Ethereum validators can now breathe a sigh of relief as the long-awaited Shapella hard fork has finally been executed on the Ethereum Mainnet.
With the upgrade, validators can withdraw their staked Ether and rewards from the Beacon Chain, a significant step towards a fully functional proof-of-stake system.
The hard fork went live at 10:27 PM UTC on April 12 at epoch number 194,048, after months of delays. Within the first 20 minutes of the upgrade, a total of 3,355 Ether were unlocked from 1,101 withdrawals, according to Ethereum block explorer beaconchai.in.
Currently, around 44% of validators, or 244,603 of the total active 562,572, can request a partial or full withdrawal. The majority of withdrawals at this time are ranging between 2.8 to 3.2 ETH, suggesting that most of the withdrawals are rewards.
The Shapella hard fork is the most significant upgrade since The Merge on September 15, and it is a major milestone towards a fully functional proof-of-stake system.
Through Ethereum Investment Proposal EIP-4895, staked ETH was pushed from the Beacon Chain to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), also known as the execution layer, which made withdrawals possible.
The hard fork can theoretically unlock 18.1 million Ether, currently equating to over $34.8 billion. However, mechanisms are in place to prevent a flood of the ETH supply from hitting the market, according to the Ethereum Foundation.
The Ethereum Foundation hosted an official watch party for the Shapella hard fork. This is a significant moment for Ethereum validators, who have been waiting for months to withdraw their staked Ether and rewards.
The successful execution of the Shapella hard fork marks a significant step towards a fully functional proof-of-stake system, which is more energy-efficient and scalable than the current proof-of-work system.
The proof-of-stake consensus mechanism allows validators to stake their Ether as collateral to validate transactions and create new blocks on the blockchain.
Validators are rewarded with newly minted Ether for their work, and they can earn a significant return on their investment if they are successful.
The proof-of-stake mechanism is also more environmentally friendly than the proof-of-work mechanism, which requires validators to solve complex mathematical puzzles to validate transactions and create new blocks.
The proof-of-work mechanism requires a lot of computational power and energy, which makes it expensive and unsustainable in the long run.
The Ethereum community has been eagerly anticipating the transition to a proof-of-stake system, and the successful execution of the Shapella hard fork is a significant step in that direction.
While there are still some challenges to overcome, such as the scalability and security of the network, the Ethereum community is confident that they can overcome these challenges and build a better blockchain for the future.
Ethereum Shapella Hard Fork
In conclusion, the successful execution of the Shapella hard fork is a significant milestone for the Ethereum community. Validators can now withdraw their staked Ether and rewards from the Beacon Chain, marking a significant step towards a fully functional proof-of-stake system.
While there are still some challenges to overcome, the Ethereum community is confident that they can build a better blockchain for the future.