Ethereum Merge Takes Place on Kiln Testnet
Kiln is the final public testnet before Ethereum’s transition to a proof-of-stake network.
Mar 16, 2022 at 9:57 a.m. UTCUpdated Apr 9, 2024 at 11:34 p.m. UTC
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Ethereum merged on the Kiln testnet earlier this week ahead of the blockchain's eventual move to a proof-of-stake network, with network validators now producing post-merge blocks containing transactions.
- Ethereum’s multi-stage shift to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism would validate transactions using nodes run by “stakers.” This is in favor of the current proof-of-work design, which relies on centralized entities called “miners” for validating transactions on the network.
- “Merge” refers to deploying Ethereum’s execution layer – the term for the current Ethereum network – to the “consensus layer” of the Beacon chain, the term for Ethereum’s upcoming proof-of-stake blockchain.
- Kiln is expected to be the last merge testnet created before existing public testnets are upgraded, Ethereum Foundation developers said in a post. Application and tooling developers, node operators, infrastructure providers and stakers are currently encouraged to test on Kiln.
- While the Merge was largely successful, developer Tim Beiko pointed out a single client was not producing blocks and that the issue was being looked into.
- Stakers have locked up over 10 million ether (ETH), which was valued at over $25 billion at the time, on the Eth 2.0 deposit contract, as reported. Locked ether effectively takes out freely-traded ether from the open market while reducing circulating supply.
- Ether issuance per block would drop by two ether once the merge is live on the public Ethereum network. This would add to further pressure on supply and act as a catalyst for ether prices in the long term, some analysts say.
- Ether gained 6.2% over the past 24 hours as the merge was deployed on Kiln. Tokens exchange hands at just over $2,640 at the time of writing, following a temporary spike to just over $2,700 in early Asian hours on Wednesday.
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Shaurya is the Deputy Managing Editor for the Data & Tokens team, focusing on decentralized finance, markets, on-chain data, and governance across all major and minor blockchains.