Ethereum 2.0 Phase 0 has just launched today. Phase 0 of Ethereum 2.0, also known as the Beacon Chain will introduce a new consensus mechanism—proof of stake—to the network. Ethereum’s first step towards a massive upgrade has just gone live at 12:00 pm UTC today.
The launch of ETH 2.0 went smoothly, as the required stake participation rate has been reached to finalize the upgrade of the blockchain. The proof-of-stake algorithm allows for the confirmation of the blocks to be more energy-efficient, and requires validators to stake Ether instead of solving a cryptographic puzzle.
A week before the launch of Ethereum 2.0, the minimum required for the deposit contract was reached as over 524,288 were locked up. Ether’s price has rallied prior to its launch, as many investors were bullish on ETH as an enormous amount of Ethereum were deposited.
At the time that the Beacon chain was launching the proof-of-work difficulty on Ethereum also hit an all time high. Vitalik Buterin,…