Ethereum price up 2% in day after preparations start on major upgrade

Brian McGleenon
Updated ·2 min read
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DENVER, CO - FEBRUARY 18: Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin speaks at ETHDenver on February 18, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. ETHDenver is the largest and longest running Ethereum Blockchain event in the world with more than 15,000 cryptocurrency devotees attending the weeklong meetup. (Photo by Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin speaks at ETHDenver on February 18, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. Photo: Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

Ethereum prices have spiked today after its core developers begin preparations for the network’s next, highly anticipated upgrade.

On Tuesday, Ethereum (ETH-USD) jumped over 2% to $1,332, up almost 4% in the past week.

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The Ethereum Foundation is working on the next major upgrade of its network, the Shanghai Upgrade and a major aspect of this update is that it will allow blockchain validators to withdraw their 32 ether from staking contracts.

After the Ethereum network 'merged' to a proof of stake blockchain, validation of transactions is not done via mining, as is still the way with bitcoin, instead holders of 32 ether (ETH-USD) or more can 'stake' their cryptocurrency and benefit from the rewards associated with being a network validator.

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However, so far, staking ether (ETH-USD) has been a one-way street, and once a validator deposits their 32 ether they cannot withdraw what they have staked.

The Shanghai Upgrade will implement code that should allow Ethereum network validators to withdraw their staked ether.

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On Friday, the Ethereum Foundation stated it was launching a pre-Shanghai testnet called “Shandong".

The 'Shangdong' testnet allows the developers to experiment with the technicalities of the Shanghai Upgrade without endangering the entire Ethereum blockchain.

The testnet will allow developers to experiment with the planned features of the Shanghai Upgrade, including the implementation of staked ether (ETH-USD) withdrawals.

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Shandong will serve as a testing ground for numerous Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) ahead of the full implementation of the Shanghai Upgrade which has been reportedly scheduled for a September 2023 launch, at the latest.

The entire cryptocurrency market increased today by 1.6% to $980bn, with bitcoin (BTC-USD) standing at $19,606 as of the time of writing, a change of 1.68% over the past 24 hours.

The recent price action saw bitcoin's market cap at $376,065,208,064. The world's largest digital asset by market capitalisation is now down 57.53% in one year.

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