By
Chimamanda U. Martha
April 24th, 2024
The Ethereum Merge Mainnet Readiness Checklist highlights several tasks for developers pending the mainnet launch.
In preparation for the Merge, the third and last testnet, Goerli was recently finalized. According to Ethereum developer Tim Beiko, the Readiness Checklist suggests that all preparations are completed for the launch of one of the major upgrades in blockchain history. The Ethereum Merge Mainnet Readiness Checklist highlights several tasks for developers pending the mainnet launch. The Checklist is also divided into “Specification, Testing, Testnets, and R&D.”
This means that several tasks including software implementation, testing, document release, research, development, etc have been completed, bringing the Merge a step closer to the scheduled date (September 15).
The research and development involve “Transition Process Analysis, Stress tests, Fee Market behavior changes, and Execution-layer sync.”
The fuse surrounding the Merge largely involves the changes that the network may be subjected to. It is important to note that the circulating supply of ETH may be reduced after the upgrade due to the EIP-1559 burning mechanism. This means the asset would become deflationary. Many anticipate a surge in ETH price after the Merge. In an interview, Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum co-founder, stated that the asset price could rise under the right conditions. If the “waiting period” concept is considered, the right condition is expected to come in 6-8 months after the Merge.
“I expect that the merge is going to be kind of not priced in, by which I mean like not even just like market terms but even just kind of like psychological and narrative terms,” said Buterin.
Also, the Ethereum team has responded to several misconceptions surrounding the Merge. According to them, the upgrade would not reduce gas fees, increase transaction speed, and will not enable the immediate withdrawal of staked ETH (stETH).
The Ethereum price following the FOMC meeting and deflationary pressure surged to $2000, then pulled back to a current price of $1,854. In the last 24 hours, ETH is down by 1.42% and 62% from its all-time high. Analysts have observed that the price is currently in a bullish mode, and could hit $1990 by the end of the day. Its resistance support is currently set at $1714. As the second largest crypto by market cap, its price surge is expected to have a drop-down effect on the rest of the market.