the token maintain its current price. 

The Merge  

The Merge, slated for September, will see Ethereum transition from a Proof-Of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism to a PoS. The PoS mechanism, unlike PoW, requires less computational power to validate transactions. 

This means a successful transition to a PoS will lead to faster transactions and, at the same time, less energy consumption. Since Ethereum has faced criticism for its energy use and impact on climate change, a PoS consensus mechanism will help cure these issues. 

However, the merge could also cause the Ethereum network to experience a hard fork. A fork in cryptocurrency happens when a cryptocurrency is split in two. At the head of this is Justin Sun, Tron founder, who claims a hard fork of Ethereum will allow miners to continue to operate a PoW network and not have their revenue cut off.

In response, Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin shoved off concerns about a hard fork, calling the proponents users who “want to make a quick buck.”

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