Here are a few possible explanations for why Ethereum (ETH) rose nearly 50% in 6 days
Ethereum has experienced a massive rally over the last six days, with its price increasing by a whopping 50% against the USD. ETH has also outperformed BTC, rising by 25% over the same period. This move comes about a month after the cryptocurrency was trading within a relatively narrow range that broke to the upside.
The Rally of Ethereum's Ninth Shadow Fork
As CryptoPotato reported on July 15th, Ethereum's ninth shadow fork went live, completing some of the final testing steps toward a proof-of-stake (PoS) network. It was created to put to the test the changes made in the recent Sepolia hard fork, which occurred on July 6th. It will also emphasize a maximum extractable value (MEV) increase feature. This one refers to the maximum value that can be extracted from block production above and beyond the standard gas fees and block reward. Miners currently extract MEV because the network is based on proof-of-work. However, once 'The Merge' occurs, validators will be able to extract the most value.
Ethereum 2.0 is set to launch on September 19th (Not Final)
Another significant update that the community received was the release date for Ethereum 2.0, the long-awaited event that the entire industry is anticipating. Superphiz, an ETH developer and Beacon Chain "community health consultant," revealed on Twitter that the merger is set to take place on September 19th under a soft schedule that is not yet final.
Ethereum has risen by more than 45 percent, outperforming the market. There could be several reasons for the surge, but one of the most prominent could be the Merge. As investor sentiment continues to rise, the market's overall momentum appears to be bullish. Last week, Ethereum Foundation member Tim Beiko proposed September 19 as Merge's preliminary launch date. The Merge represents the union of Ethereum's existing execution layer (the Mainnet as we know it today) and its new proof-of-stake consensus layer, the Beacon Chain. It does away with the need for energy-intensive mining in favor of securing the network with staked ETH. The current Ethereum Mainnet will soon be combined with the Beacon Chain proof-of-stake system. This will be the final step in Ethereum's transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake. This lays the groundwork for future scaling enhancements such as sharding. According to its website, the Merge will reduce Ethereum's energy consumption by approximately 99.95 percent.
Ethereum is a blockchain-based software platform that uses its native cryptocurrency, ether, to send and receive value globally. Ethereum, which was proposed in 2013 by Russian-Canadian computer programmer Vitalik Buterin, was designed to increase the utility of cryptocurrencies by allowing developers to create Ethereum-based applications known as 'decentralized applications,' or apps.
Ether, the second largest cryptocurrency, has dropped more than 58 percent in 2022 (YTD) and is trading far below its all-time high of $4,878 set in November last year. The cryptocurrency price rally continued today, breaking Bitcoin out of a one-month trading range and sparking significant gains in smaller tokens known as altcoins.