Ethereum’s The Merge, which is slated to take place in September, has been the main focus of the crypto market since its first announcement. However, that’s only one of the major changes that’s expected to revolutionize the crypto market. We all have witnessed the market’s several changes and developments over the past couple of months, and are sure that there’s more to come.
Zipmex has compiled major news updates and occasions that happened in the first half of 2022, as well as intel on events worth watching over the next couple of months.
Read through this article to stay updated.
The Merge’s testnet is reportedly 90% successful
Short definition: The Merge is the major Ethereum upgrade that will change the network’s consensus mechanism to Proof-of-Stake. Click here to learn more!
As reported by Crypto Potato, Tim Beiko, Ethereum’s development Team Lead announced the deployment of The Merge’s testnet on 28 July 2022. The upgrade’s purpose is to improve the Ethereum network with few major changes. Changes include the consensus mechanism switch to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) from Proof-of-Work (PoW) of the network and Goerli testnet or Prater, which is the Ethereum mainnet’s simulator.
The testnet called Paris, has been operating from 6 – 12 August 2022, in addition to the Bellarix upgrade on 4 August.
According to the original announcement, The Merge will occur on 19 September 2022. The node operators will upgrade the consensus mechanism layers, meaning there’s no action required on ETH holders and stakers’ end.
However, keep in mind that the release date can be delayed in case of unexpected incidents.
Node operator: The node operator runs transactions across the network as blockchain validators.
Furthermore, announcements surrounding The Merge increased ETH price by 15%: The asset was traded at US$ 1,372 on 27 July 2022 and hiked to US$ 1,667 on 28 July.
Cardano’s Vasil Hard Fork successful test run
Short definition: Vasil Hard Fork is an upgrade to the Cardano blockchain that focuses on the network’s stability and connectivity. Read more about Vasil Hard Fork here.
Chales Hoshinson, Cardano’s co-founder, revealed that the Vasil hard fork’s test run was successful, thanks to the great effort of over 700 staff members.
Hoskinson also mentioned that the Cardano’s testnet deployed the hard fork in order to upgrade version 1.35 Vasil in the beginning of August. Hoskinson was a software upgrade that applied a decentralized application test before utilizing the new software on the main blockchain.
The hard fork also upgraded many other things on the network such as the smart contract’s consensus mechanism, and testnet’s dApps.
Short definition: Smart contracts manage to execute transactions based on terms and conditions that are stipulated on the blockchain.
More importantly, to enhance access security, the passcode feature will be deployed on the app. Cardano will launch the new passcode and crypto lab at Stanford university, in the end of August. The lab’s main goal is to be the hub of decentralized financial protocol, consensus mechanisms, and more, according to Hoskinson’s statement.
Tether, Bitfinex, and Hypercore’s partnership to launch the Keet platform
Keet platform: An encrypted application with file sharing, voice and video call features.
CoinTelegraph reported that Tether has partnered with Bitfinex and Hypercore to develop and launch an encrypted platform called Holepunch to expand P2P or peer-to-peer applications.
The three musketeers – Tether, Bitfinex, and Hypercore – have launched Keet, an encrypted application that enables many functions such as voice and video calls, chats, as well as file sharing.
More importantly, the app is developed mainly for more effective information control and to reduce the likelihood of technology monopoly.
Technology monopoly: When a firm takes full control of the way technology products should be manufactured.
The developers believe that freedom of choice, communication, and finance is the future, which they have fully dedicated themselves to developing.
Holepunch currently operates as a closed protocol because it is under the modeling stage, which is similar to a testing version. It will switch to an open-source platform by the end of 2022. The transition will not use blockchain as a core technology but will implement APIs under the Lightning network.
The Sandbox partners with Gravity to bring Ragnarok into the metaverse
The Sandbox has announced its partnership with Gravity, a world-class gaming company, to bring the popular online game, Rangnarok, onto the metaverse. Users can enjoy the gameplay and create their characters in the futuristic game jam’s theme.
Cindy Lee, The Sandbox Korea’s CEO, mentioned that the team was honored to work on the all-time people’s favorite game, Ragnarok. The partnership is also expected to bring more players into the metaverse, as Ragnarok is a classic game with a big fanbase.
Gordon Ramsay to open Hell’s Kitchen on The Sandbox metaverse
Gordon Ramsay, a Michelin Star chef revealed that his famous show, Hell’s Kitchen will be brought into the metaverse. Anyone can participate in the show, have their own Hell’s Kitchen experience, including meeting Gordon Ramsay’s avatar on The Sandbox platform.
Even though the launch date hasn’t been officially released, the public has been looking forward to see the metaverse version of their favorite show.
Santander, a Brazilian bank, to allow cryptocurrency trading
As reported by Coindesk.com, Banco Santander bank, a branch of Santander Group, is planning to launch a crypto trading project for their clients. Mario Leao, the CEO mentioned that more information about the service will be released in the middle of October.
‘We are fully aware that the crypto market will still exist, and the bank doesn’t position itself as a crypto trading competitor. The vision of the project is to meet our client’s needs and to provide investment information,’ mentioned Leao.
Besides, Santander bank also plans to launch more crypto projects in Latin-American countries within 2022. One of the projects is a lending service for farmers in Argentina launched in March. In this program, lending is guaranteed by token assets created with Agrotoken.
Furthermore, many other financial institutions in Brazil have also started their crypto project fundraising. Recently, PicPay, a Fintech company, announced the launch of its crypto trading exchange and stablecoin. In addition, Mercado Libre, one of the biggest e-commerce companies in Latin America, has allowed users to buy and sell in cryptocurrency.
These updates above are just a part of the changes that occurred in the crypto market. It is obvious that the movements do not only rotate around crypto investment, but they have already spread to a variety of businesses and industries worldwide.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is not intended to provide investment or financial advice. Investment decisions should be based on the individual’s financial needs, objectives, and risk profile. We encourage readers to understand the assets and risks before making any investment entirely.
