There are new signs of optimism for Ethereum, which has seen a 45% price surge starting last week, as the date for "the Merge" (the transition from PoW to PoS) is approaching.

ETH is the world's second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, and "the Merge" will be the second part of three for the Eth 2.0 upgrade. The first part was called the Beacon Chain and went live back in December 2020, running in parallel with Ethereum's main chain, the Mainnet. 

The transition from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS) was proposed to take place on Sept. 19 by one of Ethereum's developers named Tim Beiko, in a recent open developer's call for the ETH network.

The future switch to PoS technology (the blockchain tech that validates transactions on the ETH network) aims to make an upgrade to a more environmentally friendly ecosystem. On the opposite side, PoW (proof-of-work) is considered incredibly inefficient with energy consumption. 

People opposing POS blockchains say it creates a concentration of wealth for the largest holders and will likely lead blockchains to be more centralized than proof of work.

According to Nathaniel Whittemore, an influential podcaster in the crypto industry, the markets are seeing a "return of optimism."

Author: Garrett Meifert