A Ethereum (ETH) testnet, Sepolia, today successfully released withdrawals of ETH from it strike contract executed. That means the long-awaited Shanghai update of the Ethereum network has come a step closer.
Ethereum strike recordings
The Shanghai update on the Ethereum network will make the switch from proof of work (PoW) to proof of stake (PoS) complete. From that moment on it will be possible for validators to strike rewards and the Ethereum network will officially be fully proof-of-stake.
Validators need 32 ETH to validate on the Ethereum blockchain. They will be able to withdraw rewards on top of the locked 32 ETH after the Shanghai update, while continuing to validate. Of course it will also be possible for validators to withdraw their 32 ETH completely from the staking contract.
Another important test will have to be successfully performed on Ethereum’s Goerli test network before that happens. If this test also goes according to plan and no new problems emerge, the next step will be the Shanghai rollout on the mainnet from Ethereum.
Sepolia testnet has successfully upgraded to Shapella! 🌃
Some of the Prsym validators are offline due to the old geth version. They will come online in the next 10 minutes!
Next stop: Goerli pic.twitter.com/pb43Gq7w9C
— terence.eth (@terencechain) February 28, 2023
Shanghai updates
Based on the time between previous tests, the Goerli test is expected to take place sometime around March 21. Goerli is Ethereum’s largest testnet and also the most similar testnet to Ethereum’s mainnet. This test is therefore also seen as the big dress rehearsal.
Possibly a successful Goerli test in March means that we can expect the Shanghai update as early as April. That is only a slight delay from the initial goal of Ethereum developers when the Shanghai update was announced.
In any case, staking ETH seems very popular. It was in it a few days ago Ethereum news to read that staking protocol Lido Finance experienced the largest influx of ETH ever. Whopping 150,000 ether tokens worth $240 million was locked into the Ethereum staking contract via Lido on Saturday, February 25.