Since Ethereum transitioned from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) in September of last year, there have been some notable changes. While fees have remained high but decreased slightly, the interest in staking has dropped significantly. Ethereum utilizes a form of staking that requires a minimum of 32 ETH to be fixed on a node, making validator nodes inaccessible to small holders. This has paved the way for Staking-as-a-Service, where large validator nodes offer small holders the option to stake their ETH on their nodes in exchange for a percentage of the revenue.
To become a validator node, one must apply and join a queue. In June, there were around 96,500 new validators waiting over 45 days to be accepted. However, the queue recently reached zero for a brief period and is now down to 996. The number of validator nodes peaked at less than 580,000 in May and rose to over 600,000 in June. But since mid-October, the growth has largely stopped.
The price of ETH has experienced fluctuations throughout the year. It started around $1,200 and reached $2,100 in April before declining to $1,800 by the end of April. It climbed back above $1,800 by mid-June and hit highs above $2,000 by mid-July. However, it has been mostly falling since then, hovering around $1,600 until August and then dropping below $1,600 again.
A notable anomaly occurred in October when Bitcoin lost 4.5% in two days while ETH lost 7% in three days. This divergence continued with Bitcoin gaining +9% over four days while ETH remained at +3%. The market capitalization ratio between BTC and ETH also increased during this time.
Currently, Bitcoin seems to be attracting most of the interest while altcoins receive less attention. Bitcoin tends to outperform altcoins during crypto winters, especially before halving events. There is also anticipation surrounding the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs, which could benefit BTC in the coming months. However, these trends may change as the BTC boom eventually gives way to other cryptocurrencies.
Despite the lack of interest in staking on Ethereum at the moment, there have been no reported technical problems with block validation on the blockchain. The current disinterest is likely a result of Bitcoin’s strength rather than any inherent issues with Ethereum. It is possible that the trend will change in the future as market dynamics shift.
In conclusion, while there has been a decline in interest in staking on Ethereum, this appears to be a temporary issue influenced by Bitcoin’s dominance in the market. There have been no significant technical problems with block validation on Ethereum’s blockchain, suggesting that this lack of interest is not indicative of any fundamental flaws with the platform.
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